The herald., 1893-02-19

tn6 pr0xlmaC0 causes OF the ex-
treme wealth and the extreme
poverty that are the marked
characteristics OF nineteenth century
western civilization, worked energeti-
cally for the spread among the people of
knowledge of these causes, so that their
knowledge might enable them to cure
the ills under which society is suffering.
The vigorous propaganda OF sane and
well-considered Socialism, carried on by
myself and many others, has certainly
changed the direction in which the
Radical party was moving, and it is
probable that in the course of the next
20 years many of the changes we advo-
cate will take legislative shape.
and will largely transform the social
environment. But there was one gnawing
anxiety which made itself felt ct my
heart during those years of eager propa-
gandist work, and that was: "When
these changes are accomplished. when
the basis of society is justice instead of
injustice, when none live idly, and there
ia comfort for all, will there appear in
the new environment the old evils,
and will human passion, greed and
selishness once more eat away the
foundations of social peace and destroy
the,hardly-made equilibrium of society ?"
AS often msrked that the animated
feeling of my hearers was hatred rather
than love, that the longing to rebel
against injustice that wronged them was
more potent than the longing 60 win
Justice Tor all, that it was still the policy
Of a class against class rather than the
yearning for brotherhood in the nation !;
AZ ali this WAS often borne in on me my
f.l ~l falt 81 &c
some mightier magic than by poor wits
could MASTER, less to transform the
social environment than to transform
the men and women who dwelt
therein. The desperate misery, the
hesrtrending degradation, the mad
dening sense of impotence in
face of the widespread evil, all these
things tear at the hearts OF those who
would give their very lives if life might
serve as redemption OF the poor, the
outcast and the vile. Into this black
ness of darkness stepped Theosophy
once more with word OF hope, nay, OF
certainty of cure. 1t explained the evils
while it pointed to the sure way OF es-
cape, and it whispered OF a road of ut
termost eelf-sacri6ce, OF completest self
surrender that those might take who
cared more for mankind than they
feared suffering, who loved their race
better than themselves. Most painfal
OF all in the old days was it to feel that
the case of the adults one addressed was
hopeless; that no change that could be
brought about could make amends for
the wrongs they had endured, nor open
up to them life worthy to be lived by
men.
But the new teaching, unveiling the
pact OF humanity, made the present in
telligible and the future radiant with
hope. For it told that man was an i'm.
mortal life veiled in human body, and
that this life-which was mans
intelligence and spirit-dwelt in this
house of flesh for the sake of
the lessons to be learned in it; that its
tenancy of one such dwelling lasted
through the period that we call mans
life, and that when death came to eject
the tenant, we passed, after period OF
rest, into q new tabernacle and lived
through another life on earth. That this
experience was repeated again and
again, each reincarnation bringing its
own lessons of experience, and that the
diligence of the scholar in learning and
assimilating those lessons conditioned
the progress that he made. That in
order to acquire full knowledge and to
grow to the stature of the perfect man,
poverty must be lived through as well as
wealth, labor as we'll as ease, struggle as
well as peace, and that as each such con-
dition had lessons of its own that could
be learned in no other class in life's
school, each condition would be well
coined by the wise man, who sought in
all growth rather than enjoyment.
How should wealth and luxury teach
endurance, patience and eelf-denial, or
idlensss teach strenuous effort, or ease
teach fortitude and virile strength? Yet
without these man would remain q limp,
nerveless, invertebrate organism; he
would never evolve into hero, serenely
and joyously strong. Mans most
precious flowers of virtue are bat un-
folded buds that were known as pains
and sorrows the bud of long-continued
suffering flowers into fortitude; the bud
of pain into sympathy; the bud OF be-
reavement into unselfshness the bud
of poverty into self-sacrifice the bud OF
contempt into compassion. Which of
US grudges the effort that brings some
great reward in earthly joy; and who,
once understanding the answer to life's
riddles, can grudge the price of pain for
which virtue is given in exchange7
Thus when we see human life travail
ing in pain, we know that soma holy
thing is to be born of it, and even while
our heart throbs in sympathy with the
anguish, we know, with peace and Joy
past all telling, that the pain shall pass
md the new life shall endure, the sor.
row vanish and the strength born of it
remain. 1t has been and is so with our
selves, and must be 30 with others. Thus
man achieves his full manhood, and the
race evolves towards its goal.
Nor is it the least merit of Theosophy