The times., 1899-02-16
Christian Science and LAW.

The lecturer who has undertaken to en-
tighten this community on the subject OF
Christian Science has added nothing TO the
sum of knowledge already in possession of
the public He gives no reason why thu
Christian Science doctors should be eX
empt from prosecution when they under
take the care of the sick and the latter die
from conditions that are known to be
durable by experienced physicians, espe-
cially in the cases of children.
There is nothing new in the affirmation
that material objects are the mere crea-
uons of the mind; that the material boly
is projection of the spirit. Whatever
force may be allowed TO this in philosophy
the institutions of the world are based on
Emersons S sensible view. Listening to the
chatter of transcendentalists who main
tanned that the material universe is de-
lusion OF the senses, he was called to the
door by man who had brought load of
coal. He excused himself to the company,
saying: You see, we must treat these
things as though they were real"
Treating these things as though they
are real, we impose the death penalty on
the material Though non-existenD body
OF the man who has destroyed the mate
rial (but non-existent) body OF another
We prescribe that only persons who have
made a long and thorough study of the
various material organs of the material
body-all the creation of perverted
thought though they may be-in health
and in disease, shall be allowed to treat
diseases, even though they are due to the
microbes of sinful thought. When one OF
these authorized practitioners neglccts or
maltreats the patient, he is liable to pros
ecution for malpractice or manslaughter.
This being so there is no reason why We
should exempt from prosecution anybody
else who, not having a knowledge of the
non-existent organs of the imaginary body
and being ignorant of what is necessary to
preserve the imaginary material body from
extinction, undertakes to cure these results
of perverted thought. Treating these things
as real-as We are bound TO do by all our
legal enactments-we cannot permit to
deal with the sick anybody who denies the
reality of disease. When death follows
their exclusion of the authorized doctors.
1t is often due to the failure to treat the
disease as real and the afflicted organs as
material
We do not see why the Christian Science
person should object 10 going to jail or
even TO being hanged Mind being all, it
cannot be confined in the narrow limits of
prison cell. The body not being material,
it cannot be injured by being hanged with
a rope that is no more material than the
hands that tie the moose. But, as we have
noted, the Christian Science doctors do not
appear TO be consistent. They are still so
subject TO perversions of thought that they
insist on round silver dollar or a green
back for teaching the sick that there is no
such thing as disease or pain; that big
palpitating boil on the back of a mans
neck is imaginary. This dollar they treat
as though it were real, using it to buy food
and drink or covering for their non-exist-
ent bodies.
Nobody objects to the philosophy Of
Christian Science until it is made the
means Of deluding people into a surren-
der of their hard-earned money and of
preventing them from employing compe-
NtAt pHS siSldHs " sdNe tHtIl liOH utdlH
When the death of children follows the
mercenary business, the courts should hold
the criminals guilty of manslaughter 1t
would be absurd TO have laws that shall
apply only to that part OF mankind which
refuses to accept the philosophy of the
Christian Science persons-a philosophy
that is older even than Bishop Berkeley.