,transcribers ,note3  ,original ,text in
 bold is represented by 1 italic text by
 4 ,in paragraph ,,xii1 line #d myraids 
has been replaced by myriads4           
,,the ,,tyranny              of ,,god   
,by           ,,joseph ,,lewis      ,the
 new and daring book on the             
,philosophy of ,atheism                 
,,clarence ,,darrow    eminent lawyer1  
noted philosopher1 and humanitarian1    
says3  ,your book1 ',the ,tyranny of    
,god1' is well done4 ,it is a very clear
 statement of the question1 bold and    
true beyond dispute4 ,i am glad that you
 wrote it4 ,it is as plain as the       
multiplication table1 which doesn't mean
 that everyone will believe it4 ,i thank
 you for writing it4 ,i wish ,i were the
 author4  ,illustration3 ,,joseph       
,,lewis     ,a special edition of ,the  
,tyranny of ,god1 consists of two       
hundred and fifty copies1 printed on    
,utopian paper1 bound in limp leather1  
gilt top1 stamped in gold4 ,each copy is
 autographed and numbered by the author4

       ,second edition1 ,may1 #aiba     
,third edition1 ,april1 #aibb    ,fourth
 edition1 ,january1 #aibh     ,fifth    
edition1 ,april1 #aicj    ,sixth        
edition1 ,october1 #aici   ,seventh     
edition1 ,november1 #aidc       ,,the   
,,tyranny ,,of ,,god          ,,the     
,,tyranny        ,,of ,,god             
,,by      ,,joseph ,,lewis    ,,the     
,,freethought ,,press ,,association     
,,new ,,york         ,,copyrighted1     
#aiba1 ,,by   ,,freethought ,,press     
,,association  ,all ,rights ,reserved   
,,printed ,,in ,,the ,,united ,,states  
,,of ,,america            ,,dedicated   
,,to         ,,fay   ,,my ,,dear ,,wife 
,,and ,,comrade1   ,,whose ,,loyal ,,and
   ,,devoted ,,companionship   ,,has    
,,made ,,life ,,livable4     ,,foreword 
,go forth1 little book1 to destroy fear1
 prejudice and superstition1 and help to
 install ,reason in the minds of the    
human race to be its guide in the       
affairs of life and its living4         
,,preface ,,to ,,second ,,edition   ,the

 most eloquent testimony given this     
little book is the fact that a second   
edition is made necessary only a few    
months after the publication of the     
first edition4  ,favorable comments and 
letters of recommendation from men and  
women eminent in literary and scientific
 realms1 and commendatory reviews in    
periodicals of high standard are1 ,i    
think1 sufficient cause for the belief  
that ,the ,tyranny of ,god forms a      
necessary cog in the machinery of       
intellectual thought and progress4      
,even those who bitterly oppose the book
 admit that it possesses the power to   
make its readers think4  ,of the many   
opposing reviews and adverse criticism  
of ,the ,tyranny of ,god1 not a single  
one offers an argument in answer to it4 
,for the most part1 their               
characterization has been that it is    
pessimistic4 ,as if by calling it       
pessimistic1 they refute its claims6    
,if to tell a man the true nature of a  
disease from which he is suffering1 with

 the hope that he will seek a cure for  
his malady1 is pessimism1 then ,i am a  
pessimist4 ,is the use of a danger      
signal at a hazardous crossing1 for the 
purpose of preventing disaster1         
pessimism8  ,if to literally hold the   
mirror up to ,nature1 disclosing        
,nature's utter disregard for the life  
and feelings of man1 as a warning       
against the extravagant and useless     
propagating of life1 is pessimism1 then 
surely ,i am a pessimist4  ,if a fervent
 desire to help ,man1 instead of wasting
 time in prayer to ,god1 is pessimism1  
,i am a pessimist4  ,if to think1 to    
investigate1 to express one's thoughts  
courageously in the face of centuries   
old dogma is pessimism1 then ,i must    
confess ,i am a pessimist4  ,if to      
expose sham1 hypocrisy and fraud2 if to 
open the mind and free it from fear2 if 
to stimulate the intellect1 and work for
 the ,here instead of the ,hereafter--if
 all these are classified as pessimism1 
then truly may ,i be called an arch     

pessimist4  ,the ,tyranny of ,god was   
written to express the truth as ,i see  
it--to portray life1 not as we would    
like to have it1 but as it actually is4 
,millions are still like frightened     
children1 afraid of their own shadows4  
,fear of the truth is the greatest      
deterrent to its acceptance4            
,,joseph ,,lewis  ,april #ad1 #aibb     
,,preface ,,to ,,the ,,fourth ,,edition 
,i am indeed gratified to send forth the
 fourth edition of ,the ,tyranny of     
,god4  ,i wish1 however1 to say to the  
reader that my book deals with life     
philosophically and not individually4   
,it was from the viewpoint of life in   
general and the universe as a whole that
 the sentiments herein were expressed4  
,to love ,god is not the duty of man and
 one of the most important tasks to be  
accomplished for the human race is to   
destroy the ,theistic conception of     
,life and the ,universe4  ,the          
sentiments ,i expressed at a memorial   
meeting in honor of ,luther ,burbank    

last ,may best illustrate my            
convictions4 ,i said3  ,the religious   
person loves ,god so vehemently that he 
has no love left for ,man4  ,may ,the   
,tyranny of ,god do much to accomplish  
the purpose of its author4              
,,joseph ,,lewis  ,january #aj1 #aibh   
,,introduction  ,where did we come from8
 ,what are we doing here8 ,whither are  
we going8   ,these questions have       
puzzled thinking people since           
consciousness first dawned in the brain4
 ,many have sought to answer them1 so   
why not ,i8--with the hope that the     
reading of this book will arouse in the 
minds of the readers thoughts that will 
enable them to answer these questions   
for themselves4  ,were you suddenly to  
find yourself living on another planet1 
and you were a thinking being1 one      
anxious for knowledge1 you would        
naturally investigate the conditions    
under which you found yourself1 and     
seek1 if possible1 a solution for your  
existence there4 ,surely it is equally  

appropriate1 situated as we are on this 
earth1 endowed with brains and          
possessing senses and nerves1 to inquire
 into and investigate the conditions    
under which we live1 and the purpose1 if
 any1 of our existence here4  ,the      
peculiarity of this existence warrants  
such analysis4 ,it is certain1 from our 
understanding as well as from all       
visible scientific facts1 that we did   
not make ourselves1 and that we never   
had a former existence2 and we are led  
to conclude1 in view of lack of credible
 evidence to the contrary1 from those   
who have passed on1 that the future1 so 
far as our individual life is concerned1
 is an eternal void4  ,it is also       
certain1 as science has indubitably     
shown1 that we do not make our          
offspring1 that we are not creators1 but
 are instruments merely in producing    
life4  ,furthermore1 we did not make any
 portion of the globe which we inhabit  
and of which we are a part1 and1 so far 
as we are able to determine1 all the    

natural conditions and raw materials of 
our environment are something separate  
and distinct from anything which we     
ourselves possess sufficient power to   
accomplish4  ,therefore1 since among the
 organs of my body1 there is a thinking 
portion1 ,i am within the bounds of     
sanity when ,i investigate and express  
such thoughts1 opinions and findings as 
my reason and understanding dictate4 ,no
 one can truthfully say that he         
possesses sufficient knowledge to       
account for or to explain the peculiar  
and mystifying rules1 conditions and    
surroundings which we are forced to     
accept1 abide by and live under4 ,and1  
therefore1 the result of one person's   
findings is worthy the same             
consideration as those of another4      
,upon such basis ,i submit an honest    
attempt to express logically my         
convictions upon this vital and puzzling
 condition of our existence1 and shall  
endeavor to aid those who read this book
 to see conditions in what ,i believe to

 be their true light1 and to stimulate  
the readers to think for themselves4 ,it
 is only through the exchange of the    
results of investigations1 and of honest
 opinions1 that we have been able to add
 improvement to improvement1 and make   
easier the routine of our lives4 ,the   
conditions and elements that compose    
,nature1 for the sake of clearness1 ,i  
will ofttimes call ,god4 ,i shall be    
more easily understood1 and at times the
 term ,god will express more succinctly 
the thoughts or ideas ,i wish to        
express4     ,,the ,,tyranny ,,of ,,god 
,i   ,lest ,i be misunderstood1 ,i will 
say at the outset that ,i do not believe
 in a ,god4  ,the belief in a ,god is   
still generally accepted1 not because of
 the existence of one1 but for the      
reason that it is the easiest way to    
account for our condition4 ,but in the  
light of scientific discoveries and     
demonstrations1 such a belief is        
unfounded and utterly untenable to-day4 
,yet the word ,god1 and even the word   

