The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1897-07-19


VS.. Our Brethers' Keepers.
The Sunday papers gave a good aeai
of space TO the discussion OF q new
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS movement which
was exploited earlier in the week, and IA
which Mr.. n Mrs. Montgomery-MeGov-
ern. of Brooklyn-whoever they may be-
are the grand paaiandrums. Briefly. the
proposition of these two persons is that
ali weak children should be promptly
killed; that all persons permanently dis-
abled should BE- put to death in a mer-
ciful manner; that persons IN
mind or body by age should be killed.
and that all incurable lunaties should be
electrocuted or -asphyxiatee by gas. Mar
riages should be supervised by the State
on scientific principles, only physical
mates being licensed TO wed after
a searching inquiry as to their
compatibility. Criminals should not
be treated as victims of disease;
a murderer, for instance, should not
be killed, but should be imprisoned
for life and aogged daily as long as he
lasted.
The theories of this cheerfully humans
tartan couple, III are founding q society
to propagate their beliefs, are discussed
by Robert C. Ingersoll, Ella Wheeler
wilcox other profound thinkers IN
truly edifying fashion. Robert, for in
stance. hits on the expression that there
can be no true religion without science,
and rings the changes on it for a thou
sand words or so, incidentally forgetting
to tell US what he means by it. Ella,
on the other hand. arises to the coneiu-
sion that science can never take the place
of love. This has the advantage, as an
axiom, of being both comprehensive and
true. Indeed one might think it be-
longed to the philosophy of the obvious,
il Ella did not find 1t necessary to say
it in 2.72l words.
Perhaps the observation-disclosures
cult would hardly be worthy of notice
OQLSlQe lHt OptId-OOA4AS O4AA
Sunday world and Journal" If it
were not for the illustration which 1t
affords OF the tendency of morbid busy
bodydom, the curse of curses of our age.
Having exhausted the field of their neigh
bors' morals, their ~neighbors'
their neighbors' minds, their neighbors
occupations and their neighbors' sanitary
surroundings and conditions, it is not
wonderful to find the Comsteck-Gerry-
Parkhurst element attacking the problem
whether their neighbors shall be allowed
to " at all. or not.
The mania for s~upplanting free WILL
private Judgment and individual destiny
by dfetation and Journalism has only on
or two steps further to go to reduce life
to conditions of Spartan unloveliness and
aridity. It is an alarming fact that the
coereive forces are the organized and
aggressive ones. They go or year after
year from one step to another. No legis-
latiye session adjourns without. at their
instance, placing some new limitation,
some new shackle. some new burden upon
private life, and it is no longer foolish to
entertain the gravest fears regarding the
future of the country if the present ten
denotes continue efficient.
Whether we shall be reduced to puri-
4anical limits again or whether the
people will revolt and the pendulum will
swing back to a condition of license. the
danger is equally great to the interests OF
society and the body polite. To prevent
the danger before it becomes extreme
should be the duty of all earnest
moderate men, and the time is about ripe
when they should organize, if necessary,
for the overthrow of the forces which
are making for the destruction Of ciyiliza-
ton under the cloak of an exaggerated
morality and benevolence.