The Yellowstone journal. [volume] (Miles City, Mont.) 1893-1901, 1893-07-17
H GOSPELOF WORK
EMILE zOLA'5 STIRRING ADVICE re
FIRE ca STUDENTS

68tb~to = SVdsssTtS SIstefH petsN
cred Befo i, a Body Of Young Men lr
Paris-Ths Relation Between Science
and Hspv ness Explained.
Emile Iola. the famous novelist. pre-
sided at a dinner given by tine Students
association of Paris. In the course o.
the evening he spoke as follows:
Did science ever promise happiness
! do not think SO. Science promised the
truth. and il is questionable if happiness
can be made ont Of facts. To lie con
tent with them even for a day one must
possess a stoicism, an absolute unselish
ness. a serenity of intelligence possible
only TO the highest minds. Therefore 9
despairing cry goes up from suffering
humanity. How il asks. can we liv.
without delusions and Illusions: If there
is not somewhere Il world where justice
reigns. where the wicked are punished
and the good rewarded. how endure thf
denominations Of human existence: Ma
ture is unjust and cruel. Science ends
in the monstrous law of the survival Of
the strongest. Reasoning tins. recoillaa
from realities as yet i'll explained. the,
seek a dream. put confidence in the out
of sight and hope TO satisfy in tine be
yond their yearning for fraternity and
justice.
This despairing appeal for happiness
rising on every side. moves me infinitely
Already music has responded to il, lit
erature is trying TO satisfy the new thirs!
and art is changing to show its svmpa
thy 1t is the reaction against natural
ism. which is. they say, dead and buried
At any rate the movement is undeniabl.
1t is felt in all the manifestations ot
mind. and unless it is taken into &C
count. studied and explained the out
look for the morrow is hopeless.
l. being an old and rugged positivist
see in all this only a Lalt in the march
ahead. Indeed it is not even that. 70,
our libraries. laboratories. aInphitbea
tiers and schools are o deserted. What
treasures me most Is the fact that the
social ground is unchanged For a nev
art To flourish. for a new belief 10 give
humanity a lew direction. there must
be a new soil for them TO ~germInate auG
grow in Ours is still tn, democratic
soil wherce the century rose Faith.
Il ioL 4'-At-A+AthATfa tsAAA IL a. 4 ~
ogv can bs made of n dead religion. Tit
next century will affirm tai, one. hat
! viii concaie Is that in literature we
brought the horis&I too near. and per
sonally | yet having ~cndeavorei to
limit art to proved y~eritles.
The new men. by re-extending The
horizon. have resained possession Of the
unknown and the mysterious. and they
have done well. Between the truths ac
quired through science. which are not tc
BE- shaken, and the truths to be con
auered tomorrow from the unknown
which in their turn will become i,nmov
able, there is a land of doubt and inquiry
This land belongs as much to literature
a. to science. Into it we can go as pio-
neers. doing the work Of precursors and
interpreting. according to our talents,
its unknown forces. The ideal is only
the unexplained. 1t is well enough TO
invent solutions for the unknown, but
we have no right to put in question and
70 deny facts already verified. As sci
NICE advances the ideal retreats. and it
though ~ have the melancholy cert;-
tude of neve knowing all. gives life its
only reason, its only joy.
In these troublous days youth is told
70 believe, but nobody tells it exactly
what to believe. Believe, they say, for
Tie sake of the happiness that comes
from believing. and most especially be
love in order that you may learn to BE-
lSsve. The advice is not bad in itself. II
y certainly . great joy to repose upon
the assurance given by any faith, no mat
ter what. The difficulty Is that me . n
not believe by being willing to do so.
Faith is . wind that blows where it list
eth. and there only.
In conclusion let me offer you . creed
tho creed of work. Young men. work!
am aware that no counsel could be
more banal. In every school at the end
q every term it is given to every boy,
nd every boy hears it with indifference.