New Ulm review. (New Ulm, Brown County, Minn.) 1892-1961, 1894-11-28
Ingersoll on Suicide.

Ingersoll on Suicide.
The following are few excerpts from
Ingersoll's latest paper on suicide.
What is morality? It is the hest thing
to do under the circumstances. What is
the best thing to do under the circum-
stances? That which will increase the
sum of human happiness or lessen it the
least. Happiness in it's highest, noblest
form, is the only good, that which in
creases or preserves or creates happiness
is moral-that which decreases it, or
puts 1t in peril, is immoral
It is impossible for me to see why any
belief in the supernatural is necessary to
have keen perception of right and
wrong. Every man who has the capaci-
ty to suffer and enjoy, and has magma
ton enough to give the same capacity to
others, has within himself the natural
basis OF all morality. The idea of NOR
ality was horn here, in this world, of the
experience, the intelligence Of mankind
Morality is not of supernatural origin.
It did not fall from the Clouds, and it
needs no belief in the supernatural, no
supernatural promises or threats, no su-
pernatural heavens or hells, to give it
force ard life. Subjects who are gov
erned by the threats and promises OF a
king are slaves. They are not governed
by the ideal, by noble views of right
and wrong. They are obedient towards
controlled by fear, or beggars, governed
by reward-by aims.
Right and wrong exist in the nature
of things. Murder was just as criminal
before as after the promulgation of the
Ten Commandments.
To my mind it seems clear that you
had better iujure yourself than another.
Better be spendthrift than thief, Bet
ter throw away your own money than
steal the money of another-better to
kill yourself if you wish to die than
murder one whose life is full of Joy.
It is perfectly apparent that there are
many people incapable by nature of
bearing the burdens of life, incapable of
preserving their mental poise in stress
and strain of disaster, disease and loss.
and who by failure, by misfortune and
want, are driven to despair and insanity,
in whose darkened minds there comes
like flash OF lightning in the MI ght the
though: of death, thought so strong,
so vivid, that all fear is lost, all ties
broken, all duties, all obligations, all
hopes forgotten, and naught remains ex-
cept fierce and wild desire to die.
Thousands and thousands become moody
melancholy, brood upon loss of money,
of position, of friends, until reason ab-
dicates and frenzy takes possession of
the SOUL
No man has right to leave his wife
to fight the battle alone if he is able to
help. No man has right to desert his
children if he can possibly be of use. AS
long as he can add to the comfort of
those he loves, as long as he can stand
between wife and misery. between child
and want, as long as he can be cf use, it
is his duty to remain.
believe in the cheerful view, in look
ing at the sunny side of things, in bear
ing with fortitude the evils of life, in
struggling against adversely, in finding
the fuel of laughter even in disaster, in
having confidence in tomorrow, in find
ing the pearl of joy amid the flint and
shards, and in changing by the alchemy
of patience even evil things to good. I
believe in the gospel of cheerfulness, of
courage and good nature.
The existence of God I neither affirm
nor deny. wait. The Immortality CT
the soul, neither affirm nor deny. I
hope-hope for all the children of men.
I have never denied the existence of an
other world, nor the Immortality of the
soul. For many years I have said that
the idea of Immortality, that like sea
has ebbed and flowed in the human heart
with its countless waves of hope and
fear, beating against the shores and
rocks of time and fate, was not born of
any book, nor OF any creed, nor Of an-
religion. It was born of human affection
and it will continue to ebb and flow be-