第11章

Tome，unfortunatelyperhaps(forIspeakmerelyofindividualtaste)，acatisawildanimal。AcatisNaturepersonified。LikeNature，itissomysteriousthatonecannotquitereposeeveninitsbeauty。ButlikeNatureagain，itissobeautifulthatonecannotbelievethatitisreallycruel。Perhapsitisn"t；andthereagainitislikeNature。Menofoldtimeworshippedcatsastheyworshippedcrocodiles；andthosemagnificentoldmysticsknewwhattheywereabout。Themomentinwhichonereallylovescatsisthesameasthatinwhichone(moderatelyandwithinreason)lovescrocodiles。Itisthatdivineinstantwhenamanfeelshimself——no，notabsorbedintotheunityofallthings(aloathsomefancy)——butdelightinginthedifferenceofallthings。Atthemomentwhenamanreallyknowsheisamanhewillfeel，howeverfaintly，akindoffairy-talepleasureinthefactthatacrocodileisacrocodile。Allthemorewillheexultinthethingsthataremoreevidentlybeautifulthancrocodiles，suchasflowersandbirdsandeats——whicharemorebeautifulthaneither。Butitdoesnotfollowthathewillwishtopickalltheflowersortocageallthebirdsortoownallthecats。

Noonewhostillbelievesindemocracyandtherightsofmanwilladmitthatanydivisionbetweenmenandmencanbeanythingbutafancifulanalogytothedivisionbetweenmenandanimals。ButinthesphereofsuchfancifulanalogythereareevenhumanbeingswhomIfeeltobelikeeatsinthisrespect:thatIcanlovethemwithoutlikingthem。Ifeelitaboutcertainquaintandaliensocieties，especiallyabouttheJapanese。TheexquisiteoldJapanesedraughtsmanship(ofwhichweshallseenomore，nowJapanhasgoneinforProgressandImperialism)hadaqualitythatwasinfinitelyattractiveandintangible。Japanesepictureswerereallyratherlikepicturesmadebycats。Theywerefulloffeatherysoftnessandofsuddenandspiritedscratches。Ifanyonewillwanderinsomegalleryfortunateenoughtohaveafinecollectionofthoseslightwater-coloursketchesonricepaperwhichcomefromtheremoteEast，hewillobservemanyelementsinthemwhichafancifulpersonmightconsiderfeline。Thereis，forinstance，thatoddenjoymentofthetopsoftrees；thoseairytraceriesofforksandfadingtwigs，uptowhichcertainlynoartist，butonlyacatcouldclimb。Thereisthatelvishloveofthefullmoon，aslargeandlucidasaChineselantern，hunginthesetenuousbranches。Thatmoonissolargeandluminousthatonecanimagineahundredcatshowlingunderit。Thenthereistheexhaustivetreatmentoftheanatomyofbirdsandfish；subjectsinwhichcatsaresaidtobeinterested。Thenthereistheslantingcat-likeeyeofalltheseEasterngodsandmen——butthisisgettingaltogethertoocoincident。Weshallhaveanotherracialtheoryinnotime(beginning"AretheJapsCats？")，andthoughIshallnotbelieveinmytheory，somebodyelsemight。Therearepeopleamongmyesteemedcorrespondentswhomightbelieveanything。ItisenoughformetosayherethatinthissmallrespectJapsaffectmelikecats。ImeanthatIlovethem。Ilovetheirquaintandnativepoetry，theirinstinctofeasycivilisation，theiruniqueunreplaceableart，thetestimonytheybeartothebustling，irrepressibleactivitiesofnatureandman。IfIwerearealmysticlookingdownonthemfromarealmountain，IamsureIshouldlovethemmoreeventhanthestrongwingedandunweariedbirdsorthefruitful，ever-

multiplyingfish。But，asforlikingthem，asonelikesadog——thatisquiteanothermatter。Thatwouldmeantrustingthem。

