Waterbury evening Democrat., 1893-10-26
THE GOSPEL OF WORK
EMILE zoLAs STIRRING ADVICE TO
FRENCH STUDENTS.

cred Before a Body OF Young Men In
Paris-The Relation between Science
and Happiness Explained.
Emile lola, the famous novelist, pre-
sided at dinner given by the Students
association of Paris. In the course of
the evening he spoke as follows:
Did science ever promise happiness?
do not think so. Science promised the
truth, and it is questionable if happiness
can be made out of facts. To be con-
tent with them even for day one must
possess a stoicism, an absolute unselfish-
ness, a serenity of intelligence possible
only to the highest minds. Therefore a
despairing cry goes up from suffering
humanity. How. it asks. can we live
without decisions and illusions? If there
is not somewhere Il world where justice
reigns, where the wicked are punished
and the good rewarded, how endure the
denominations of human existence? Ma
ture is unjust and cruel. Science ends
in the monstrous law of the survival of
the strOnge.t. Reasoning thus, recoiling
from realities rs yet i'll explained, they
seek Il dream. put confidence in the out
of sight and hope to satisfy in the 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 it, lit
erature is trying to satisfy the new thirst,
and art is changing to show its sympa-
thy. 1t is the reaction against natural
ism, which is, they say, dead and buried
At any rate the movement is undcniable.
1t is felt in all the manifestations of
mind, and unless it is taken into ac-
count, studied and explained the out
look for the morrow is hopeless.
l, being an old and rugged positivist,
see in all this only halt in the march
ahead. Indeed it is not even that, for
our libraries, laboratories, amphithea-
tiers and schools are not deserted. What
treasures me most is the fact that tho
social ground is unchanged. For a new
art to flourish, for new belief to give
humanity new direction, there must
be a new soil for them to terminate and
grow in. Ours is still the democratic
soil whence the century rose Faiths
are not resusci:ated, and only n mythol-
ogy can be made of Il dead religion. The
next century will affirm this one. What
| will concede is that in literature we
brought the horizon too near, and per-
sonally | regret having ondeavorcd to
limit art to proved voritics.
The new men, by re-extcnding the
horizon, have regainCd possession of the
unknown and the mysterious and they
have done we'll. Between the truths ac-
Quired through science, which are not to
be shaken, and the truths TO he con-
quercd tomorrow from the unknown,
which III their turn Will become ln.mov-
able there Is n land OF doubt and inquiry.
Inns land belongs as much to literature
as TO science. into 1t we can 80 as plo-
neers, DONG tho Work or precursors and
Interpreting according TO our talents,
MS Unknown forces: Inc ideal Is only
inc unexplained 1t Is well enough to
invent solutions Tor the UNKNOWN but
we n''Ne no rl@ht 10 NJ III question aNd
SO neh$ iac'S are. ~ TrFiileu' As SCI
enc" advances the lG'"l retreats anu II
seems |" NC tI'"' Inns SLOW conquest
though we nave tue melancholy ceru-
tu,i' '' never showing an HlN'S Me It's
Only reason us uhIN Joy
III tltso ttouu1ous days youth Is toIu
10 peheNe, nut hooouS tells II exactly
WnHt 70 pCheEe. beIeNe' lheE say, Tor
inc sake Oh the hiippilleSS that comes
from UtL4eN my, ana HlosI especially ne-
ileNe III oruer mat You may learn 10 be
lleVe. The ADVICE Is not bad IN itself. 1t
Is certainly great joy to rcpose upon
the assurance gwen by any faith, no mat
ter what. The difficulty Is that one can
not believe by beng Wiling to do so.
FAITH Is wind that blows where 1t list
eth ana there only
In conclusion lct me offer You Il creed
the creed OF work. Dung men. work!
am aware That no counsel could be
more banal. In every school ut the end
OF every term 1t IS given 10 every boy,
and every boy hears with Indifference.
But let me, who have never been any
thing except n worker, tell you the re
ward have gained from the long toll
whose effort has filled my life. The
world was harsh to me Mt first. l have
known poverty and despair. Later my
existence was battle, and even now the
night goes on and my work Is questioned,
contradlcted, lnsult"d. Through 1t all
my support has been inccsSant work,
regular. daily, for an end never forgot
ten. How often have seated myself Mt
my table. tortured by some great pain,
physical or moral! And each time. after
the first minutes Of agony, my task has
to continue tho strngrIa ,rI ov.ait fho
morrow.
Work is the law of thu world-the
unknown goal. Life has no other reason
for being, and each of us Is here only 10
yNo,. II