,nature1 must often be used to describe 
that condition which the brain of man   
has not yet been able to analyze fully  
and scientifically4 ,one ridiculous     
conception of ,god that is believed by a
 multitude of people1 is that of a      
massive being1 sitting in a marble      
chamber studded with gold and lighted   
with glistening crystals4 ,do those who 
believe in such a creature ever consider
 him taking a bath--and in what8 ,or of 
eating his breakfast--and of what it    
consists8  ,if there were a ,god1 and   
the world were governed with stern      
justice1 tempered to our feeble         
intelligence1 existence might become    
tolerable1 but as it is1 with a         
so-called ,god ruling above1 the earth  
is an abominable place and life a long  
series of terrifying torments4 ,if ,i   
were to advocate a belief1 or faith1 in 
a ,god1 ,i would seek the embodiment of 
those things diametrically opposite to  
the attributes of the popular ,god of   
to-day4 ,such a creature is not worthy  

the sacrifice of ourselves and our      
thoughts4  ,let us examine and          
investigate the system and arrangement  
of the world--that is1 that portion of  
which we are a part and which so vitally
 concerns us4  ,the result of our most  
extensive study and labor shows us that 
the earth1 after an illimitable duration
 of time1 has gradually attained its    
present peculiar development4 ,in other 
words1 ,nature has taken millions of    
years to produce the earth as it is now 
formed2 and if it were made particularly
 for human beings it is not yet         
completed1 for we still find spots1 aye1
 vast areas1 where human life is        
incapable of subsisting4 ,the climate is
 either too hot or too cold2 there is   
too much water or too little moisture2  
the means of cultivation are too meager 
or utterly unobtainable4  ,in short1    
after eons of labor1 ,nature has failed 
to be able to present to every one of   
us1 for our habitation1 a parcel of     
earth commodious and comfortable enough 

to be perfectly desirable for life and  
its living4  ,surely1 if the earth were 
made for our benefit1 ,nature has been  
not only a very poor provider1 but a    
very thoughtless parent4  ,some say that
 man is ,nature's best product1 that the
 earth was made for us1 that we are     
particularly selected by ,god1 and that 
a certain race is his chosen people4    
,but that is not true4 ,the ,jews are no
 more ,god's chosen people than the jay 
is his chosen bird1 or the mosquito his 
chosen insect4  ,it is not true that    
,nature particularly works for us--facts
 prove the contrary4  ,facts prove that 
we are nothing but an undesirable       
by-product1 to make our way and to live 
our life as best we can within a cruelly
 turbulent space1 imprisoned by         
invisible1 impenetrable walls of        
limitation4  ,no1 it is not true that   
our life is favored by ,nature4 ,after  
we build our homes1 make our cities and 
add improvements1 what happens8 ,nature1
 with her forceful winds1 blows them    

down2 her cruel storms and rising floods
 wash them away as so much refuse1 and a
 tremor of the earth destroys not only  
our homes but ourselves also1 leaving no
 traces of our efforts1 treasures and   
sacred ties4  ,even as individuals we   
curse ,god for the shortcomings with    
which we are afflicted4 ,the exceedingly
 stout person1 one who is in his own way
 curses ,god for making him so stout4   
,the thin person has a similar          
grievance4 ,those who are too large and 
those who are too small are equally     
dissatisfied4 ,the shape of an eye1 the 
curve of the mouth1 a blemish here1 an  
impediment there1 is the direct cause of
 poignant embarrassment4 ,organs or     
dimensions too unsightly and            
unsatisfactory are productive of        
continual worry and torment throughout  
our lives4 ,the blind1 the deaf1 the    
dumb and the crippled have forever a    
curse for ,god upon their lips4  ,we    
inhabit the air1 with a density of      
fifteen pounds to the square inch1 a    

mixture of dirt and water1 in the same  
manner that the fish inhabits the water 
and the worm the earth4 ,were we beings 
of a superior type1 ,nature would have  
made us so versatile that we should be  
able to accustom ourselves to any       
condition1 and survive in any climate4  
,but despite all our improvements1      
despite all man's efforts to avoid and  
escape the conditions of ,nature1 many  
of us freeze to death in winter and     
become prostrate from the heat of       
summer4 ,if it were true that the earth 
were purposely made and existing for us 
there would be no flowers born to blush 
unseen and waste their sweetness on the 
desert air4  ,we1 ourselves1 scientists 
tell us1 are the result of a long series
 of evolutionary development4 ,they tell
 us that ,nature started with a single  
cell of protoplasm1 a single cell of    
living organism1 and produced the       
present human species after the life and
 death of an illimitable number of forms
 through the stages of countless ages1  

not exempting those lives from the fear1
 torture and misery that are still so   
essential a part of the scheme of life4 
,why impose so cruel and wasteful a     
condition upon those numberless billions
 that have lived before us1 since       
nothing but eternal death was gained by 
their existence8  ,surely1 ,nature is a 
poor architect and builder1 after taking
 so much material and so much time1 to  
make such an incomplete place for such  
an outlandish form to rule and occupy4  
,if we were given the same opportunity  
7that is1 you and ,i71 with all the     
power and resources of ,nature1 to build
 a habitable place1 and mold a living   
something to inhabit it1 our results    
would be ten thousand times better than 
that which circles the scope and        
boundary of our lives1 with the         
incomprehensible physical form with     
which we breathe and manifest life4     
,truthfully1 and without the slightest  
element of egotism1 ,i should be ashamed
 of my efforts were ,i to present as my 

handiwork nothing better than the level 
and plane which ,nature has attained4   
,,ii   ,we come into this world a tiny  
bundle and mass of helpless1 feeble     
flesh1 utterly unprepared to meet the   
requirements and fearful conditions that
 lie in wait for us4 ,we are in need of 
immediate1 urgent and constant help from
 those who were responsible for our     
birth1 imperatively so from our mother4 
,the child does not ask to come1 and    
knows absolutely nothing about its      
welfare4 ,and the mother often does not 
want to bear it1 as she knows absolutely
 nothing about maternal cares4 ,and yet 
that mother must go through the shadow  
of the valley of death before she can   
deliver this tiny bundle and helpless   
mass of feeble flesh4 ,and how often1   
aye1 only too often1 does the mother    
enter the valley of death when making   
delivery of this living form1 never to  
see the face of the child that ,nature  
imposed upon her to bear6  ,what a      
despicable arrangement6  ,what an unfair

 bargain6  ,can you imagine a more      
outlandish1 ridiculous1 awkward1        
complicated1 cruel and fearful system of
 reproduction than that which we are    
under yoke to pursue8 ,without the      
elaborate details of the perilous stages
 of life's development1 this is the     
method of incubation ,nature imposes    
upon us4 ,before the birth of a human   
being1 one male and one female--that is1
 one man and one woman--must have sexual
 intercourse4 ,whether this intercourse 
is prompted by all the finer impulses of
 life or is accomplished by the         
savageness of rape makes no difference  
to ,nature's purpose4 ,to ,nature the   
end justifies the means1 and she        
continues to go about her business4     
,the male--that is1 the man of this     
pair--can strut and parade with the     
utmost freedom from his responsibility  
for the result of his act that ,nature  
has made to be pre-eminent among his    
desires4 ,but the female--that is1 the  
woman of this pair--must for nine months

 7just think of it67 carry and develop  
the germ of this child in the fertile   
field of her womb1 and be subjected to  
the innumerable terrifying dangers      
accompanying such a carriage1 and then  
suffer a superhuman torture to make the 
delivery1 through a very meager channel 
of her body1 of this living plant which 
she has never seen1 does not know and   
quite often does not want1 but must     
absolutely bear6  ,provided ,nature has 
not made the creature too deformed and  
mutilated and unable to survive1 the    
mother must1 during a period of constant
 care and outward carriage1 bear this   
feeble infant for another period of nine
 months or more6--suckling at her breast
 for food6  ,so you see that woman is   
not only a human being1 but a fertile   
ground and pasture4  ,i have not gone   
into the misery of child bearing and    
caring1 nor of the ingratitude that is  
so often received4 ,i ask for what      
reason has ,nature imposed this terrible
 penalty upon woman8 ,why8  ,would you1 

reader1 were it in your power1 formulate
 such a method of reproduction8  ,i'll  
answer for you3  ,no6  ,but that is not 
all4 ,for years to come1 this child that
 for nine months was carried inwardly   
and for a much longer period outwardly1 
by its mother1 must now be fed1 washed  
and clothed for an indefinite number of 
years1 and guided through a thousand    
perils and dangers that ,nature has set 
before it1 with disease as ,nature's    
agent1 crouching and ready to destroy   
the child's life1 not in open combat1   
but invisibly concealed by the          
limitation of our senses4 ,this is one  
of ,nature's unspeakable crimes2 one of 
,god's despicable impositions4  ,it is  
not sufficient that a mother should     
subject herself to such a dangerous and 
perilous mission1 but she must also     
withstand the cruel savageness1 the     
cold1 callous death piercings1 of       
,nature's invisible tyrants and         
destroyers4 ,life holds but one real    
attraction1 one instance that can be    

classified above all others4 ,without   
this attraction it would be a blessing  
to choke the life breath from us all4   
,with it we are helped to bear the      
,tyranny of ,god4  ,there comes a time  
to some of us when the heart of the one 
man beats for the one woman1 and there  
alights and resides in their breasts    
that spark of devotion that we call     
love4 ,when there is born to that union 
a child1 even though in ,nature's stupid
 way1 then a bond is created more       
precious than anything else in this     
world4 ,without this little circle of   
loving joy1 the earth is a prison and   
life a grave injustice for those who    
must bear it4 ,but think of the damnable
 rule of ,nature that strives and       
delights in working destruction of the  
only condition worthy of life's living6 
,oh1 if only the life of our offspring  
were more stable1 more secure6  ,if only
 the bosom of our family were guaranteed
 to us6 ,just think6 ,the child the     
parents would not harm1 ,nature tortures

 and ,god kills6  ,looking back upon the
 path we have trodden1 with its         
continual fight against disease1 its    
manifold combats with obstacles of life1
 and with its inevitable portion of     
sorrow we all must bear1 we should think
 seriously and consider the result of   
our act before we deliberately bring    
another human being into this life4     
,you1 yourself1 do not consider your    
life worthy of reliving1 so why bring a 
human being here to go through the same1
 if not more1 suffering and misery than 
you have borne with no resultant good8  
,,iii   ,up to this point ,i have been  
speaking of human beings only1 living   
under improved conditions that man has  
made4 ,what must be the horror1 darkness
 and emptiness of those living          
substances that are inferior to us8 ,do 
you know and realize the suffering that 
we endure8 ,then let me1 in passing1    
urge this3 ,be also kind and considerate
 to our less fortunate inhabitants of   
this earth1 the dumb animals4 ,their    

feelings are quite similar to ours4     
,they have gone through the rougher     
parts of evolution that gave to us our  
more useful organs and limbs4 ,they are 
allied to us in much the same manner as 
the members of our own species4 ,they   
have their painful aches and periods1   
their hardships and tortures1 their     
broken family ties and fearful          
abhorrence of death2 their flesh is     
tender and their skin is as delicate to 
them as ours is to us4  ,so let us think
 twice1 dear readers1 before we         
deliberately harm any of our humbler    
brothers and sisters that must inhabit  
this cold and callous earth and live    
their lives under a great deal more     
tyranny and injustice than we live ours4
  ,we deliberately enslave and brutally 
treat the gentle horse4  ,we            
tyrannically imprison birds and fishes  
as pets4  ,we keep1 breed1 kill and eat 
a variety of animals for our own selfish
 purposes1 and yet some persons still   
have the audacity to say that we are    