IntheoldEnglishandScotchballadsthefairiesareregardedverymuchinthewaythatIfeelinclinedtoregardJapsandcats。Theyarenotspeciallyspokenofasevil；theyareenjoyedaswitchingandwonderful；

buttheyarenottrustedasgood。Youdonotsaythewrongwordsorgivethewronggiftstothem；andthereisacurioussilenceaboutwhatwouldhappentoyouifyoudid。Nowtome，Japan，theJapanofArt，wasalwaysafairyland。Whattreesasgayasflowersandpeaksaswhiteasweddingcakes；whatlanternsaslargeashousesandhousesasfrailaslanterns!……but……but……themissionaryexplained(Ireadinthepaper)thattheassertionanddenialabouttheJapaneseuseoftorturewasamerematterofverbaltranslation。"TheJapanesewouldnotcalltwistingthethumbsback"torture。""

THECHARTEREDLIBERTINE

IfindmyselfinagreementwithMr。RobertLyndforhismostjustremarkinconnectionwiththeMalatestacase，thatthepolicearebecomingaperiltosociety。IhavenoattractiontothatsortofatheistasceticismtowhichthepurertypesofAnarchismtend；butbothanatheistandanasceticarebettermenthanaspy；anditisignominioustoseeone"scountrythuslosingherspecialpointofhonouraboutasylumandliberty。Itwillbequiteanewdepartureifwebegintoprotectandwhitewashforeignpolicemen。IalwaysunderstooditwasonlyEnglishpolicemenwhowereabsolutelyspotless。Agoodmanyofus，however，havebeguntofeelwithMr。Lynd，andonallsidesauthoritiesandofficialsarebeingquestioned。Butthereisonemostgraphicandextraordinaryfact，whichitdidnotlieinMr。Lynd"swaytotouchupon，butwhichsomebodyreallymustseizeandemphasise。Itisthis:thatattheverytimewhenweareallbeginningtodoubttheseauthorities，wearelettinglawspasstoincreasetheirmostcapriciouspowers。Allourcommissions，petitions，andletterstothepapersareaskingwhethertheseauthoritiescangiveanaccountoftheirstewardship。Andatthesamemomentallourlawsaredecreeingthattheyshallnotgiveanyaccountoftheirstewardship，butshallbecomeyetmoreirresponsiblestewards。BillsliketheFeeble-MindedBillandtheInebriateBill(veryappropriatenamesforthem)actuallyarmwithscorpionsthehandthathaschastisedtheMalatestasandMaleckaswithwhips。Theinspector，thedoctor，thepolicesergeant，thewell-paidpersonwhowritescertificatesand"passes"this，that，ortheother；thissortofmanisbeingtrustedwithmoreauthority，apparentlybecauseheisbeingdoubtedwithmorereason。

InoneroomweareaskingwhytheGovernmentandthegreatexpertsbetweenthemcannotsailaship。InanotherroomwearedecidingthattheGovernmentandexpertsshahbeallowed，withouttrialordiscussion，toimmureanyone"sbody，damnanyone"ssoul，anddisposeofunborngenerationswiththelevityofapagangod。Weareputtingtheofficialonthethronewhileheisstillinthedock。

Themeremeaningofwordsisnowstrangelyforgottenandfalsified；aswhenpeopletalkofanauthor"s"message，"withoutthinkingwhomitisfrom；andIhavenotedintheseconnectionsthestrangemisuseofanotherword。Itistheexcellentmediaevalword"charter。”IremembertheActthatsoughttosavegutter-boysfromcigaretteswascalled"TheChildren"sCharter。”SimilarlytheActwhichseekstolockupaslunaticspeoplewhoarenotlunaticswasactuallycalleda"charter"ofthefeeble-minded。Nowthisterminologyisinsanelywrong，eveniftheBillsareright。Evenweretheyrightintheorytheywouldbeappliedonlytothepoor，likemanybetterrulesabouteducationandcruelty。A

womanwaslatelypunishedforcrueltybecauseherchildrenwerenotwashedwhenitwasprovedthatshehadnowater。FromthatitwillbeaneasystepinAdvancedThoughttopunishingamanforwine-bibbingwhenitisprovedthathehadnowine。Riftsinrightreasonwidendowntheages。

