The Washington times., 1921-01-18

MASS Of LIES
G. K. Chesterton Attacks H. G.
Wells "0utIine" in Charac-
teristic Style at Lecture.

NEW YORK, Jan. lS.-Gilbert X.
Chestsrton, pink. ponderous and
paradoxical. faced his first New York
audience in the Times Square The
ster, and. with the help OF Artemus
Ward, leyeled his lance at Wells,
Shaw, and Darwin.
5000 MILES AWAY.
Separated by 5000 miles OF tossing
ocean and some years, the noted es-
sayist attacked Wells superstate.
Shaw's superman. and Darwin's miss
ing link, sent few thrusts at Ger
many, and uttered "A theory of his
own as to the development of human
society. Ii was a large evening. He
talks just as he writes-more no.
&c. X. c." was warmly welcomed by
an audience which filled the house and
left no standing room. and which ap-
preciated his paradoxes sometimes
even before he had concocted them.
AT the outset he apologized for the
slightness OF his voice, saying II was
the original mouse that came out Of
the mountain"
SAYS WEISS IS .GREAT MAN.
Speaking ostehsibly on The Ignor-
ance of the educated" Chesterton
said that the substance OF his lecture
was contained in Artemus Wards
phrase. 1T Isn't so much peoples ig-
torrance that does them harm. II is
their knowing SO many things that
amt So"
ITO give a sketch OF the entire his
tory OF the world would be a mere
trifie. Most OF us have realized some
such outline" said Chesterton. launch
linz 4 - V.n fhx.V.a
he characterized parenthetically as "a
very great man"
There Is not one word OF truth in
THE Outline of History" from be-
ginning to end" he continued. 1T is
one mass of lies
The visitor then proceeded to build
up his own outline OF history. 1t Is
not true. he said. that man rose to
democracy through aristocracy and
feudalism. More than likely primitive
society was democratic and ruled by
the "purest principles of the Declar-
alton of Independence" and later 1t
slipped off into corruption" accord
ing to the outline of Chesterton.
If America develops as Europe has
Chesterton prophecies that some day
there may be a marquis OF Michigan
or an earl Of Maine" arising simply
through the fact that the machinery
Of state has grown slack and corrupt
and everything that is jolly"
sUPERSTATE "WORsT GOVERNED.-
AS for the superstate, Chesterton
said 1t appeared likely to be "one Of
the worst governed states the world
has ever seen"
Consider how hard 1t is to make
our representatives listen to rs even
when they are within reaching dis
lance of bricks,'' he said. Indirectly
elected rulers ruling us from a palace
at the North Pole would be more ire
sponsibie that any tyrants the world
has ever seen"
Turning to shaw, the bold Briton
then quoted that gentleman as saying
that the supermen would come like a
thief in the night 'or something like
that"
"Havi:'g seen a few supermen in the
financial field, have reason to be-
licve he will come like a thief. But
we shan't see much more of the
superman. He had nervous break
down on the banks of the Marine"
The ignorance Of the educated. &C
cordinE to Chesterton, consists partly
in the vulgar pedantry of calling the
ancient nation Of Bohemia by the
Barbarous and meaningless name Of
Czech o-Slovakia," or the American and
English nations Anglo-Saxons, a term
deliberately invented to leave out the
Irish nation and most OF the Scotch"
Edwin Markham introduced Ches-
terton and during the lecture wrote
down all the pearls OF paradox as they
came from the lips of the mountain"