chosen people1 ,god's children1 divine  
beings4 ,bah6  ,you know what painful   
inconvenience there is in losing an arm 
or a leg4 ,well1 the winged and footed  
beings that must bear this life suffer a
 great deal more than we do when one of 
their limbs becomes dismembered4  ,man  
has to a degree remedied or replaced his
 crippled limbs1 but ,i do not think any
 other of the higher animals have       
advanced so far1 and as a result these  
creatures must endure their pain and    
distressing annoyance to the end4       
,recently ,i watched a common house fly 
caught upon fly paper1 and studied      
intently every visible movement of it4  
,immediately upon alighting upon the    
sticky substance1 its first thought1    
almost instantaneously1 was to make an  
effort to free itself4 ,at once ,i      
thought of the fly's instinct of        
self-preservation1 and contrasted it    
with the human's4  ,the fly must have   
had intelligence1 since it knew that its
 life was in danger4 ,and1 since ,nature

 does not deal in fly paper1 the fly's  
reasoning power told it of its peril4   
,with unabated determination it vibrated
 its wings with lightning-like rapidity1
 and worked its legs unceasingly1       
breaking them in the attempt1 in its    
efforts to pull itself away to freedom6 
,as ,i watched this fly in its labor1   
this thought came to me3 ,is the fly    
unlike the human being in its desire to 
live8 ,is it afraid of death and of the 
mystery of dissolution8 ,has it1 too1   
all the agony of fear of passing to the 
,great ,beyond8 ,has it1 too1 an        
imaginary ,god in the form of a ,big    
,fly8 ,and is it also afraid of that    
,god's supposed wrath8  ,if the fly's   
desire to live is so great1 what        
interest does it have in life8  ,does it
 love8 ,does it derive happiness when it
 is able to labor to make happy its fly 
,juliet8  ,does it want to live because 
it is ambitious and is trying to excel  
other flies8  ,does it really think to  
better its species and solve the problem

 of its kind8  ,is there a fly family to
 mourn its death8  ,while watching that 
fly and asking myself these questions1  
,i was convinced of the following       
truths3  ,that the force that we call   
life is the same that animates the fly4 
,that it1 too1 has control of its       
muscles and nerves in the same          
proportion as we have control of ours4  
,that it1 too1 possesses the five senses
 and adds to its tiny brain more        
intelligence through its experiences4   
,within the movements and actions of    
that fly was wrapped up the secret of   
,whence did ,i come1 and whither am ,i  
going8  ,as ,i released my attention    
from that fly1 ,i muttered to myself3   
,the more ,i look at insects1 the more  
,i think ,i am one4  ,for what purpose  
do we arise in the morning1 fill our    
stomachs with food1 till the fields1 and
 perform labor in exchange for          
nourishment1 in the evening fall into a 
sleep from exertion1 arise the next day1
 and perform the same routine1 day in   

and day out1 week in and week out1 year 
in and year out1 and at the age and in  
the heyday of physical development seek 
an outlet in the opposite sex for the   
strongest impulse that ,nature has      
implanted in us8  ,this impulse forces  
us to commit rape and murder1 robbery   
and assault1 and to violate every       
principle of honor that man has tried to
 establish for the betterment and       
advancement of the race4  ,with the     
dissipation of this mighty sex force1 we
 subside and decline into weakness and  
decay1 only to pass into death and      
oblivion4  ,what a fearful1 wasted      
effort is this life6     ,,iv   ,the    
system of nourishment that ,nature has  
imposed upon the world is not only      
stupid and malicious1 but also of a     
cannibalistic character4  ,we1 as frail 
human beings1 are horrified and shocked 
to think that our ancestors trafficked  
in and delighted in eating the flesh of 
their race1 and even to-day we are      
making a strenuous effort to discourage 

the barbarous custom of killing animals 
to eat their flesh1 yet it seems a      
dictate of ,nature that forces us to    
uphold that custom4 ,just think of it6  
,nourishment and life-sustaining forces 
are derived from eating the cooked flesh
 of a dead animal1 the unborn fowl1 the 
bowels of the lamb1 and the eggs of the 
fish6  ,can you imagine the wildness of 
life in such a jungle of cannibalism8   
,no wonder the savage instinct is so    
deeply implanted in us4  ,to get a fair 
idea of the food we eat to sustain life 
and to please and satisfy our palates1  
we need but take a casual glance at any 
of our modern butcher shops4 ,although  
to-day you will not see human limbs on  
display and for sale1 as they were years
 ago1 you will be impressed with the    
following morsels put there to tempt    
your appetite3 ,in our modern butcher   
shops you will find pigs' feet1 calves' 
brains1 ox tongues1 breasts and legs of 
lamb1 chicken livers1 dogs ground to    
bits and sold as sausages1 live and dead

 fish of all kinds and varieties and    
innumerable other portions of animal    
flesh4  ,fortunately we have got beyond 
the point where we eat the entrails of  
these animals1 although we use their    
hoofs to make glue1 their bones for     
powder1 and we string our delicate      
musical instruments with their vitals4  
,the things we consume1 in turn consume 
the living forms that they capture and  
subdue4  ,the lion1 the tiger and the   
leopard will devour us more quickly1 and
 with less ceremony and with more       
delight1 than we devour other animals4  
,we1 being civilized1 boil the animal's 
flesh and season it with weeds that     
,nature allows to grow1 to give it zest 
and flavor1 while our wilder brothers   
eat us in the raw1 natural manner1 only 
removing our civilized clothes4         
,really1 if getting nearer to ,god is   
getting back to ,nature1 the beasts of  
the fields have an advantage over us4   
,and we know to-day that even the living
 things in the vegetable kingdom suffer 

alike from the fearful tortures and     
penalties of the world4 ,they follow    
almost the identical routine of life    
that we follow4 ,birth1 life1           
reproduction1 and death are their lot as
 well as ours2 so that1 if man were only
 to practice the idealism of his cramped
 and feeble brain he would starve to    
death6     ,v   ,if the world is the    
result of an established plan1 as some  
say1 it must be the conception of a     
hideous monster whose three cardinal    
principles are ,disease1 ,despair and   
,death4 ,but this much we can say3      
,though ,god created us a savage1       
fortunately man is civilizing ,nature's 
brute and is making him a ,man4         
,disease is one of ,nature's cardinal   
forces4 ,so1 to attain health1 we       
struggle against disease2 but health    
only means the guarding of it through   
fear4 ,with all the ills the flesh is   
heir to1 true health is a chimera1 an   
existing state unknown to man4  ,to be  
well is such a precious condition1 that 

,nature cautions us against expecting to
 retain health too long1 by instructing 
us1 through experience1 to prepare for a
 siege of illness4 ,thus1 disease and   
illness would seem to be the natural    
states1 and health the artificial       
condition under which ,nature permits us
 to live4 ,no one goes to his grave     
without suffering the tortures of some  
disease and paying the penalty of       
living4 ,no one is exempt from the      
inflictions ,nature imposes4  ,the      
greater portion of our life consists in 
devising means and medication to relieve
 us of our states of ill health and     
disease4 ,sanitation and all the methods
 we are capable of discovering and      
inventing are becoming universally      
applied to kill and to destroy the      
menacing germs that ,god causes to      
inhabit the air1 and that breed and     
multiply in the fertile flesh of our    
bodies4  ,and finally1 we are so utterly
 ignorant of how even to eat1 sleep1    
walk1 breathe1 stand or sit1 that the   

slightest infringement of the simplest  
rules of life can1 and does1 cause us   
irreparable harm4  ,if we did not move  
to help ourselves1 ,nature would have us
 live in filth and stagnation4  ,we     
seek1 discover1 or invent all kinds of  
methods to build health and to remain   
perfectly strong throughout our lives1  
and yet1 despite it all1 we are puny and
 sickly beings4 ,in fact1 ,i do not     
think there is such a thing as perfect  
health4 ,what we may do to correct1     
insure or perfect our healthy tissues   
will have a detrimental effect upon some
 other part of our body4 ,what we do to 
build up must also tear down4 ,what we  
do to produce health will1 after a      
certain point1 produce disease4 ,this1  
it seems1 is the law not only of life1  
but also of the universe4  ,it is       
regrettable that ,god did not possess   
the magnanimity of an ,ingersoll and    
make health contagious instead of       
disease4  ,physical pain and mental     
suffering are the mysterious sorrows    

that we must experience and pay to a    
tyrant ,god for the existence we bear4  
,it is incontrovertible that no         
realization is given us by ,nature of   
the fearful pains and tortures that we  
are capable of suffering and still      
sustain ourselves1 only to repeat over  
and over again the unending torment in  
exchange for the consciousness of a     
worthless life4  ,we1 with our limited  
intellects1 with our puny strength1 with
 our inability to utilize all the       
materials in our possession1 are still  
superior to the workmanship and the     
justice of ,god4  ,tyrant is no name for
 such a ,god1 who creates a living      
organism purposely and maliciously to   
torment and torture it4  ,a poor        
creature is a ,god who makes his        
suffering playthings more powerful than 
he1 and compels them to bear their      
existence under the lash of inexorable  
laws of sorrow and suffering1 pain and  
penalty4  ,and yet we are satisfied with
 so little4 ,we ask for a crumb only4   

