The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1900-11-10

fort of man would be to make new dis
governing the earth, Of compelling it
to serve more nergetically his plea
sures and his vanities. Man would
live imagining that his whole mission
is of this earth, and as one becomes
like to that with which he lives, which
he touches, which he dreams of, man
would be lowered even unto matter,
and would dwindle down to morsel
of moving matter, whose highest des-
tiny is to robe itself with softest silks,
nurture itself with sweetest delicacies,
and for that purpose to lay hold upon
the largest lump of this slime which
we call the earth. If in bread alone
man lives, there is no elevation for
him. There is in material no potent
spring that will drive him upwards in
to ideals and into the presence of mod
els that will make Of him Il being of
higher regions, of nobler thoughts and
ambitions.
mot in bread alone doth man live"
In all that earth can offer, what is
there that can make OF man righteous
moral being? What is there i'll all the
machinery, in all the jewels. in all
the ravishing pictures in the great ex-
position that enables him to still with
in him the fibers of heart wildly beat
ing beneath the storms of passion?
What was there in all those things
that would make him stronger to repel
temptation and that would bring him
to know that the first and supreme
duty of man is to be righteous, to prac-
tice virtue towards himself and to-
wards his fellow man? And without
some power in humanity making for
Righteousness, impelling men to be
moral beings, what would humanity
become but Il herd of beasts, in which
might would take the place of right,
in which he is the most worthy of ad-
miratiOn who enslaves others and
make them bend to his pleasure and his
pride. There We're i'll the exposition
products of human ingenuity, which
could we'll be used in the service of
Righteousness, but which could just as
we'll be used in the service of upright
eOusness. And there was here no liv
ing power to say to mn1l-above all
things else you must be righteous, and
there was nothing there to aid man
giles to be righteous. For alas! it is not
enough for us to aspire to righteous
ness, to resolve to be righteous. When
the effort is made, we feel the heavy
restraint which our material nature
puts upon the sonrngs of the soul, VIC
feel the horrid thirst of pleasure burn.
ing through the senses. we say we ara
weak. Ip vain will you seek strength
from the richest mines, from the prod
ucts of factories. from paintings and
sculptures, charts that teach to nnvi
gate the seas, from telescopes that
open to vision the distant regions OF
space. No help comes thence to enable
the poor man, struggling, alone. per
haps, in the midst of darkness, against
some violent temptation, to triumph
over the powers of evil. You may give
to humanity all that earth can give
You may work on for centuries to com,
and multiply beyond present conccp
ton all that we have of carth's gifts
and produce some day an exposition
that will throw the wondrous one OF
Paris into oblivion; no moral power
comes from eXpostlons, and 1t is mora
power that man above all things els,
needs for his own sake and for thu
sake of humanity ut large. We talk OF
civilization; no doubt the material tri
llmphS Which we witness are usetu
in the work of civilization, but th,
vital essential element of civilization |.
morality. What else makes man p;
spiritual or Il social being and scpa
rates him from the animal but moral
ity? And to find morality You mus
travel beyond the sphere OF matter.
mot in bread alone doth man live.
In bread alone must man seek his hap
piness. Man seeks happiness; he i!
forced by all his nature to seek it; bu
in vain he seeks it in the bread Offered
to him from earth. Passing through
the streets and palaces of tile eXposi
ton we ARE awed for moment by til,
grandeur dlsplaycd; we are ravlshe,
by beauty set before your eyes. There
is for Il moment pleasure, for momen
satisfaction of soul. but for n mOmcn
only. All that is there apparently tell:
of life; but on closer inspection tells o
death. To produce the wonders of til,
exposition death had invaded the for
ests, death had assailcd the animal.
of the fields, and man himself, tho
sovereign of the whole scene, was II
picture and sculpture, the faithful tell
tale of his own morality. While
walked through avenues and palaces
and saw the effigies Of the thousands
who had lived in the past. who haC
owned the earth as we own 1t today
who had enjoyed its gifts us we enjoy
them to-day, but are now no more, nc
effort of the Imagination was needed t,