Andwhenwehavebegunbyshuttingupaconfessedlykindpersonforcruelty，wemayyetcometoshuttingupMr。TomMannforfeeble-

mindedness。

Butevenifsuchlawsdogoodtochildrenoridiots，itiswrongtousetheword"charter。”Acharterdoesnotmeanathingthatdoesgoodtopeople。Itmeansathingthatgrantspeoplemorerightsandliberties。

Itmaybeagoodthingforgutter-boystobedeprivedoftheircigarettes:

itmightbeagoodthingforaldermentobedeprivedoftheircigars。

ButIthinktheGoldsmiths"CompanywouldbeverymuchsurprisediftheKinggrantedthemanewcharter(inplaceoftheirmediaevalcharter)，anditonlymeantthatpolicemenmightpullthecigarsoutoftheirmouths。Itmaybeagoodthingthatalldrunkardsshouldbelockedup:

andmanyacutestatesmen("KingJohn，forinstance)wouldcertainlyhavethoughtitagoodthingifallaristocratscouldbelockedup。Buteventhatsomewhatcynicalprincewouldscarcelyhavegrantedtothebaronsathingcalled"theGreatCharter"andthenlockedthemalluponthestrengthofit。Ifhehad，thisinterpretationoftheword"charter"

wouldhavestruckthebaronswithconsiderablesurprise。Idoubtiftheirnarrowmediaevalmindscouldhavetakenitin。

TherootsoftherealEnglandareintheearlyMiddleAges，andnoEnglishmanwilleverunderstandhisownlanguage(orevenhisownconscience)tillheunderstandsthem。Andhewillneverunderstandthemtillheunderstandsthisword"charter。”Iwillattemptinamomenttostateinolder，moresuitableterms，whatacharterwas。Inmodern，practical，andpoliticalterms，itisquiteeasytostatewhatacharterwas。AcharterwasthethingthattherailwayworkerswantedlastChristmasanddidnotget；andapparentlywillneverget。Itiscalledinthecurrentjargon"recognition"；theacknowledgmentinsomanywordsbysocietyoftheimmunitiesorfreedomsofacertainsetofmen。

IftherehadbeenrailwaysintheMiddleAgestherewouldprobablyhavebeenarailwaymen"sguild；anditwouldhavehadacharterfromtheKing，definingtheirrights。Acharteristheexpressionofanideastilltrueandthenalmostuniversal:thatauthorityisnecessaryfornothingsomuchasforthegrantingofliberties。Likeeverythingmediaeval，itramifiedbacktoarootinreligion；andwasasortofsmallcopyoftheChristianideaofman"screation。Manwasfree，notbecausetherewasnoGod，butbecauseitneededaGodtosethimfree。Byauthorityhewasfree。Byauthoritythecraftsmenoftheguildswerefree。Manyothergreatphilosopherstookandtaketheotherview:theLucretianpagans，theMoslemfatalists，themodernmonistsanddeterminists，allroughlyconfinethemselvestosayingthatGodgavemanalaw。ThemediaevalChristianinsistedthatGodgavemanacharter。Modernfeelingmaynotsympathisewithitslistofliberties，whichincludedthelibertytobedamned；butthathasnothingtodowiththefactthatitwasagiftoflibertiesandnotoflaws。Thiswasmirrored，howeverdimly，inthewholesystem。Therewasagreatdealofgrossinequality；andinotheraspectsabsoluteequalitywastakenforgranted。Butthepointisthatequalityandinequalitywereranks——orrights。Therewerenotonlythingsonewasforbiddentodo；butthingsonewasforbiddentoforbid。

Amanwasnotonlydefinitelyresponsible，butdefinitelyirresponsible。

Theholidaysofhissoulwereimmovablefeasts。Allacharterreallymeantlingersaliveinthatpoeticphrasethatcallsthewinda"chartered"libertine。

Lieawakeatnightandhearthewindblowing；hearitknockateveryman"sdoorandshoutdowneveryman"schimney。Feelhowittakeslibertieswitheverything，havingtakenprimarylibertyforitself；feelthatthewindisalwaysavagabondandsometimesalmostahousebreaker。