,we are pleased with the slightest      
favor4 ,a toy delights us2 a little     
trinket elicits from us warm gratitude2 
a breath of balmy air is drunken with   
keen and pleasurable delight2 a fine day
 is celebrated with exultation6  ,but   
what a mockery is life6  ,we writhe in  
pain and bear the brunt of an arrogant  
tyranny from whatever force that created
 and controls us4 ,we must daily bathe  
our bodies1 wash our hair1 brush our    
teeth1 change our clothes and perform   
other necessary physical functions to   
feel freedom from the filthy conditions 
that ,nature imposes upon us and        
surrounds us with4  ,if ,nature saw fit 
to give us eyes1 she should have given  
us perfect ones2 not those which1 upon  
the slightest contact with a minute     
foreign substance1 cause unutterable    
pain and possible loss of sight1 in a   
world where sight is so imperative6  ,if
 ,nature saw fit to give us ears1 she   
should have given us perfect ones2 not  
those which are capable of such         

frightful pain1 with the possibility of 
becoming totally deaf1 when it is so    
necessary to hear6  ,if ,nature saw fit 
to give us a nose1 she should have given
 us a perfect one2 not one that causes  
such miserable torture and unbearable   
suffering from the slightest defect6    
,if ,nature saw fit to give us a mouth1 
she should have given us a perfect one2 
one that would perform all the functions
 of perfect speech2 not one that is so  
liable to harm and so susceptible to    
dumbness1 when speech is of such        
paramount importance to ,life6  ,if     
,nature saw fit to give us teeth1 she   
should have given us perfect ones2 not  
those which ache and pain with such     
fearful intensity that the mind is      
almost distracted6  ,if ,nature saw fit 
to give us arms1 legs1 and organs1 she  
should have given us perfect ones2 not a
 body whose tenderness makes it an      
instrument of such menacing torture2 not
 a body of crippled bones and crippled  
joints1 where suffering results from    

everything it does6  ,if ,nature saw fit
 to give us a brain1 she should have    
given us one strong enough to withstand 
all the rebuffs of life1 and one capable
 enough to utilize all the forces under 
command4 ,each person should be a mental
 ,hercules capable of solving his own   
problems and directing all matter to its
 greatest material uses4  ,instead of   
the human body being the marvelously    
constructed instrument we are wont to   
believe it1 we now find it to be nothing
 but a common machine1 imperfectly made1
 and subject to innumerable changes and 
radical improvements4  ,every person    
acquainted with the anatomy of the body 
can give you a list of imperative       
improvements that it needs1 and without 
which it will continue to function      
imperfectly and continue to cause pain  
and suffering to its possessor4  ,it    
were a great deal better1 after a full  
summary of life1 were we to be created  
utterly devoid of feeling1 equally      
impervious to joy and sorrow1 pleasure  

and pain4 ,we should be manifestly      
benefited1 for the greater part of our  
life is now full of sorrow1 anxiety1    
fear1 pain1 disappointment and worry4   
,a small portion of our life is a matter
 of indifference4 ,a portion might be   
termed satisfaction1 and a minute       
balance1 an infinitesimal part1         
termed--if there is such a thing in     
life--joy4  ,and yet1 the joy we may    
experience to-day will not be present   
to-morrow to cheer and comfort us1 but  
the pain that we feel to-day will pinch 
us more strongly to-morrow1 and will    
remain as an ever-poignant memory4  ,joy
 and pleasure are of a transitory nature
 only1 while pain and sorrow are of a   
permanent and accumulative character4   
,is all of life worth the sorrow1 the   
agony and fear of death8  ,just think of
 giving a life so full of grief that    
those who have it do not want it and    
quite often destroy it6 ,no wonder that 
drugs more powerful than our minds1 used
 to numb the pains of life1 are so much 

in demand and so universally used4      
,what a ridiculous assumption it is to  
think that a soul1 separate and distinct
 from the body1 would imprison itself in
 such a miserable confinement6  ,instead
 of life's being a privilege1 it is a   
prison1 wherein we must suffer fearful  
pains and still more fearful thoughts4  
,physical pain registers a high degree  
of intense feverish suffering1 but      
mental torture is fired with the scorch 
of hell4     ,,vi   ,human life is the  
cheapest thing that ,god makes6 ,no     
consideration is given to the feelings1 
pains and sorrows it must bear and      
endure4  ,no wonder that ridicule1      
shame1 hatred and other forms of mental 
suffering cannot be withstood by some   
frail minds1 and cause them to seek     
relief from their torment4  ,under the  
red-hot brand of mental torture1 the    
jealous husband sees his wife violate   
every rule and principle and vow of     
virtue4 ,he sees her reveling in the    
arms and embrace of him that he         

despises1 committing trespass upon the  
one he so loves4  ,the husband suffers  
more mentally in a few moments of these 
imaginings1 than the actual performance1
 with his full knowledge1 could cause   
him to suffer4  ,losses1 mistakes1      
discouragements and disappointments     
scorch with burning blisters the lining 
of our lives4  ,i once thought it was   
cowardly to make destruction of oneself1
 but ,i must say that more mature       
thought1 supported by actual scenes and 
experiences1 has caused me to alter my  
view4  ,but before ,i go farther1 let me
 make my thought clear so as to avoid   
any misunderstanding4  ,i do not mean   
that a person should shirk his or her   
duty in the face of hardship1           
discouragement or rebuke4 ,on the       
contrary1 the mettle of the man is best 
tested by such adverse forces1 and some 
of the most inspiring moments of life   
lie in overcoming these conditions and  
triumphing over unjust1 undue and       
seemingly impossible odds4 ,what ,i do  

mean is1 when life no longer holds any  
attraction1 when the ravages of disease 
have torn and mutilated your body1 when 
pain and torture are raking your mind1  
and your daily companions are these     
miseries1 with no possible hope of their
 relief or change1 then by all means1 by
 whatever agency you desire to          
accomplish it1 save yourself the        
terrible agony of living1 and defeat one
 of the tyrant impositions of ,god4     
,,vii   ,the child suffers the sharpest 
pains1 the crudest poignancy that could 
possibly be inflicted upon its body1    
through the stupid1 frightening and     
monstrous tales that are continually    
told to it to make it good1 to make it  
obey4  ,to think that a child cannot    
bear to enter the dark1 cannot bear to  
be alone1 cannot bear to be separated   
from its loving and protecting parents1 
and yet must suffer in a few moments    
from a fatal disease--the agony of all  
this1 in the face of death1 is the crime
 of crimes1 too damnable and horrible   

for words4  ,i remember once seeing a   
little lost child4 ,it cried for its    
mother4 ,hot tears were streaming down  
its burning cheeks4 ,its face portrayed 
the severest form of suffering that life
 is capable of experiencing4 ,if ,nature
 ever made a frail article1 it is our   
tender offspring1 so bewildered1 so     
utterly helpless1 so agonizingly        
delusioned1 so pitifully searching for  
some familiar face2 something to make it
 discover its lost self4 ,oh1 what power
 ever made us so tender1 so incapable of
 self-help1 as to have us undergo and   
feel such terrific suffering6 ,it is    
injustice enough when adults are made to
 suffer mental and physical ills1       
without inflicting such a painful decree
 upon mere infants4  ,at least an adult 
has some conception of his suffering4   
,he can make provision for some remedy4 
,he can seek others to ask them to      
render help4 ,he knows1 he feels1 he    
understands the situation1 and can      
adjust himself as best he can to obtain 

some relief4  ,but not so with the      
child4 ,its mind is not capable of      
comprehending the condition which makes 
its suffering so sharp4 ,its little     
brain is too feeble1 hardly strong      
enough to direct its awkward and bulky  
body1 much less to solve such an        
incredible predicament as being utterly 
destitute of help1 in a world fashioned 
upon such an unsatisfactory plan4       
,there is not1 nor can there be1 a      
sadder1 more distressing sight1 than to 
see a little lost child overcome with   
fright4  ,if it were in my power to     
abolish any of ,nature's cruel laws1 ,i 
would take from the little child its    
feeling of pain4  ,let me ask1 would    
man1 were it in his power1 send a       
helpless creature1 utterly unable to    
sustain itself1 without power of        
thought1 understanding or expression1 so
 dependent upon loving care1 kindness1  
help and comprehension1 into a world    
that is a wilderness1 a world reeking   
with pestilence and populated with      

shrieking beasts and brutal and savage  
people8  ,as a passing word regarding   
the child1 let me say this3  ,do not    
judge your child as an ordinary         
mechanical instrument1 as if he could be
 wound up to a certain degree and       
gradually1 as if by clockwork1 tick away
 each moment of the day4 ,the child is a
 combustible force1 and1 although there 
are certain rules by which you may      
obtain the greatest degree of           
improvement1 you cannot rigidly adhere  
to them4 ,there are numberless instances
 when the propensity or inclination of  
the child may appear to you to be       
aggravating and annoying2 nevertheless1 
you must not let your irritability      
interfere with the development of that  
trait preminent to the child's          
character4  ,look upon your child1      
encourage your boy or girl1 to be a     
pioneer and a soldier in the march of   
progress4 ,instruct it with the         
knowledge of the miserable conditions of
 our past history1 and bring it forcibly

 to understand that efforts only are    
repaid1 and that we must work in order  
to accomplish4  ,prayers are only wasted
 words on the desert air4 ,the greatest 
mental crime ever committed is that of  
teaching a child1 while still upon its  
mother's knee1 its duty and obedience to
 ,god4 ,it would appear that for the    
amount of suffering it must endure1 and 
in the face of its unconsulted coming1  
we should at least disregard ,god for   
his insolence1 and impress upon the     
child the peculiar conditions of life4  
,we should instruct it1 that from time  
immemorial1 ,nature has been laboring   
through the most awkward process of     
reproduction1 and has finally brought   
the child into existence1 not to enjoy  
the benefits1 or eat of the fruits of   
the earth1 but to bear a life of        
continual strife and suffering4 ,not of 
,god should we speak to our child1 but  
of the importance of being prepared to  
do all in its power to help others to   
escape the torture1 misery and hardships

 it must so painfully overcome4 ,is it  
any wonder that we grow up to be serfs  
and slaves8 ,before we are able to know 
or understand the very rudest           
fundamentals of life1 our entire mental 
machinery is corrupted by unshakable    
fears and dedicated to the vilest and   
most sickening submission4 ,would that  
we were left alone1 and free to follow  
the thoughts of our own minds1 regarding
 the great problems of life4 ,what a    
mighty1 unhampered power we would       
possess to find the proper course of    
action1 and possibly the real solution  
to the mystery of the ,tyranny of ,god6 
,to love and to reverence our tormentor 
is repulsive and despicable1 and since  
we refuse to allow man to tyrannize over
 man1 what degradation it is for the    
human race to cringe and bow down       
unconditionally to the imagination in   
the great realm of uncertainty6  ,do not
 hurt your child4 ,do not strike it4 ,do
 not cause it any unnecessary pain4     
,before it is able to walk1 before it is

