The Paducah evening sun. [volume] (Paducah, Ky.) 1906-1929, 1909-08-03

tfuer appreciation OF the worth OF his
life. The fuller import and real ex-
tent of the command, Thou shalt
not KILL" was dawning on him. He
recognized more than the mere posi-
tive. direct. prohibition. There APP
,peared, as there undoubtedly IS, a
wider responsibility. than to simply
refrain from killing. To stop at this
would be, In many cases, Just the OBJ
servance of the letter OF the law
which killeth," and not the spirit
which quickeneth. And thus, the
natural outgrowth is an obligation to
preserve and safeguard and repair
and restore, this sacred gift. Re
sopnsibility rests upon us not only
directly but in any indirect way In
which we may be connected or CON
cerned In the mater, by being. in a
word, accessories. "Grim-visaged war
hath smoothed his wrinkled front"
to a wonderful extent in modern
times, there Is not the wholesale
slaughter, the veritable carnage
fields running with blood and inno-
cent little nearby brooks swollen by
II to raging rivers. as we read OF
even in modern history. Men are
learning to arbitrate, TO talk things
over, to arrange matters amicably in
stead Of hating each other implacably
(even, or especially, we should say.
for religions sake), and cutting each
other to pieces, actually, or by proxy,
because of a disputed point. We yield
a little right. claim or title rather than
sacrifice or jeopardize a life. II is
variation in estimates. Life has
risen to something nearer its proper
position. The Occur de Lions have
given place to the Pasteurs and
Listers. Whole armies of men are
now absorbed in the study OF patho-
logy, intent on discovering means OF
allaying pain, curing and especially,
preventing disease. prolonging life
Hospitals, infirmities. sanitariums,
general and specific. have sprung up
on every side for the cure of vie
tins of every in that flesh is heir
to, and the discovery of a new anti
dote. serum. or anti-toxin. is hailed
with greater acclaim by the world
than was even returning conquer
ing hero. We have grown sensitive
on the subject of human suffering
and woe. And although, through
| the facility with which news is dis
seminated. we are confronted every
day with accounts OF accidents OF one
kind or another. we can stlil snudder
over disasters of more than ordinary
intensity or extent and sympathize
with wrung when hearing. OF an aw-
full famine in India, with all the har-
rowing details Of exhaustion, mani
ton and death. We contemplte with
fear and awe the description OF
plague stricken districts. Of the chol-
era or yellow fever In the south, as
in New Orleans several years ago.
Dismay fills the land as the news OF
an Iroquois Theatre fire. San Fran
cisco earthquake or that OF Messina,
and Reggie is flashed over the wires.
Our only feelings are horror and
pity, and that these. in recent in
stances. are not idle sentiments the
generosity on every hand to help the
afflicted abundantly proved All
this rebounds TO our credit; IL is
good: II is excellent.
But there has been In our midst
for years. a monster. quietly levy
ing his terrible toll. demanding a
| living holocaust In nearly every fam
lily. making frightful inroads and
rayages throughout the land. and all
without attracting anything like the
attention or creating the uproar that
we might naturally have expected.
Perhaps. and very probably, 1t is be-
cause OF the very still. silent meth
DDS employed in exacting his cruel
title that this monster has not
stirred up the alarm that should
have been the outcome OF his depre-
dations Perhaps. too. because of
our very propinquity and Intimate
association with the difficulty. we
have failed to realize its proportion
and the need for defensive measures.
As a matter OF fact. San Francisco
and Messina, epidemlcs and wars.
are dwarfed into comparative insig-
nificance in presence of the great
White Plague. These other ealami-
ties are sudden and sensitive. they
are focused intensely and briefly
upon one spot and thus they startle
us and shock us and arouse and
alarm us. We naturally crave for
the unusual, we look for wat will
thrill and excite, we do so even un-
consciously, our nerves seek a slim
illus, and we accordingly abbor the
dead level OF monotony and tire of
sameness. But we cannot escape the
the conclusion OF these reflections.
II would be folly TO despise or ig-
more an enemy of known strength
and almost equal ability in conceal
ing tin throwing us off our
guard-indeed that were the very
reason for the opposite cause.
And here we have the knowledge.
that the tribute partly at least, in
our Ignorance, and carelessness, paid
to tuberculosis or consumption in
human life. every year. Is simply
appalling. To narrow down the ques-