Butrememberthatinthedayswhenfreemenhadcharters，theyheldthatthewinditselfwaswildbyauthority；andwasonlyfreebecauseithadafather。

THECONTENTEDMAN

Thewordcontentisnotinspiringnowadays；ratheritisirritatingbecauseitisdull。ItpreparesthemindforalittlesermoninthestyleoftheVicarofWakefieldabouthowyouandIshouldbesatisfiedwithourcountrifiedinnocenceandoursimplevillagesports。Theword，however，hastwomeanings，somewhatsingularlyconnected；the"sweetcontent"ofthepoetandthe"cubiccontent"ofthemathematician。Somedistinguishthesebystressingthedifferentsyllables。Thus，itmighthappentoanyofus，atsomesocialjuncture，toremarkgaily，"OfthecontentoftheKingoftheCannibalIslands"StewpotIamcontenttobeignorant"；or"Notcontentwithmeasuringthecubiccontentofmysafe，youarestealingthespoons。”Andtherereallyisananalogybetweenthemathematicalandthemoraluseoftheterm，forlackoftheobservationofwhichthelatterhasbeenmuchweakenedandmisused。

Thepreachingofcontentmentisindisrepute，welldeservedinsofarthatthemoralisreallyquiteinapplicabletotheanarchyandinsaneperilofourtallandtopplingcities。Contentsuggestssomekindofsecurity；anditisnotstrangethatourworkersshouldoftenthinkaboutrisingabovetheirposition，sincetheyhavesocontinuallytothinkaboutsinkingbelowit。Thephilanthropistwhourgesthepoortosavingandsimplepleasuresdeservesallthederisionthathegets。Toadvisepeopletobecontentwithwhattheyhavegotmayormaynotbesoundmoralphilosophy。

Buttourgepeopletobecontentwithwhattheyhaven"tgotisapieceofimpudencehardforeventheEnglishpoortopardon。Butthoughthecreedofcontentisunsuitedtocertainspecialriddlesandwrongs，itremainstrueforthenormalofmortallife。Wespeakofdivinediscontent；

discontentmaysometimesbeadivinething，butcontentmustalwaysbethehumanthing。Itmaybetruethatapar-titularman，inhisrelationtohismasterorhisneighbour，tohiscountryorhisenemies，willdowelltobefiercelyunsatisfiedorthirstingforanangryjustice。Butitisnottrue，nosanepersoncancallittrue，thatmanasawholeinhisgeneralattitudetowardstheworld，inhisposturetowardsdeathorgreenfields，towardstheweatherorthebaby，willbewisetocultivatedissatisfaction。Inabroadestimateofourearthlyexperience，thegreattruismonthetabletremains:hemustnotcovethisneighbour"soxnorhisassnoranythingthatishis。Inhighlycomplexandscientificcivilisationshemaysometimesfindhimselfforcedintoanexceptionalvigilance。But，then，inhighlycomplexandscientificcivilisations，ninetimesoutoften，heonlywantshisownassback。

ButIwishtourgethecaseforcubiccontent；inwhich(evenmorethaninmoralcontent)Itakeapersonalinterest。Now，moralcontenthasbeenundervaluedandneglectedbecauseofitsseparationfromtheothermeaning。Ithasbecomeanegativeratherthanapositivething。Insomeaccountsofcontentmentitseemstobelittlemorethanameekdespair。

Butthisisnotthetruemeaningoftheterm；itshouldstandfortheideaofapositiveandthoroughappreciationofthecontentofanything；

forfeelingthesubstanceandnotmerelythesurfaceofexperience。

"Content"oughttomeaninEnglish，asitdoesinFrench，beingpleased；

placidly，perhaps，butstillpositivelypleased。Beingcontentedwithbreadandcheeseoughtnottomeannotcaringwhatyoueat。Itoughttomeancaringforbreadandcheese；handlingandenjoyingthecubiccontentofthebreadandcheeseandaddingittoyourown。Beingcontentwithanatticoughtnottomeanbeingunabletomovefromitandresignedtolivinginit。Itoughttomeanappreciatingwhatthereistoappreciateinsuchaposition；suchasthequaintandelvishslopeoftheceilingorthesublimeaerialviewoftheoppositechimney-pots。Andinthissensecontentmentisarealandevenanactivevirtue；itisnotonlyaffirmative，butcreative。Thepoetintheatticdoesnotforgettheatticinpoeticmusings；herememberswhatevertheattichasofpoetry；

herealiseshowhigh，howstarry，howcool，howunadornedandsimple——inshort，howAtticistheattic。

