Daily new dominion. [volume] (Morgantown, W. Va.) 1897-1906, 1898-08-15
JUDGE JOHNSON
Has Word to Say about DIR. Wards
Lecture.

| want to bear testimony to the
success of the summer quarter at the
University. The personel of the near
one hundred and eighty students, is
much above the average, as many are
teachers, not only from this state, but
there are Others of mature minds from
other states. believe no Summer
School connected with any OF our
great Universities could boast OF
more able corps of lecturers than Dr.
Raymond has secured for our State
University during our summer quar-
ter. Such men as President Andrews
of Brown University, President But
Ter of Colby University, DR.. Hinsdale
of Michigan University, Prof. Zeublen
of the Chicago University, Miss Jane
Adams OF Hull House, DIR. L. +.
Ward, of the United Stated Geologi-
cal Survey and also connected with
the Smithsonian Institute, in Wash
ington, and many other Lecturers
have, and will be here. DR.. Raymond
is no ordinary man, or he could not
be so in touch with the great educa-
tional world as to secure such body
OF men to be instructors in our State
University even during the summer
months. He deserves the thanks of
our people for this successful effort.
But DR.. Raymond has been criticized
for securing DR.. Ward to deliver
series OF lectures on sociology. The crit
icismS or at least some Of them have
gone to fearful extent, toward deny
ing free discussion and the right to
hear free discussions. The spirit of
some Of the criticisms come from the
dark ages. The same spirit put to
death Socrates, imprisoned a Calico
upheld the inquisition, burned Serve
tus at the stake, lighted the fires of
Smith6eld, erected the gallows at Sa-
lem and drove Rogers Williams from
Massachusetts. 1t is the spirit Of in
tolerance. Its appearance in the dawn
of the twentieth century, in free
America under Constitution that
secures liberty of speech, and the
right to have any or no religion; aye
in West Virginia in whose motto
is Montani Semper Liberi whose
constitution prevents compulsory
attendance of the students
Of the University at the chapel exer-
cises, is disheartening to those who
rejoice, in the constitutional rights TO
entertain and express fully their opin-
ions on any subject. But what about
DR.. Wards lectures? He delivered
nearly fifty lectures on Sociology. /
entered his class of about thirty, and
heard every lecture save one, and
would have heard that one had | not
been prevented, by something unfor-
seen. They were the most learned
lectures / ever heard. | never had
as much mental stimulus as [ re-
ceived in that course. OF course |
did not believe the correctness of
all his positions. If in any
case | would admit his premises, his
logic was so clear that / would be COM
PEELED to admit his conclusions. He i'm
pressed me throughout,a as possessing an
intense love of humanity; and his whole
system is designed to better the condi-
ton OF society. His discovery and clas-
sification of the social forces, is clear.
and / believe in the main correct. He
dio iice "a GOV VI vi duJ OlHr
er religion except as a social force The
class did not regard itself as in Kinder
garten, or theological school It was
composed of men and women of ma
ture minds, and certainly ought to be
able to hold to the truth, and reject the
error If any. | believe it was Jefferson
who said: Error is harmless as long
as reason is left free to combat it,
DR.. Ward did not even tell us whether
Or not he believed in the Immortality of |
the soul. He was not dealing with that,
and kindred subjects. He was dealing
with social laws and their tendencies, |
and how to change the environment |
so as to have their laws oppose, for the |
benefit OF society, rather than to its in
jury. You could infer that he was not |
orthodox in his religious belief.
1t is said he held the marriage tie |
loosely, and was in favor of free love.
This is entirely incorrect. He said moth |
ing of the kind. He said marriage was /
human institution. So it is. Every /
lawyer, and everybody ought to know,
that it is a civil contract. In the United |
States within the states it is absolutely |
der the laws of the states, the Federal /
government cannot control it in the
states. because it is one of the reserved
rights of the states.
He said homogeneous marriages, that
is one man to one woman, was the most I
perfect state of marriage, and he believ-
ed that as civilization advanced it would /
be the only recognized marriage. But
he did say that in the regulation OF the
marriage, the law ought not to interfere,
farther than the good of society requires,
with natural selection. Aud this GER
tainly is true. The law once declared
that q man ahor,Id nat x.aa~-xx IL L. |