San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1895-10-20
SUNDAY, OCTOBER 20, 1885,
MANS INHUMANITY.

The simple fact of mans inhu
manity, its cause as existing in the
conditions of human life and forced
upon man in the battle for bread,
rs also its office in stimulating to
effort, were the theme of the dis
course one week ago. This week
it is to be, as promised, the proba-
bility of that inhumanity continu-
ing permanent. The inquiry pro-
posed is this: Must this present
condition of supreme Indifference,
this selfish disregard of others,
this so-called inhumanity, must it
endure? Is there no hope in the
future of better things than in the
past?
To answer either yes or no is
easy, but to give satisfactory
reason therefor is not so easy. To
answer yes, is to assert promise
for the future that is more the
hope of the sanguine than a pa
tional deduction from the progress
s'ready made; to answer no, lis to
confess failure in the progress
of the race into better conditions
and shut the gates to- advance
ment. In neither direction does
the conservative, theGghtful, phil
osophical course I'D. That course
points out true direction
partaking more DR. less of both OPP
posites; just asj the earth in de-
scribing it's regular orbit is acted
upon by its trtfugal and centrip-
etal forces, obeying neither i'm
plicity, but both Pin modified way,
the CO. d mption resulting in
its describing it'd appointed orbit.
The deduction from whatever
premise, that there is no hope Of
better things in the future than in
the past, in so far as correction
of inhumanity is concerned, is not
accepted, because it not only shuts
the gates to human progress and
imprisons man in the dungeons, of
despair, but for the more obvious
reason that it is contrary to the
observed law of mans progress so
far as traced throughout the his
toric ages. That man is not as
coarse, as br utal, as inconsiderate
of his fellow, as Indifferent to his
calls for help, as inhuman, in short,
now as he was one hundred years
ago is not to be denied. That pro
gress of some sort has been made
in this direction is certain within
that period. The farther that in
quiry is pushed toward the morning
of the race the more clearly do we
see that out of the savagery Of
primitive condition some advance.
ment has been made.
The volume of that movement
may concern US later, also the laws
governing it and the efficient
causes that underlie it, but now
all that is needed is the fact of
movement. That fact established,
there is no longer any doubt as to
the wisdom of keeping the gates
open to farther advancement. III it
can be shown that this advance
ment is ia proportion to tho ac-
ceptance OF certain controlling
ideas, and that these are more
modern than ancient, then it is all
the more conclusively shown that
to bar thsprogress OF the race now
would be most unwise. To the
philosophical mind it is growing
clear that the struggle of the west.
ern civilization in Its battle for
material progress has overslaughed
the eastern civilization with its
greater effeminacy and its deeper
hold on the mental and spiritual
forces. That this eastern is now
gaining acceptance in the west is
Aalso noted.
Accepting the passing of the
period of active struggle among
the nations of the western world
for conquest anS empire by force
OF arms, there Eenters into The life
Of humanity \ - q
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