The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1896-01-10

Westminster vestry gave notice 10
move that they be Withdrawn from
two two public libraries In Westmins-
ter, and that the other local authori-
ties in London be requested TO take the
same course in regard to the Libraries
under their control" Several Libraries
had already done this. perhaps without
sufficient consideration. We have
never had any acquaintance whatever
beyond common repute with the au-
thor in question or his literary works.
But these, we presume. were good 70
have become so popular. and IL they
were good then they must be the same
now. Here we regard only the prtn-
ciple involved. This resolves itself In
to the query, Should we prohibit or
refuse good work because of the i'm
morality of the author or doer?
The absurdity of an Affirmative to
this question should be self-evident.
and. IL carried out. would land US into
endles difficulties. II our baker bakes
good bread or our bootmaker makes
good boots we do not ask what are the
morals of these tradesmen before eat
ing the bread and wearing the boots.
1t would be agreeable to know that
they are worthy people, and sad to
think them the reverse. but the use
fulness of their handiwork would not
be affected by either sentiment In
deed, one ought to be thankful to be
able to get a good thing at all with
out troubling about the moral de-
ficiencies of the makers.
We do not inquire before buying
picture whether the artist is moral or
otherwise. The quality of the work is
all we regard. If literature Is to be an
exception to this custom there would
be very little left but that of inferior
value, for, unfortunately, as we have
said, the men of the highest genius
have been too frequently of extremely
shaky morals.
The virtuous vestryman of Westmins-
ter no doubt goes to church regularly
and enjoys the psalms of David and the
songs of his son, Solomon. But the
worst of modern authors are the pinks
of proprlety compared TO those Old
poetic Jews who perpetrated every VII
lainy under the sun. However, we do
not, on that account. move that these
amorous religious illusions be with
drawn from Westminster abbey and
other churches. On the contrary, II
their perusal will do any one any good.
by all means let people read them. And
let US thank God 1t ds possible to educe
good from the evE. and to paint the
beauty of the rose and the fairness OF
the lilly from the odor of the stable.
1t is surprising how virtuous every
body is when some one more unfortu-
nate is found out. Men have been prac-
ticing an indescribable and abominable
custom from time immemoriad. The
greatest and most accomplished were
frequently addicted to ii and thousands
of well-born and high-bred In our
country to-day still follow 1t. If the
wave of indignation which has just
passed over the EngliSh-speaking ma
ticns demands that the intellectual
work of it's votaries be also condemned
then, to be consistent, we must pro-
hfbit THE choicest efforts of genius
Horace. and most of the rest of the an
cient classics must be burnt, the BIZ
Bile expuIgated, and possibly Shakes
peare himself would come under the
ban. Are our great works to make
room for some of the pulling and de-
moralizing novels of up-to-date writers
the giants to give way to pigmies? II
would seem so If we permit vestrymen
TO decide.
If we are genuine i'm our desire &C
root out his Immortality we should at
tack tihe many, instead of making
Scapegoats of one or two. We should
check the growth of this abominatioc
in our schcross and colleges, where oui
youths are too often educated in the
vice and stamp 1t out in our army and
navy as we did leprosy. And our sense
of virtue should impea us toll ay hands
urcn that viler and far more important
abuse-the seduction and ruin of inno-
cent g.rls-1or, unlike the other this Is
followed by every evil-murder, infan-
ticde, restitution, disease or death.