Truecontentmentisathingasactiveasagriculture。Itisthepowerofgettingoutofanysituationallthatthereisinit。Itisarduousanditisrare。Theabsenceofthisdigestivetalentiswhatmakessocoldandincrediblethetalesofsomanypeoplewhosaytheyhavebeen"through"things；whenitisevidentthattheyhavecomeoutontheothersidequiteunchanged。Amanmighthavegone"through"aplumpuddingasabulletmightgothroughaplumpudding；itdependsonthesizeofthepudding——andtheman。Buttheawfulandsacredquestionis"Hasthepuddingbeenthroughhim？"Hashetasted，appreciated，andabsorbedthesolidpudding，withitsthreedimensionsanditsthreethousandtastesandsmells？Canheofferhimselftotheeyesofmenasonewhohascubicallyconqueredandcontainedapudding？

Inthesamewaywemayaskofthosewhoprofesstohavepassedthroughtrivialortragicexperienceswhethertheyhaveabsorbedthecontentofthem；whethertheylickedupsuchlivingwaterastherewas。Itisapertinentquestioninconnectionwithmanymodernproblems。

Thustheyounggeniussays，"IhavelivedinmydrearyandsqualidvillagebeforeIfoundsuccessinParisorVienna。”Thesoundphilosopherwillanswer，"Youhaveneverlivedinyourvillage，oryouwouldnotcallitdrearyandsqualid。”

ThustheImperialist，theColonialidealist(whocommonlyspeaksandalwaysthinkswithaYankeeaccent)willsay，"I"vebeenrightawayfromtheselittlemuddyislands，andseenGod"sgreatseasandprairies。”Thesoundphilosopherwillreply，"Youhaveneverbeenintheeislands；youhaveneverseenthewealdofSussexortheplainofSalisbury；otherwiseyoucouldneverhavecalledthemeithermuddyorlittle。”

ThustheSuffragettewillsay，"Ihavepassedthroughthepaltrydutiesofpotsandpans，thedrudgeryofthevulgarkitchen；butIhavecomeouttointellectualliberty。”Thesoundphilosopherwillanswer，"Youhaveneverpassedthroughthekitchen，oryouneverwouldcallitvulgar。

Wiserandstrongerwomenthanyouhavereallyseenapoetryinpotsandpans；naturally，becausethereisapoetryinthem。”ItisrightforthevillageviolinisttoclimbintofameinParisorVienna；itisrightforthestrayEnglishmantoclimbacrossthehighshoulderoftheworld；itisrightforthewomantoclimbintowhatevercathedraeorhighplacesshecanallowtohersexualdignity。Butitiswrongthatanyoftheseclimbersshouldkicktheladderbywhichtheyhaveclimbed。Butindeedthesebitterpeoplewhorecordtheirexperiencesreallyrecordtheirlackofexperiences。ItisthecountrymanwhohasnotsucceededinbeingacountrymanwhocomesuptoLondon。Itistheclerkwhohasnotsucceededinbeingaclerkwhotries(onvegetarianprinciples)tobeacountryman。

Andthewomanwithapastisgenerallyawomanangryaboutthepastsheneverhad。

Whenyouhavereallyexhaustedanexperienceyoualwaysreverenceandloveit。Thetwothingsthatnearlyallofushavethoroughlyandreallybeenthrougharechildhoodandyouth。Andthoughwewouldnothavethembackagainonanyaccount，wefeelthattheyarebothbeautiful，becausewehavedrunkthemdry。

