Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1910-08-16
"The Hiuher Law"


Ordinarily the use of this phrase
suggests an attempt to justify lynch
ing. or the use of the shot gun under
| conditions where certain develop
ment of sentiment undertakes to per-
suade itself that a resort to the shot
gun is the only proper thing; but in
the present case no such meaning is
being recognized.
There is a higher law" however
and almost every rational individual
is as thoroughly well aware of the
fact as he or she is that the revolu-
tions of the earth separate the day
from the night, that food satisfies hun
ger or that water quenchcs thirst; but
| comparatively few are willing to rec
ogniZe it even to themselves, and none
are able to fully explain it's operation
"Superstitious twaddlc," it is easy
to imagine many a reader as saying
and there seems to be no way of MAX
| ing a satisfactory reply. Until one
himself understands truth he would
teach, he cannot hope to bring an un-
derstanding of that truth to others;
but comprehension of the higher law
is not merely a matter of faith. 1t is
matter of indisputable fact.
Before going any further, let it be
understood that the higher law under
consideration is not antagonistic to
what is known as the common law or
the statute law except in certain par
ticulars, which cannot be explicitly
defined, further than to say that the
common law and the statute law are
ralliblc, while the higher law is in
| fallible, and the tendency of the inial-
lible higher law is to correct the falli-
bilitv of the common law and statute
law.
Man-made laws depend upon man for
their enforcement. The higher law
enforces itself. In enforcing man
made law, men make mistakes. In
enforcing itself, the higher law makes
no mistakes. Still further, the high
er law" in the course of time. corrects
the mistakes made in the enforcement
of human law.
Again there are sounds of laughter.
Most of the laymen are laughing and
nearly all of the lawyers are laughing.
The laughter of some of the laughing
lawyers is forced. Only a few minis
ters are laughing The percentage OF
10 al
small as the percentage of lawyers
who are not laughing.
Most people who read this have been
educated into a belief which has to
them, become a reality, that human
affairs are dominated by two all pow
erful forces-the forces of good and
evil, of right and wrong. There are
but few who are unable To distin-
guish between these forces; but there
are many who prefer wrong to right
because they vainly believe that ii is
better calculated to minister to what
they conceive to lie their immediate
good. There are few who have not
done this at some time or other and
who do not continue to do II from
time to time. Some have ceased t"
bother about the higher law" others
try to persuade themselves that it can
be evaded, Notwithstanding an inner
consciousness that its penalties are in
evitable.
Who, reading this, would try To deny
to himself that at some time in his or
her life he or she, in the knowledge
that no other human could ever be the
wiser. has not, with an accusing con-
science, told a wilful lie, only to be
mortified later on with the knowledge
that the person on whom the lie was
sought to he imposed was aware of
the truth. There may be some such
but not many. There are those-res-
pcctablc people-whO have stolen
things i'm the expectation that they
would never be found out, only To find
afterward that in some unaccountable
manner the truth has come to those
from whom it was sought To conceaI
il. And so with the whole list of
wrongs.
According to human philosophy
there are exceptions to every rule
The exceptions are said to prove the
rule. If that axiom applied To the sub
icct under consideration, the higher
law would not he infallible. Who can
say that he or she knows of an rN-
ccptiun. and if no one knows of an
exception why should we think there
are any?
Men with full knowledge of the COM
mon law and the statute law are able
to use that knowledge To their own
temporal advantage and to the disad-
vantage of their ncighbors. This is
wrong. previously wrong; but human
law may never punish that wrong.
Let no one he too sure about the
higher law, however. 1t is infallible
and surely finds a way not only To
discover: but also To punish.
And just as surely as this higher
| law finds a way To discover and pun
ish wrong, it never fails 10 recognize
and reward right. 1t is as infallibl"
on the one side as on the other. There
are those who are laughing again; but
that is only because they have not
stopped /" consider carefully their
own experiences Possibly they may
bc eXulting over their own supposed
victories, achieved 10y methods they
know To hc wrong and cite To them
selves the facts and circumstances "i
their supposed triumph rs evidence
that all this dictum is untrue. If
such hc tn" case, they have only l"
wait for the complete vindicati"n OF
the higher law
There are those who will acknowl-
edge. ;hc existence of this higher law,
with tn" claim that thcr" is an I'M
| fathumahlr mystery about ii; but Ill
| this they are mistaken. Thcr" Is II"