The Washington weekly post. (Washington, D.C.) 1878-1916, 1899-09-19
by JOHN X LEYs

shocked at this frank materiaIism. re
member the moral aspect OF the question
Thou shalt not kin you know"
Nov, my dear sir. ask you in all
seriousness. Is a community that uses the
gallows as one % the resources OF civili-
zation entitled to quote that time-worn
maxim? What II sauce for the goose Is
sauce for the gsnder. surely"
"But-but We don't hang man unless
be has first killed somebody CALCULATED
tho squire.
Exactly. And 4 man who IL hanged
has To reason 20 complain. IL Is ore %
the rules OF the game. But don't pretend
that society. that takes the poor mans
lie for her own reasons, is a bit more
moral than the criminal who takes anoth-
er mans life for what seems TO him good
cause"
Then you think murder Is perfectly
justifiahle II the murderer thinks he has
good cause for killing his man-if he
wishes 10 do 50. In short?"
Murder Is one OF those words ii is
impossible 20 defend. Il has got such an
ugly ring about it," said our host. ''But
can't see any intrinsic difference be-
tween taking the life of a man and the
life of any other animal To q disciple
OF Huxley and Darwin what is man but
superior sort OF animal? And why
should there be any material difference
between the killing OF a hy and the
slaughter Of sheep, or between the
slaughter OF a sheep and the taking Of
the life Of a man? II, as all philosophers
hold nowadays man Is merely a higher
kind Of animal. there Is no difference
III YOU are in earnest. Sir Gaspard,
which / take leave TO doubt" said the
squire stiffiy. Il must say / think your
principles are detestsble!'
The baronets only answer 10 this was
low chuckle of amusement.
There's one thing" said /. bluntly,
that makes a difference between killing
man and killing a sheep. The other
men will Kill you If you kill a man-the
other sheep will let you alone if you kin
one Of them"
Il grant you" said Sir GasDard. with
perfect pOliteness. that man. being the
highest known animal. has certain pow
ers OF acting in concert superior to those
OF any other animal But they are in
the present instance very limited. l don't
suppose one-quarter Of the removals that
actually take place are ever heard Of
not one-tenth of those which are under
taken by the more intelligent part OF
the community. The man who takes the
life Of a fellow-m8n for some wise pur-
pose Of his own. and does not get found
out, proves thereby his right to take that
lie. At least so Carlyle teaches. Where
as, if he is found out, he is thereby
proved to have made a mistake He is
not nj 10 survive, and, accordingly. ne
does not survive-and l. for one, gentle
men, nave not an ounce Of pity to spare
for him"
! had beep Vafcbipu Civ Cocrasl I-o1,,,--
during this talk. and 1 thought | detected
a certain ring of conviction. if l may so
speak beneath the off-hand, frivolous
surface OF his manner. At best his con-
VersatIon was not agreeable TO me, and
resolved that | would give the genial
/ looking baTonet a wide berth in future
l remember that when | shook hands
with him that night his words about man
| being only superior animal came into
my head. and L could not help the fancy
! lhdl IL was not the hand of a felloW-man
put lhe paw OF great fiesh-eatng beast,
cunning and fierce. that l had grasped.
lime went on, and the folk in our part
OF lht country became accustomed to
| Sir Gaspard and his ways. People were
no longer shocked at being told of the
monstrous principles he held. or pretenJ-
| ca 10 mold. He was a great sportsman.
fond OF hunting, shooting. and coursn.
ana That made him popular among the
, sqdires; but his tenants said he was a
EaId man. man who would laugh and
! ten good story, and the next moment
SiNe sentence that would send a moor
Ielo" 10 the Bankruptcy Court. The
NOuhlIy gentlemen defended him. how
Nei5' on the ground that as he was over
head and ears in debt, his estate heing
llortsased 10 the last penny it woujd
carry ne was forced 10 screw the mnst
ne could out of his tenants.
IN the spring ii WAS rumored that in
spite ~ his impecunious condition SIR
GdSpard was paying court TO a very beau-
tliuI glrI. Juliet Etheridge, belonging IN
very old but impoverished family in
ahc'her division of ;he county. The baro-
hel seemed 10 be very much in earnest
liz MS Wooins, but everybody said he had
no chance. He had nothing but a barren
tilie 10 offer his bride, for it was well
Known that his cousin Jermyn could rurn
nm neck and crop out of the Abbey
whenever he had d mind to live there
| himself.
ms cousin Jermyn was a small man.
WIN the Iae7 of rat and the morals Of
weasel. Nobody had a good word n
say Tor him, though many people were
TOO deeply in his debt to say out what
they thought He wore habitually a shah
by brown snit, for he was something of
d miser' ana among other peculia-Ities he
wore Wig OF brown han that was so
Enthusiastically foreign 10 his scalp that
IL mace not even a pretense of deceiying
arybCdy. One popularity that gave this
gentleman conference a sinister aspec,
was that his nCse was not quite straight
Il was remarkably thin, and being bent
a httle TO the left. did rot add to the
beauty or dignity OF its owners appear
ance.
| That. however, was apparently a small
Datter IN the eyes of Miss Juliet Ether
/ ldge, or those Of her parents; for 10 the
81 rprise of every one IL was suddenly an
hCunced that marriage had been arrang-
/ ed between Jermyn Hawke and the beau
1 tiful Juliet Etheridge
The gossips expected that this would
cause complete rupture between the two
| cousins, for everybody 6new that the
haronet had had hopes of making the
| fair girl his own. But they were disap-
pointed. 1t was said that when Sir Gas
| pard heard the news he burst into a great
| tit OF laughter; and that on this being
| duly reported 10 his cousin. Jermyn smiled
in such ungod'y fashion, twisting his thin
nose yet farther 10 the left. and curling
! his thin lips In an ape-like grin. that the
/ spectator shrdnk from him in dismay.
However this may be. II certainly SEEM
| ed as though the person who took least
/ personal interest IN the matter was the
! bride. IL was whispered that her heart
4 was set upon a cousin OF her own-a
| lieutenant in the navy-but this may
/ have been mere gossip. What is certain
/ Is that the poor girl seemed 10 be without
/ any will of her own, so far as resisting
/ her parents wishes was concerned.
| The engagement of Juliet 10 Jermyn
seemed TO make no difference in the
/ friendly relations that existed between
! the baronet and his cousin. IL was re-
ported 10 me that Sir Gaspard had said
/ with a sneer, speaking OF the engage
ment, that Il was only what was 10 be ex-
pected. And il was also said that he was
| 10 give up the Abbey 10 the newly welded
IA