THEANGRYAUTHOR:HISFAREWELL

Ihaverepublishedalltheseoldarticlesofminebecausetheycoveraverycontroversialperiod，inwhichIwasinnearlyallthecontroversies，whetherIwasvisiblethereorno。AndIwishtogatherupintothislastarticleavaledictoryviolenceaboutallsuchthings；andthenpasstowhere，beyondthesevoices，thereispeace——orinotherwords，tothewritingofPennyDreadfuls；anobleandmuch-neededwork。ButbeforeI

finallydeserttheillusionsofrationalismfortheactualitiesofromance，Ishouldverymuchliketowriteonelastroaring，ragingbooktellingalltherationalistsnottobesoutterlyirrational。Thebookwouldbesimplyastringofviolentvetoes，liketheTenCommandments。I

wouldcallit"Don"tsforDogmatists；orThingsIamTiredOf。”

Thisbookofintellectualetiquette，likemostbooksofetiquette，wouldbeginwithsuperficialthings；buttherewouldbe，Ifancy，awailingimprecationinthewordsthatcouldnotbecalledartificial；itmightbeginthus:-(1)Don"tuseanounandthenanadjectivethatcrossesoutthenoun。Anadjectivequalifies，itcannotcontradict。Don"tsay，"Givemeapatriotismthatisfreefromallboundaries。”Itislikesaying，"Givemeaporkpiewithnoporkinit。”Don"tsay，"Ilookforwardtothatlargerreligionthatshallhavenospecialdogmas。”Itislikesaying，"Ilookforwardtothatlargerquadrupedwhoshallhavenofeet。”Aquadrupedmeanssomethingwithfourfeet；andareligionmeanssomethingthatcommitsamantosomedoctrineabouttheuniverse。

Don"tletthemeeksubstantivebeabsolutelymurderedbythejoyful，exuberantadjective。

(2)Don"tsayyouarenotgoingtosayathing，andthensayit。Thispracticeisveryflourishingandsuccessfulwithpublicspeakers。Thetrickconsistsoffirstrepudiatingacertainviewinunfavourableterms，andthenrepeatingthesameviewinfavourableterms。Perhapsthesimplestformofitmaybefoundinalandlordofmyneighbourhood，whosaidtohistenantsinanelectionspeech，"OfcourseI"mnotgoingtothreatenyou，butifthisBudgetpassestherentswillgoup。”Thethingcanbedoneinmanyformsbesidesthis。"Iamthelastmantomentionpartypolitics；butwhenIseetheEmpirerentinpiecesbyirresponsibleRadicals，"etc。"Inthishallwewelcomeallcreeds。Wehavenohostilityagainstanyhonestbelief；butonlyagainstthatblackpriestcraftandsuperstitionwhichcanacceptsuchadoctrineas，"etc。

"IwouldnotsayonewordthatcouldruffleourrelationswithGermany。

ButthisIwillsay；thatwhenIseeceaselessandunscrupulousarmament，"etc。Pleasedon"tdoit。Decidetomakearemarkornottomakearemark。Butdon"tfancythatyouhavesomehowsoftenedthesayingofathingbyhavingjustpromisednottosayit。

(3)Don"tusesecondarywordsasprimarywords。"Happiness"(letussay)

isaprimaryword。Youknowwhenyouhavethething，andyoujollywellknowwhenyouhaven"t。"Progress"isasecondaryword；itmeansthedegreeofone"sapproachtohappiness，ortosomesuchsolidideal。Butmoderncontroversiesconstantlyturnonasking，"DoesHappinesshelpProgress？"Thus，IseeintheNewAgethisweekaletterfromMr。

EgertonSwann，inwhichhewarnstheworldagainstmeandmyfriendMr。

Belloc，onthegroundthatourdemocracyis"spasmodic"(whateverthatmeans)；whileour"reactionismissettledandpermanent。”ItneverstrikesMr。Swarmthatdemocracymeanssomethinginitself；while"reactionism"meansnothing——exceptinconnectionwithdemocracy。Youcannotreactexceptfromsomething。IfMr。SwannthinksIhaveeverreactedfromthedoctrinethatthepeopleshouldrule，Iwishhewouldgivemethereference。