 able to talk1 before it is old enough  
to tell of its pain and suffering1      
,nature makes it endure enough4         
,remember1 the only language of the babe
 is the cry of pain4  ,imagine yourself 
under the lash of suffering1 utterly    
speechless and incapable of conveying   
your wants and feelings to an absolutely
 strange surrounding1 and you will have 
a slight picture of the growing child in
 your household4 ,did you ever stop to  
consider that the child1 when born1 does
 not know that you are its parent8 ,it  
does not know that you are its father1  
or that you are its mother4 ,it does not
 know what prompted its birth1 or why it
 must live--and above all1 what it has  
done to be sent to such a miserable     
prison place as the planet upon which we
 live4 ,we must demonstrate all this as 
well as we can to the child4  ,this much
 we can be sure of3 kindness1 tenderness
 and love should forever be our guide in
 our dealings and contact with children4
  ,the child is brought into this world 

from the insuppressible passion of two  
people1 and surely without its consent1 
and it is absolute tyranny and barbarity
 to torment its mind or to punish its   
body1 regardless of the result its      
action may have upon us4  ,to the little
 children that have suffered the        
horrible punishment so generally        
followed in that cruel and false        
book--the ,bible--my heart goes out in  
pity1 since words fail me to describe   
those savage characters that visit      
inhuman1 tormenting and torturous       
treatment upon their unwelcome          
offspring4  ,if we were forced to       
perform the thousand tyrannies that are 
directed against the child during the   
day by cruel and thoughtless parents1   
the lunatic asylum would soon be our    
place of refuge4 ,such trivial things as
 a spot on the shoe1 a speck of dirt    
upon the clothes1 a mere tip of the hat1
 a slight turn of the scarf often give  
rise to such violent reprimand1 and very
 often brutal punishment1 that the      

savageness of barbarians is mild        
compared to such displays of temper4    
,my heart again goes out to you1 little 
children1 when and wherever you are1    
that must bear the brunt of brutal      
actions from stupid and thoughtless     
parents and guardians4 ,these people    
seem to classify children in the matter 
of discipline as grown ups1 thinking    
7or1 rather1 not thinking7 that         
children's undeveloped minds should be  
as strong as theirs1 when they          
themselves are unable to practice the   
self-denial that they expect from mere  
infants4  ,how often does a child       
receive a slap in the face from a parent
 for the asking of only a simple        
question1 when the parent is not in the 
humor to bother with him8  ,what a      
painful and terrifying beating does a   
child often get for disobeying some     
arbitrary command uttered by the one    
over him4 ,to the child1 ,don't do this1
 ,don't go there1 ,stand up straight1   
and ,say this are commands that carry   

with them court martial and its severe  
and unrelenting punishment4  ,remember  
this3 ,the child will respond to        
kindness and love more readily and      
directly than to force and unwarranted  
discipline4 ,it is purely a question of 
whether your feelings are actuated by   
these impulses4  ,if you have become    
mentally strong enough to restrain your 
impulses to strike your child1 do not   
substitute other means to punish him4   
,changing the method of brutally        
inflicting physical pain upon your child
 to some other means1 though less       
repulsive1 is still obnoxious and       
harmful4  ,if you are unable to convince
 your child1 by persuasion1 example or  
otherwise1 that you are right and that  
the child should follow your            
instruction1 then by all means1 let it  
become the victor in the contest4       
,fear--fear of pain1 fear in every      
form--controls our lives1 and shapes the
 courses of our puny destinies4         
,,viii   ,the mind1 through fear of     

death1 is capable of suffering1 within a
 few moments1 the tortures of an        
eternity1 although to accomplish death1 
,nature may require only a few minutes4 
,the extent of the mind's capability for
 suffering is beyond compare4  ,nature  
has been distinctly conspicuous in      
imbuing us not only with grave doubts   
and uncertainties1 but also with an     
unshakable fear regarding death4 ,in the
 deepest moments of despair1 when living
 has absolutely no attraction and life  
becomes a burden and a menace1 we fight 
desperately1 and without abatement1 for 
this narrow1 worthless thread of        
existence4  ,possibly the fear that we  
have in the face of death is caused by  
the fact that we must suffer pain before
 death is accomplished4 ,and a great    
deal of the theory of self-preservation 
is due merely to our great horror of    
pain4  ,the indisputable fact that      
thousands take their lives by choosing  
the least possible painful method       
demonstrates1 with a firm conviction1 my

 thought that it is the avoidance of    
pain1 rather than the retaining of life1
 that prompts our efforts to live4  ,it 
is only too true1 and heard from the    
lips of thousands1 that if they could   
only lie down and never awake1 what a   
blessing it would be4 ,we speak in terms
 of having lived too long1 being tired  
of living1 life not worth living1 etc41 
as if life were a prison sentence1 and1 
often1 rather than continue the         
servitude1 we surmount and overcome the 
deterrent of pain and destroy the life4 
,very often our desire to keep on living
 is prompted by our baser impulses4 ,we 
live sometimes to get even with         
someone--to spite someone4 ,we live     
sometimes to be able to show what we can
 or cannot do4 ,were it not for these   
baser impulses1 what an unlimited number
 of people would refuse to continue this
 monotonous1 painful and non-paying     
life6  ,the foregoing expressions of    
life1 at one time or another1 represent 
the feelings of all humanity4 ,in the   

,united ,states alone during the year   
#aibj it has been conservatively        
estimated that more than twelve thousand
 persons committed suicide4 ,these      
persons were engaged in all kinds of    
pursuits and came from ,,all walks of   
life4 ,they ranged from social outcasts 
to society leaders2 from poverty        
stricken unfortunates to persons of     
great wealth2 from illiterate men and   
women to editors and college professors2
 from laborers and layman to physicians 
and ministers4 ,the youngest suicide was
 a mere infant of five years1 the       
oldest1 a centenarian of #ajf6 ,among   
the suicides of last year were two      
evangelists and twelve clergymen4 ,it   
would appear that those who had devoted 
their thoughts and services to ,god     
would at least be spared the agony of   
such suffering as to force them to      
prefer death and to take their lives4 ,i
 say with ,ingersoll1 it is a wonder    
,god does not at least protect his      
friends and defenders4  ,the reluctance 

we have to die is due in a large degree 
to the possibility of securing a few    
more moments of joy from an already too 
much troubled world1 with the hope that 
a little compensation will be derived   
from the pain and sorrow we have        
endured4  ,and yet those things that we 
may live to enjoy to-day and to-morrow  
may likewise be present to thrill us at 
some future date1 away and beyond the   
limitation we are capable of surviving4 
,it is from this desire that we         
unconsciously feel that we would like to
 live always1 to get our full measure of
 return2 and since such is neither the  
lot nor the privilege of our possession1
 it really makes no difference when we  
die as far as personal satisfaction is  
concerned4  ,the fear that possesses us 
now in the matter of death will likewise
 and with equal force possess us later1 
when we actually and without ceremony   
must submit to the inevitable4  ,the    
desire that possesses a person to live  
now will1 with equal attraction1 obsess 

him later4  ,our desires and aspirations
 are never satisfied4 ,what we may      
cherish to accomplish to-day may be     
consummated and achieved1 yet to-morrow 
another something will demand our       
energies to be spent for further desires
 to be accomplished4  ,when we are      
babies we desire to walk2 when we walk1 
we desire to talk2 when we talk1 we     
desire to grow2 after we grow1 we want  
to learn2 after we learn1 we want to do 
and to expand--and our performance and  
expansion are only curtailed by insolent
 death6     ,,ix   ,the only            
justification there is to live1 once    
conscious of the damnable scheme of     
life1 is the burning desire to do       
something to help mankind bear the      
conditions and to make easier the burden
 of life for those who are here and for 
those who are to come2 for very often   
the greatest benefactors of the race are
 so maligned and persecuted in their day
 that only the future can render a just 
appreciation of their labor and their   

value4  ,for without the improvement    
bestowed on life by the world's         
benefactors1 over the crudity of        
,nature1 it were better that we remain  
in the bosom of our wilder brothers1 and
 hang from the trees by the length and  
the strength of our tails4 ,aye1 back   
and back and back1 down every degree of 
life until the time before the first    
cell of protoplasm from an inanimate    
into an animate state started4  ,why    
must we be made to suffer such dreadful 
torment before death1 since by eternal  
decree it is the common lot all must    
endure8  ,death1 puzzling1 eternal      
death1 is ,nature's final stamp upon our
 fearful struggle through life4  ,and   
the agony of death is more poignantly   
mental than physical1 since the mind1   
reviewing the acts of the past1         
anticipates with anxiety and with       
picturesque vividness the wrongs1       
scandals1 terrors1 fears and injustice  
of the future4  ,since life is so       
replete with physical pains1 no wonder  

our picture of death is so horrible4    
,we see upon the lifeless form the cast 
of its agonizing pain1 and augur from   
that an eternity of sorrow4 ,but        
fortunately1 in reality we can only feel
 pain as long as we possess life4 ,in a 
sense1 therefore1 death is a blessing4  
,after all1 the severest pains of death 
lie in the brains of the living4 ,the   
mind is capable of suffering in one     
moment all that a lifetime can repay    
with pleasure1 and no joy is sufficient 
in value to compensate you for enduring 
an irreparable loss4  ,the conditions   
that existed before our birth are       
identical with the conditions that will 
exist at our death4 ,as we knew no life 
and felt no pain before our birth1 we   
shall know no life and feel no pain     
after our death4  ,death is no longer   
the enigma of life4 ,living is its      
problem4 ,the sting of death has been   
removed4 ,we know death's destiny1 and  
no longer fear its consequences4 ,the   
only suffering attached to death now is 

