Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1914-01-04
CATCH.PHRASES.
BY DIR. FRANK CRANE.
Copyright. 1913. by Frank Crane,

Man shall not live by bread alone. but
principally by catch-phrases." said Rob-
ert Louis Stevenson.
1t is troublesome to think. The CATCH
phrase is readymade thought. Most
people much prefer it to their own.
This. of course. does not refer to you
and me. but to those other fellows whose
views are so trying.
Multitudes live and die in sweet faith
in darling catch phrase that is not true
at all. or. what is worse. Is half true.
Most proverbs are but canned intel
lectual bromide. There are times es-
pecialiy in life's crises. when the orpo-
site OF the old proverb whatever It be
that the wiseacres throw at you, is trner
than the proverb itself.
Here are a few whiskered old fiat ones
have met within the last few days
Some of them were handed me by ladies
some / saw wandering down newspaper
columns some lay safely asleep IN BOOKS
You can get nothing done WITHOUT or
sanitation The fact is that while Tor
a certain kind of efficiency organiLaeoi.
the institution is good thins. thefe are
certain other desirable results Whieh oi
ganized effort absolutely prevents. ror
instance, there is a deal TO De sald On
the other side, when it comes TO the Per
manent value of the educational, ~"
charitable and the eccieslasueai ihslNH
ton.
The Weaker Sex" A very dangerous
Iy truthful delusion. The man who gets
the obsession that he is stronger than "a
woman usually comes to grief
ITO abate these crimes We need seNefer
punishments" The idea that the punish
ment should fit the crime, and mat
thereby crime will be estopped, belongs 70
the half-brute stage OF civilization Did
you ever reflect that the root-ditferencs
>, oct "a %
consists in the abandonment of the pun
ishment error? An eye for an eye WAS
replaced by turn the other cheek
Pure democracy consists in letting the
people vote for every official and every
measure Quite the contrary. To over
whelm the citizen with responsibility for
mass of administrative detail Is to
throw. automatically. the government
into the hands of the grafters. In an
effective democracy the citizens vote Tor
as few cen and things as possible.
1--WE should all try to do good to others,
to help and to uplift them. | think It
was Thoreau who said that If he saw
one coming with the intent to do him
good he would take to his heels The
truth is that the most altruistic thing
man can do is to do justice himself ana
to establish just conditions upon the
earth. The merchant or manufacturer
who supplies work for a hundred heads
of families is greater in the Kingdom OF
heaven than the rich man who gives
! charity to a thousand.
Senators are all owned by Big Rusi-
ness: newspapers are all controlled from
the business office: preachers are all
afraid of the pew renters; and all women
are frail There is no chance for an abso-
lutely honest man. Graft. forwardness,
| deception and pull gain all the prizes
The man who believes these things the
sooner he is nicely tucked and. sol
the better for him and for us al Sen
ators. editors. priests and women are
mostly human. about as you and l. Most
| people would rather be decent and
| straight than not, simply because it Is
mut' more confcrtaiic.
ITO err IS human 1t is not to err.
| that is peculiar to human beings. Beasts
| err also That which is distinctly human
| is to realize that one has erred and to be
sorry for it.
So it goes Don't do your thinking in
| prepared pills Don't eat intellectual
| canned goods exclusively.