Coeur d'Alene evening press. (Coeur d'Alene, Idaho) 1907-1929, 1910-04-05
BUT LITTLE NEW
UNDER THE SUN
Modern Thought hut Little Changed
From Ancient.

Modern Thought but little Changed
From Ancient.
DR.. James J. Walsh. dean OF Ford
ham university, New York. In lee
ture given In Philadelphia few days
ago In quoted as having made the as
sertion that there is nothing new un-
der the sun, bringing down to date
the lives and ways OF the ancients
and comparing them with modern
ways and living.
He is quoted in press reports as
having said that there was no pro-
gress in painting, sculpture or In
literature. Books written nova
days." he said, which run into edi-
lions of 900, 900. viii not even be
thought OF twenty years hence, and
not drama is being written today
which goes a bit beneath the surface
OF life. The plays OF today run q
year, and In three are gone and for
gotten. This Is what we are com
PEELED to believe when we try 10 an
alyze our so-called progress. There
is only one thing we have set our
selves TO do, and are doing well, and
that Is In the matter OF transporta-
ton transportation OF body, voice
and thought. That 10 all we are do
ing that Is at all original; and does
this benefit humanity In reality?"
lie read from book 1900 years
ago, In which an ancient worthy"
wrote to his son regarding the treat
mont of wife. This worthy said:
Buy her what she wants to wear;
thereby shalt thou find happiness in
thy house" This same worthy, In
discussing the servant problem, CON-
mented: when favors have been
shown to servants, they say, Master,
we co."
80" says DIR. Walsh, "you can see
We have made little progress"
In sense, we have made even less
progress than we appear to have
made, because many Of the things we
are now wrangling and jangling over
as some brilliant new discovery, as
some newly-found cure-all, are only
the same old thing the ancIents and
the antedeluyians were also wrangl-
Ing and iangllng over In the very
dawn OF time. II Is entirely safe to
30 even further than that, and az
firm that the generations yet to come
will also have the same things in their
midst when the eternal trump sounds.
Wherefore A. Is that no wise and sob
er man win lend himself to conten-
taons against the veFitles, but con-
fine himself to practical and approx
ed means OF useful activity and i'm
provement. and thereby grow In
honor and in power, while the fool
ish man Is sim lifting himself by his
beotstFaps. stlll fassing away the gol-
den days given him for fruetuous la
Dor In phantom chasing and worse.
II II be bit diseouraging to con
eeiye That we have made so little adj
vanoement. In some respects. there Is
still ample encouragement In the fact
that nnder any circumstances we
have progressed enough IN other re
spects TO have a pretty good old world
anyhow, that most Of us have pleas
ant tasks to perform that leave no
room for disappointment or recrimin-
alton over the meanness and follies
that may or may not exist. according
as one prefers to look at It. and that
UNNECESSARILY above all other eonsld-
eratlons entering into such qnes-
tions. Is what constitutes the impass.
able gulf between the two schools OF
men. One means life, work. frul-
tlon--the other means palsy. emptl-
ness and death.