the injustice of its time of coming1 the
 reluctance of parting with loved ones1 
and the loss of the opportunity to      
attain4 ,well might ,i say with         
,shakespeare1 that3       ,cowards die  
many times before their death2      ,the
 valiant never taste of death but once4 
,of all the wonders that ,i yet have    
heard1      ,it seems to me most strange
 that men should fear2      ,seeing that
 death1 a necessary end1      ,will come
 when it will come4  ,the most          
despicable characters of human life are 
those who prey upon credulous persons   
when in the face of death and shrouded  
with the fear of its uncertainty1       
picturing to those persons horrible and 
frightening tales of an eternity of     
torture4  ,what unspeakable misery must 
those whose religious conviction has so 
terrified death and its aftermath1      
especially when it is intensified and   
horrified through the mouthpiece of     
ignorant priests1 suffer in consequence 
of death4  ,oh1 what a fearful sting    

must be there6  ,just think what this   
poor1 vast1 credulous multitude pay1    
with the sweat of their brows and the   
bend of their backs1 to enrich these    
moral beasts in exchange for their      
ignorant and terrifying mumblings1 that 
rob the deluded ones of every fiber of  
courage and every thought of perfect    
peace and rest4  ,it is while living    
that death possesses its sting and      
anguish4 ,anyone that seeks tribute from
 the dying1 or from the living for      
services on behalf of the dead1 is a    
damnable moral scoundrel and a cunning  
rascal4  ,to those whose minds have been
 poisoned from childhood with this      
religious conviction1 this most awful of
 beliefs1 ,i cry3 ,throw off these      
tyrants of the mind4 ,emancipate        
yourselves from this fearful ignorance  
and mental bondage6 ,what a burden will 
be lifted from their lives and what a   
glorious freedom they will experience6  
,if we are to die1 let us die in perfect
 calmness and in perfect peace4 ,let us 

become firmly convinced that1 once we   
are dead1 no thought1 no act1 can       
possibly harm us4 ,we are beyond the    
pale of ,nature's pangs4 ,we1 the       
individuals that we were1 are free from 
everything4 ,we are at rest1 and        
forever4     ,x   ,but after this life  
with all our pains and sorrows1 what    
then8 ,what is there to repay us for    
living8  ,i answer3  ,nothing6  ,i have 
no misgivings about the future4 ,i am   
firmly convinced that there is no after 
life1 that when we breathe our last we  
arrive at our eternity4 ,we are one with
 yesterday's seven thousand years4 ,we  
are like the flower which1 once blown1  
forever dies4  ,i firmly believe that   
life as now manifested in our bodies is 
a combustible force identical with that 
of any other form of life4 ,no less so  
than the seed of the flower is different
 from the germ of the wheat4  ,both are 
forces6  ,so are we6  ,they may be      
different manifestations1 but           
fundamentally they are the same4  ,in   

fact1 the very force that manifests     
itself in a mechanical instrument made  
by man is the identical substance that  
rules the organs1 and charges the brain 
of our being4 ,in the same manner that  
the force dissipates itself in the      
mechanical instrument made by man1 and  
no longer gives motion to its parts1 so 
the force that animates our being       
dissipates itself and is no longer      
capable of giving motion to our parts   
and organs4  ,as man's instruments are  
dependent upon many channels for their  
complete performance1 so the human brain
 and body have their many dependencies  
that must fully and properly be         
nourished to maintain their power4      
,each day science draws another veil    
from the mystery of life4  ,our eye is  
but a chemical camera1 that we have not 
only reproduced1 but even improved upon4
  ,our voice is nothing but a vibration1
 that we have not only reproduced and   
improved upon1 but whose minutest       
modulations we have recorded in         

innumerable duplications4  ,our ear is  
but a drum1 that carries and conveys to 
the brain the vibrations of our voice1  
and that function we have reproduced and
 even improved upon by the instrument we
 call the telephone4  ,the telegraphic  
system of the human body that           
communicates to the brain the conditions
 that the senses perceive1 is no other  
than that which man has even improved   
upon by the transmission of an          
intelligible message to a far-distant   
land without the use of any apparent    
conductor4 ,with the marvelous          
instrument1 the telephone1 man sends his
 voice around the world4  ,man's        
greatest inventions1 the phonograph1 the
 camera and the telephone1 both wire and
 wireless1 make the work of ,nature1 as 
manifested in our bodies1 a simple1     
childish affair1 fit only for the       
kindergarten of things4  ,when ,edison  
invented the incandescent light and     
reproduced the human voice in the       
phonograph he pulled aside the veil of  

secrecy and penetrated the infinite4    
,he proved and demonstrated man to be   
greater than ,god4  ,our limbs carry our
 bodies in the direction our brains     
dictate1 and that function we have      
reproduced and even improved upon in all
 the means of locomotion that we daily  
use and which we now consider as a      
matter of fact among the ordinary things
 of life4 ,comparisons are odious when  
we compare the awkward motion of ,nature
 with the rapid locomotion of man4  ,man
 progresses far too rapidly for the     
accommodation of ,nature1 and as a      
result adapts for his use and benefit   
vital essentials that ,nature in her    
laziness has either failed to utilize1  
or will not utilize4  ,although we have 
not yet completely discovered all the   
material and mechanical elements that   
compose life1 we are sure and certain of
 their origin4  ,we hear ourselves talk2
 we decide upon our destination and     
direct our motion2 we eat when we are   
hungry2 sleep when we are tired2 cry    

when we are in pain2 and laugh when we  
are tickled4 ,our whole being from start
 to finish is mechanical1 and the       
element of something spiritual1         
something separate and distinct from a  
purely material sense1 is absolutely    
illogical and ill-founded in view of the
 illimitable illustrations that are     
being demonstrated every day4  ,it is a 
thing easily understood1 if we          
logically1 and intelligently1 without   
blindness1 preference or prejudice1     
analyze the problem4  ,it may sound     
better and more desirable to say that we
 possess a soul--that this life is but a
 stepping stone to a higher plane--but  
it is not true4  ,we cannot observe the 
true1 actual facts of life by coloring  
our subject4 ,if we want to determine   
the truth we must be mentally prepared  
to accept the truth4  ,a painted face1  
brightened eyes1 blackened eyelids1     
,marcelled hair1 and a form draped in   
all the splendor of the finest silks do 
not make a woman possess the sweetness  

and charm that all this dope is intended
 to make us believe4  ,as much as man   
wants to have the end of this life      
attain certain benefits and             
destinations1 this desire does not make 
them real4  ,the implicit confidence in 
a faithless wife does not make her loyal
 and virtuous4 ,a wife's confidence in a
 profligate husband does not make him   
stanch and true4  ,life calls for a cold
 analysis4 ,it must be stripped of all  
its artificial colorings and            
superfluities4 ,it must be measured and 
weighed for what it actually is1 not for
 what we would like it to be4 ,it must  
be determined in the unwavering scales  
of science4  ,the proper study of       
mankind is not the man in the white     
starched collar1 with trimmed hair1     
shaven face and polished shoes1 but the 
man recently from the forest1 with      
coarse1 grizzly hair upon his back1     
brutal and violent passion dominating   
his body1 and savageness and hatred in  
his startled and terrifying eyes4  ,the 

sooner we come to the realization of    
this vital fact1 the sooner we become   
acquainted with the basic origin of     
life1 the sooner we shall understand    
life1 with its achievements1 with its   
aspirations and hopes4     ,,xi   ,it is
 an absolute fact and certainty1        
impossible of refutation1 that when     
animation ceases in the body and no     
effort is made to revive it1 life ceases
 and the processes of decay and         
decomposition set in4  ,yet it is       
permanently established and has been    
successfully demonstrated innumerable   
times1 that certain methods of          
artificial stimulation have revivified  
and resuscitated the delicate organs    
that cause the heartbeat and give       
consciousness to the brain4  ,recently  
my local newspaper contained the        
following item3       ,,dead ,,but ,,saw
 ,,no ,,spirits       ,oklahoma ,city1  
,okla41 ,february #gth--,neal           
,dillingham doesn't      believe in     
after-death communication with the      

living4 ,dillingham      was dead for   
twenty minutes recently1 and he says he 
ought to      know4       ,doctors said 
,dillingham's blood circulation was     
stopped by a clot      of blood4 ,his   
heart stopped beating1 and he did not   
breathe4       ,insertion of a saline   
solution into his artery just above the 
heart caused the clot to dissolve1 and  
,dillingham came back to      life4     
,i did not return to earth after ,i left
 it1 said ,dillingham4 ,i      had no   
knowledge of anything that took place1  
but ,i must have been      pretty dead1 
as ,i do know ,i didn't recognize       
several persons ,i had      known all my
 life1 after ,i was myself again4 ,if ,i
 had any talks      with anybody while  
,i was 'dead' ,i don't remember anything
 about      them4  ,believing that the  
publicity that this case received would 
make the party known to the postal      
authorities1 ,i sat down and wrote him a
 letter1 hoping that1 if fortunate      
enough to have a letter delivered to    

him1 he might be kind enough to write me
 personally of his experience4  ,after a
 lapse of several days ,i received from 
him a letter substantiating in detail   
all that was mentioned in the newspaper 
clipping quoted above4  ,in the instance
 of this man ,dillingham1 he was dead1  
so to speak1 and as far as his soul was 
concerned it had left the body2 yet the 
injection of a material solution1       
compounded by man1 in conjunction with  
artificial respiration1 caused the      
beating of the heart and gave back to   
the brain its power of consciousness4   
,if it is the soul that causes the      
functioning of the body1 where is it    
when such an action takes place8  ,if it
 is the soul that gives us life1 how is 
it that we can materially and           
mechanically destroy it8  ,we are born  
and nourished by material means4  ,we   
live our life by material means4  ,we   
reproduce our kind by material means4   
,and we can destroy ourselves by        
material means4  ,everything that       

