The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1891-10-25
"a LESSON NEVER LEA NED"

In the current Judge there is cartoon by
VICTOR which is called, "a Lesson which
is Never Learned" Half reclining on
rock by lake shore, which he has labeled
Scandal - is an adventures clad in dra-
peries that reveal rather than cover the
voluptuous lines of her form. About her
feet are strewn the skulls and other bones
ST her victims; and little farther in the
back ground of the bone yard are monu-
ments on which are inscribed the names of
MARK ANTHONY. GAMBETTA, Prince RI
DoLPH, RAY HAMILTON, and jim FISK.
How infinitely could the list have been ex-
tended! at the base of the rock on which
the siren reclines is the sword, the girdle
and military hat of the late General BoU-
LANCER, and new arrived on the rugged
shore is the barQue on which, reclining as
on bier, are the remains of the late
CHARLES STEWART PARNELL, but on the
distant lake are other boats under full sail,
heading for the same disastrous shore,
watched with evident delight by the false
eyes of the siren, who seems to be ready to
welcome all corners.
Here at a glance is told the story of
human weakness; of woman's shame and
mans pertdy: of woman's sorrow and
mans undoing! What volumes are writ
ten on rum and its victims What lectures
delivered on the evil of money getting
with its frauds and cheats and hypocrisy !
What sermons preached about ambition
and its hRrshness-the sin by which the
angels fell from thrones in heaven to fires
in hell But who warns poor, frail
humanity from the shoals and rocks, the
bogs and quicksands of Illicit love! Yes,
its victims outnumber those of rum, or
those of avarice; cereainly they outnumber
those Of ambition. Often, too, it happens,
that among those who fall victims to its
allurements are men of finest sensibihties
and highest intellectual attainments Scat
tered along the shore OF that island, in
habited by the siren who by her beauty
or vivacity lures men to their
destruction, are to be seen the
graves or bones of statesmen, patriots,
soldiers, poets, sculptors, authors
the gifted sons of genius, in short, seem to
be the favorite victims of the ench&ntress,
whose smile haunts the vision, whose
breath is contagion, whose touch is disease,
whose kiss is death, whose "steps take hold
on hell"'
With all this before US, it is one of the
strangest things in the world that the press
and pulpit, as well as home training and in.
fiuence, exert so little of their energies to
avert the calsmities which follow in the
wake of this most subtle and alluring, as it
is also the most dangerous Of those tempta-
tons which beset the pathway of man.
This neglect can only be accounted for by
the fact that delicacy is felt by paren Us,
teachers, ministers and even editors
hardened as the latter are supposed to be-
in dealing with the subject. It lie proper
too, that that delicacy be preserved in al
its sensltiveness, as IL is one Of the evi.
dences that neither man nor society il
wholly depraved. Vet 1t should not be 8
false delIc8cy-an assumed virtue, j,
should not be whited sepulchre-as, alas
IN too many instances is the csse-appear-
ing outwardly beautiful while within 1t /,
full & corruption and rotteuness
u should not be mask tc
in private. 1t should be real, and spring
from pure heart. Then it is all lovely az
81 is all glorious aad ali blessed. We arr
Of the opinion that 1t can exist in all it;
beauty and be preserved N all its sensi.
tiveness, and yet from home and pulpit
from press and school-the great avenue,
through which we may instruct the chill
dren Of men-may be sounded warnings IL
respect to this great evil which shall bette,
fortify men against its allurements and ths
deep damnation that follows them.
A singular thing connected with thi.
theme is the party upon whom the blame
falls; at whom the maledictions of societ,
are hurled. The party whom we denomi.
nate the weaker vessel, except in rare
cases, is compelled to carry the create,
burden of shame and blame. When the
man Of genius, perhaps the statesman OF
patriot or soldier, falls, as much the vic
tim OF his own unbridled passions as o,
the alluriag wiles of the siren, what sym.
pathy, what regrets are expressed for hin
and his unhappy fateI But who ever hear,
of condonement for his unfortunate Assoc
ciate in the great crimes And what i,
stranger still, her own sex is usually Ioud
est in condemnation, the least merci.
full, the slowest to forgive. Far h,
1t from Us to say that woman
should 20 scot-free from responsibility In