(4)Don"tsay，"Thereisnotruecreed；foreachcreedbelievesitselfrightandtheotherswrong。”Probablyoneofthecreedsisrightandtheothersarewrong。Diversitydoesshowthatmostoftheviewsmustbewrong。Itdoesnotbythefaintestlogicshowthattheyallmustbewrong。IsupposethereisnosubjectonwhichopinionsdifferwithmoredesperatesinceritythanaboutwhichhorsewillwintheDerby。Thesearecertainlysolemnconvictions；menriskruinforthem。ThemanwhoputshisshirtonPotosimustbelieveinthatanimal，andeachoftheothermenputtingtheirlastgarmentsuponotherquadrupedsmustbelieveinthemquiteassincerely。Theyareallserious，andmostofthemarewrong。Butoneofthemisright。Oneofthefaithsisjustified；oneofthehorsesdoeswin；notalwayseventhedarkhorsewhichmightstandforAgnosticism，butoftentheobviousandpopularhorseofOrthodoxy。

Democracyhasitsoccasionalvictories；andeventheFavouritehasbeenknowntocomeinfirst。Butthepointhereisthatsomethingcomesinfirst。Thatthereweremanybeliefsdoesnotdestroythefactthattherewasonewell-foundedbelief。Ibelieve(merelyuponauthority)thattheworldisround。Thattheremaybetribeswhobelieveittobetriangularoroblongdoesnotalterthefactthatitiscertainlysomeshape，andthereforenotanyothershape。ThereforeIrepeat，withthewailofimprecation，don"tsaythatthevarietyofcreedspreventsyoufromacceptinganycreed。

Itisanunintelligentremark。(5)Don"t(ifanyonecallsyourdoctrinemad，whichislikelyenough)，don"tanswerthatmadmenareonlytheminorityandthesaneonlythemajority。Thesanearesanebecausetheyarethecorporatesubstanceofmankind；theinsanearenotaminoritybecausetheyarenotamob。Themanwhothinkshimselfamanthinksthenextmanaman；hereckonshisneighbourashimself。Butthemanwhothinksheisachickendoesnottrytolookthroughthemanwhothinksheisglass。ThemanwhothinkshimselfJesusChristdoesnotquarrelwiththemanwhothinkshimselfRockefeller；aswouldcertainlyhappenifthetwohadevermet。Butmadmennevermeet。Itistheonlythingtheycannotdo。Theycantalk，theycaninspire，theycanfight，theycanfoundreligions；buttheycannotmeet。Maniacscanneverbethemajority；forthesimplereasonthattheycanneverbeevenaminority。Iftwomadmenhadeveragreedtheymighthaveconqueredtheworld。

(6)Don"tsaythattheideaofhumanequalityisabsurd，becausesomemenaretallandsomeshort，somecleverandsomestupid。AttheheightoftheFrenchRevolutionitwasnoticedthatDantonwastallandMuratshort。

InthewildestpopularexcitementofAmericaitisknownthatRockefellerisstupidandthatBryanisclever。Thedoctrineofhumanequalityreposesuponthis:Thatthereisnomanreallycleverwhohasnotfoundthatheisstupid。Thatthereisnobigmanwhohasnotfeltsmall。Somemenneverfeelsmall；butthesearethefewmenwhoare。

(7)Don"tsay(Odon"tsay)thatPrimitiveManknockeddownawomanwithaclubandcarriedheraway。Whyonearthshouldhe？Doesthemalesparrowknockdownthefemalesparrowwithatwig？Doesthemalegiraffeknockdownthefemalegiraffewithapalmtree？Whyshouldthemalehavehadtouseanyviolenceatanytimeinordertomakethefemaleafemale？

Whyshouldthewomanrollherselfinthemirelowerthanthesowortheshe-bear；andprofesstohavebeenaslavewhereallthesecreatureswerecreators；whereallthesebeastsweregods？Donottalksuchbosh。I

imploreyou，Isupplicateyounottotalksuchbosh。Utterlyandabsolutelyabolishallsuchbosh——andwemayyetbegintodiscussthesepublicquestionsproperly。ButIfearmylistofprotestsgrowstoolong；

andIknowitcouldgrowlongerforever。Thereadermustforgivemyelongationsandelaborations。IfanciedforthemomentthatIwaswritingabook。