touches and concerns our life is purely 
material1 and it should be incumbent    
upon those who believe in the ,soul or  
the ,spiritual ,element of man to       
produce the proof of their contention4  
,we are nothing but a continual         
propagating instrument1 without         
spiritual1 moral1 lasting or ultimate   
value4 ,we are here to reproduce our    
kind and for nothing more4 ,what man    
secures for himself within the narrow   
circle of his existence here is all that
 he gains for the life that ,nature     
forces him to live4  ,everything man    
has1 man has made4 ,nothing has been    
given to him by ,nature4 ,god has been a
 miser6  ,if man possessed a soul the   
thousand deformities of the brain would 
not exist4 ,insanity would be           
impossible1 and all the forms of petty  
vices that so miserably afflict us would
 be totally unknown4  ,that which gives 
us the power of life is a combination of
 the material forces of ,nature1 and the
 elements that compose the brain are of 

a chemical substance4 ,the difference   
between a live person and a dead one can
 be summarized by a great many instances
 about us1 and because of their         
commonplaceness1 we do not observe them4
  ,there are many apples falling to the 
ground1 but we are not inspired with the
 knowledge that the actuating force is  
gravity4  ,one of the best              
illustrations1 to show the difference   
between a live and a dead person1 can be
 had from that excellent invention      
called the film or plate1 and which is  
so remarkably used in the camera4  ,when
 that sensitive composition of chemicals
 that forms the film and which produces 
such a vivid and lasting likeness of    
ourselves is freshly made1 it possesses 
that vital something we call life4  ,but
 allow this film to remain unused for a 
period of time1 and it will no longer be
 able to perform its remarkable work4   
,it will not possess the life to take a 
picture or to record an impression4  ,if
 a premature exposure of the film is    

made1 it loses its vital quality because
 of the mixture with other elements1 or 
because of the evaporation of its       
constituent parts4  ,it is not necessary
 to analyze all the properties of that  
film to show the principle whereby it   
performs its wonderful work4 ,the       
general principle1 showing its marvelous
 use while intact and its utter         
uselessness when its composition is no  
longer the same1 should be sufficient to
 illustrate the comparison4  ,this      
illustration can with force and         
conviction be applied to the peculiar   
quality and nature of our soul and      
brain4 ,as long as the brain is incased 
within our skull1 and fully protected   
from contact with any other substance to
 alter or to change its integrity1 it   
will perform all that is warranted of   
it4 ,in the case of our brain1 though1  
besides the importance of keeping it    
protected from outside chemical action1 
the vital element concerned in its      
continuity of life lies in the          

importance of keeping it constantly     
nourished and supplied with the         
remarkable qualities of the vital       
substance of blood4  ,the moment the    
blood supply to the brain is stopped1   
our brain loses its most important      
constituent1 with the ultimate and      
inevitable result of inertia1           
decomposition and decay4 ,when this     
condition happens we are then dead and1 
like the proverbial egg1 all the ,king's
 horses and all the ,king's men cannot  
put ,humpty ,dumpty together again4  ,if
 we possessed a soul1 and it were of a  
permanent and special quality1 it would 
maintain its impressions and remember   
its existence4  ,it could pass through  
innumerable periods and know its many   
and varied journeys4  ,even memory1 so  
unreliable in our short life1 bespeaks  
the utter impossibility of such a thing 
as a soul with a permanent and lasting  
existence4  ,that which we call the soul
 is nothing but a chemical composition1 
that can and does lose its permanency   

while we are still alive4  ,we are      
acquainted with a number of chemical    
compositions that must remain in a      
pacific state to maintain their         
identity1 so those chemical forces that 
compose our soul must perforce maintain 
their equilibrium4  ,if we are stunned1 
or suffer any of the many conditions    
that upset chemical compounds and       
compositions1 we1 for the time being1   
suffer either unconsciousness or some   
other form of mental disability4  ,if we
 are shocked too severely1 we become    
totally and permanently impaired1 and   
suffer violent fits and fearful rages1  
insanity or imbecility4  ,different     
shocks1 and even forms of disease1      
result in certain action upon our       
chemical brain1 which causes it to lose 
only part of its ability4 ,extreme high 
fever is only one form of illness which 
causes the brain to lose its stability  
and run rampant and unbridled4  ,if ,i  
were fully cognizant of all forms and   
degrees of disease1 ,i could recite     

exactly how they act and in what degree 
they harm the delicate organism of our  
brain4 ,in many instances shocks or     
diseases too powerful for our brain to  
withstand1 cause that portion of our    
brain that may control our speech1 our  
sight1 our hearing1 our limbs or other  
organs to lose its power1 with the      
consequence that we must suffer and be  
handicapped with what is properly called
 a great affliction4  ,science to-day   
has discovered that great truth1 and has
 not only catalogued the different      
portions of the brain in their          
individual departments or capacities1   
but1 by a master stroke of surgery1 can 
correct and remedy those impaired parts1
 and give back to the human being the   
use of those valuable organs that the   
invisible agents of ,nature had taken   
away4  ,so1 instead of the brain's      
possessing a soul1 we find it1 only in a
 more delicate degree1 a mechanical     
formation such as we discovered our body
 to be4  ,but if we possess a soul and  

it is capable of passing through the    
many and varied stages that life        
suffers1 what becomes of its            
impressions8 ,what and where are the    
benefits of its retention8  ,where is   
the soul when we are in a state of      
unconsciousness8 ,surely1 if the soul   
were ever present to guard and maintain 
life1 it would be standing by and using 
its power when it is most needed4 ,we   
have no occasion for help when we are   
not in danger4 ,it is when power can be 
used and exercised that it should be    
manifested4  ,even love1 the great      
compelling force of our life1 is subject
 to the variations of our chemical soul1
 its attractions and repulsions4  ,if   
two form the unit of reproduction1 and  
love is the great mating medium of      
,nature1 then once it is animated1 once 
it is brought into existence1 it should 
endure permanently1 and the possessors  
should at least enjoy their blissful    
companionship until the end4 ,but no4   
,nature would entice1 and then destroy1 

this most consuming feeling of life4    
,two persons can start life with the    
most irresistible attraction and        
irrepressible love and within a very    
short time1 unless they guard their love
 with every means and weapon of advanced
 thought and reason1 ,nature1 through   
her duplicity1 will provide searching   
eyes to alienate their affection1       
causing a wretchedness unparalleled in  
the mental miseries of mankind's life4  
,the saddest state of all is when two   
persons1 with the sacred devotion of    
love1 cohabit and the happy result is   
loving children1 and yet while this     
happy family1 free from ,nature's       
pitfalls and snares1 are living in a    
peaceful and blissful state1 there      
exists the ever-menacing devil who      
tempts the loving wife and mother to    
follow the will-o'-the-wisp--and thereby
 undoes and destroys the greatest       
kingdom of life4  ,the devoted husband  
and father1 by the flash of an eye1 and 
the charm of a face1 can forsake his    

sacred ties of devotion and become a    
degenerate and outcast1 with death as   
his only salvation4 ,in either case     
,nature stands by with a sneer upon her 
lips1 and ,god forgets his obligation to
 his children4 ,but the final analysis  
proves beyond doubt that the physical   
attraction is responsible for this      
action2 and who can deny that it is the 
chemical attraction of two forces that  
produced this irresistible desire8      
,,xii   ,if the life we live be a       
kindergarten or infancy of a larger and 
better life somewhere else1 ,nature     
defeats her own ends1 because myriads   
pass on1 leave here1 with the most      
dwarfed intellects1 utterly unprepared  
to live here1 and much less prepared to 
live in a higher state and on a more    
lofty plane4  ,were such a condition    
true1 that this is but a transitory     
existence1 we should all have to go     
through the same schooling of life1 and 
be indelibly impressed with its lesson1 
with conviction and understanding that  

the same mistakes would never be        
repeated1 or the acquired knowledge     
would be constantly and forever used4   
,there would be no deaths in infancy1 as
 each child born would be purposely sent
 here2 neither would there be premature 
deaths1 as no one could leave without   
learning his lesson4  ,there would be a 
fixed standard of knowledge and         
development that we would be required to
 attain4 ,knowledge1 or whatever        
condition ,nature imposed1 would be our 
destiny1 and we would devote our entire 
life to its acquirement4  ,as it is1 we 
bend our efforts and use our strength to
 avoid and to escape the acquisition of 
knowledge4  ,if our life were given to  
us in order to pass through a school of 
experience1 the simplest truths would   
immediately manifest themselves to our  
minds1 and conviction would be instant  
and permanent4  ,but how sadly untrue is
 this premise6  ,for thousands1 aye1 for
 millions of years1 the people have been
 stupefied with the most ignorant and   

foolish superstition4 ,an instance that 
will present with great force an        
illustration of the utter folly of the  
contention that we are living on this   
planet as a lesson in school1 lies in   
the fact that for thousands of years    
people not only believed but religiously
 guarded the belief that the earth was  
flat4  ,even to-day1 with irrefutable   
demonstrations of the truth1 there are  
some people who either cannot1 or will  
not1 accept it4  ,as desirable as this  
theory of a transitory state may be1 it 
is even contrary to ,nature herself4    
,the entire scheme of ,nature seems to  
be fashioned upon the same principle as 
our life4 ,the fearful struggle of the  
elements involved squares identically   
with our own existence4 ,even the       
gigantic constellations1 flying with an 
incalculable velocity1 leaving          
destruction and desolation in their     
tracks1 meet in their ignorant and blind
 journey the same fate as we meet4      
,recent astronomical discoveries speak  

of a struggle constantly taking place in
 those areas4  ,the belief of an        
existence after death is so untenable in
 the face of many scientific discoveries
 of to-day1 and of the irrefutable facts
 that are constantly staring us in the  
face1 that an instance or two are all   
that are necessary to prove the fallacy 
of such a belief4  ,under many          
circumstances we are unable to recognize
 our own blood relations after a lapse  
of a certain length of time4 ,parents   
fail to know their children2 and        
children their parents4 ,this is equally
 true in every comparison and degree of 
relationship4 ,features and             
characteristics undergo such a decided  
change and transformation that          
recognition is ofttimes even impossible4
 ,even the law courts are continually   
called upon to determine the proper     
identity of persons1 to establish the   
ownership of property by other means    
than by personal identification4 ,most  
remarkable of all1 under new conditions1

 we do not recognize ourselves within   
the interval of only a few seconds6     
,try this if you would seek proof1 and  
convince yourself that recognition of   
your own personality is momentarily     
impossible1 and that you must resort to 
other senses than that of sight to      
identify yourself4  ,put a wig upon your
 head1 blacken your face1 make up your  
features1 and when you have finished and
 are completely unaware of your changed 
appearance1 look into the mirror for    
your reflection and feel the sensation  
of the startling fact that you know not 
yourself4  ,we speak of changes so      
radical in a person's appearance that we
 often say we could not recognize him in
 a thousand years4  ,what a ridiculous  
presumption it is1 then1 to maintain    
that we live after death when all senses
 are gone and perception is dead6       
,again1 how anyone can say that when we 
die we go to heaven is too childish to  
consider1 because when we die1 instead  
of going up and to heaven1 we are put   

deep into the ground to moulder and to  
rot away4  ,what a far-fetched          
conclusion it is to assume that we live 
after death1 minus all the physical     
characteristics and under conditions    
utterly incomprehensible to our minds6  
,even if1 at death1 the body turned into
 invisible gases it would mean and prove
 absolutely nothing4  ,if we live after 
death1 by what means can one person     
communicate with another8  ,we cannot   
feel1 because we have no hands4  ,we    
cannot see1 because we have no eyes4    
,we cannot smell1 because we have no    
nose4  ,we cannot hear1 because we have 
no ears4  ,we cannot taste1 because we  
have no mouth1 no stomach4  ,but1 with  
it all1 these five mediums of sense are 
dependent upon a living brain4  ,the    
fact that we suffer the loss of our     
senses even before death1 because of the
 complications in the make-up of our    
body1 should be sufficient proof of the 
nonexistence of a soul and the utter    
impossibility of a life after death4    

,unless we retain and maintain our      
sacred ties after death1 another life is
 valueless and void1 useless and        
unnecessary4 ,it is a fearful sadness to
 think that the ones you love are to    
pass away into nothingness and be no    
more2 that the sparkling eyes will be   
dim forever2 that the rosy cheeks will  
no longer glow with radiant health2 that
 the ruby lips will fade into a deathly 
blue1 motionless and forever still2 that
 dimpled hands and loving arms will     
never encircle you again1 and the       
supremacy and tenderness of your love   
must be crushed with a cold and callous 
ferocity4  ,but1 sad and mournful as it 
is1 with the human heart beating        
hopelessly against hope for only one    
more chance to kiss and caress and love 
the one you so dearly cherish1 it is    
nevertheless only too poignantly true   
that death ends all4  ,death means      
nothing to the affairs of the world4    
,to be taken from amid the world in such
 an ever-living condition as now exists1

 is like taking a cup of water from an  
ever-full pail4 ,the gap is immediately 
filled1 and the level of the water      
simultaneously adjusted1 leaving        
absolutely no trace of what has been    
withdrawn4 ,only the individual suffers4
 ,what a mighty burst of heart there    
would be if we all could feel and suffer
 at the same time6  ,nature makes no    
difference and knows no distinction     
between the living and the dead4 ,the   
warm and tender rays of the sun1 and its
 blistering heat1 fall alike upon the   
crying1 innocent babe and the lifeless1 
unfeeling corpse4  ,the sun does not    
shine to give us its necessary heat1    
without also bringing to light some new 
problem and pain for our over-troubled  
hearts to bear4  ,murder1 rape and greed
 look no different to ,nature than      
goodness1 virtue and unselfishness4     
,tears were made for the things that    
,god causes1 laughter is the result of  
man's efforts4     ,,xiii   ,it is man's
 labor1 man's work1 man's achievement1  

that gives us the little desire that we 
have to live4 ,how often do we prefer   
death to living life in our former      
condition1 after our efforts have       
brought us to a point of vantage and    
comfort6  ,death is always preferable to
 the living of a dog's life6 ,and yet1  
with it all1 the little improvement we  
have to-day1 with the still remaining   
cruel conditions of ,nature left to     
endure and fight1 has not been worth the
 struggle through the black and bleak   
past4 ,the price has been entirely too  
severe for the little that has been     
gained4  ,god gives man nothing2 man    
gives man everything6  ,what sublime    
courage it was that made the pathfinders
 of the past sacrifice their lives1 in  
order that their principles of truth    
might triumph1 so that another link     
might be made in the chain of progress  
that is endeavoring to break the spell  
of a tyrant power4  ,you must be made to
 know that for whatever desirable       
condition we have to-day we are indebted

 to heroic men and women of the past1   
who1 in the days of infant progress1    
achieved a moral1 physical and          
intellectual triumph4  ,the chair you   
sit on1 the cup you drink from1 the fork
 you eat with1 the light you read by1   
the bed you sleep in1 the heat that     
warms you1 the shoes on your feet1 the  
clothes upon your back1 the hat upon    
your head1 and every part and particle  
of improvement that has enriched the    
world with a little touch of human      
comfort are the result of the heroic    
labors of the men and women of the past1
 who victoriously fought the accursed   
and chaotic forces of ,nature1 so as to 
make life and living a little better4   
,but at every step and stage of progress
 the dogmatists have exerted their      
influence toward retardation4 ,what     
these dogmatists were unable to         
accomplish through fear and suppression1
 they accomplished through ostracism1   
and death4 ,human advancement and       
progress are foreign to the believing   

mind4 ,the dogmatists are concerned only
 with the supernatural4 ,they want not  
the comforts of life here if they can   
secure those benefits hereafter4  ,it is
 the attitude of the religious to       
belittle anything that is designed for  
human betterment4 ,their philosophy is1 
the more you suffer here1 the less you  
will suffer hereafter4 ,their humility  
to and fear of this unseen power is the 
most degrading trait in human beings4   
,it is a frame of mind not only         
despicable and a hindrance in the face  
of progress1 but even antagonistic to   
and destructive of all things worth     
while4  ,to them1 the insanity of belief
 is of paramount importance1 and is more
 sacred and holy than human life4 ,aye1 
human life has been so subordinated to  
this superstitious belief that it meant 
death in the past to those who rejected 
it4  ,rather observe some holy day than 
perform work to help some fellow human  
being in distress4 ,murder1 rather than 
eat meat on a forbidden day6 ,this frame

 of mind is one of the mental mysteries 
that science has yet to solve4     ,,xiv
   ,the rotundity of the earth was      
discussed and its circumference         
scientifically measured hundreds of     
years before the supposed birth of      
,christ1 and had not the ,god believers 
been so persistent in forcing their     
belief upon others1 and had not         
,christianity been born1 ,i can see how 
the discovery of ,america would have    
been accomplished about a thousand years
 before the discovery by ,columbus2 and 
the incalculable progress which would   
have been the consequence would have    
carried mankind beyond the boldest      
imagination of to-day1 and placed us a  
thousand years nearer civilization4     
,hero1 a mathematician1 who lived at the
 time when the ,greek minds were the    
marvel of the world1 invented a steam   
engine1 which was used in experiments   
and was rapidly nearing completion and  
perfection1 when1 unfortunately1        
ignorant and destructive ,religion1 that

 was madly trampling upon everything of 
value1 destroyed the famous ,alexandrian
 ,library wherein was kept a model of   
this engine4 ,it also swept away the    
incalculable wealth of knowledge that   
had required ages to accumulate1 and    
thereby completely annihilated the most 
priceless possessions that the human    
race ever owned4  ,but that is not all2 
it is only a fragment4 ,for history at  
every stage of life shows the continual 
strife between the forces of progress   
and the religious fanatic and ,god      
believer4  ,what is that strange form of
 insanity that prompts people to torture
 and to destroy those who seek to       
emancipate them from the ,tyranny of    
,god and from the deluded belief in a   
hereafter8  ,the attitude of all1 each  
and every one of us1 should ever be the 
desire and willingness to greet a new   
idea1 to support a new thought1 to try a
 new proposal1 to do all in our power to
 uphold the forces of progress1 to lend 
our help and to devote our energies in  

any direction that will ultimately lead 
us from the cruel forces and narrow     
limitations that are our lot to share4  
,to those who have no thought for these 
things1 who care not what forces and    
conditions man must face1 who take      
without thought and give only through   
compulsion1 whose self-satisfied        
condition 7made possible only by the    
heroic work of the martyrs of progress7 
make of them personal heroes1 whose life
 is wrapped within the flicker of a day1
 who do not know1 do not realize1 and do
 not care about the fearful suffering of
 the world--,i say to them to strut     
their intoxicated hour and pass away4   
,the sooner they live their lives and   
the sooner they die1 the better for the 
earth4 ,it needs fertilization4  ,were  
we as mentally progressive as we are    
materially advanced1 what a wonderful   
and magnificent improvement over the    
present living conditions we would be   
enjoying6 ,every new invention1 every   
new improvement1 would be immediately   

and universally installed1 and every old
 and antiquated instrument and method   
would be discarded and destroyed4 ,that 
which now seems only within the command 
of the households of the immensely      
wealthy1 would be as popularly used and 
enjoyed as the now commonly used        
articles in the poorest households4     
,think of existing to-day in a          
predominant percentage of dwellings for 
human beings where there is not found   
the essential bathtub1 or the still more
 essential toilet room6  ,governments   
are instituted for the people's benefit1
 and shame upon such a government1 in an
 enlightened age like to-day1 that      
tolerates such a condition1 when that   
government possesses the men1 the means1
 the intellect and the materials to     
electrify the world6  ,the first and    
foremost essential in higher development
 is the comfort and conveniences in a   
home4  ,these are some of the conditions
 that the progressive minds of the world
 are trying to solve and remedy4 ,it is 

only a question of how much longer the  
majority of people will pay homage to an
 imaginary ,god for imaginary benefits  
in an imaginary life after death4       
,,xv   ,it is the antagonism of the     
dogmatic world1 and the apathy of the   
rest1 that is the cause of the mental   
progress of the world's not keeping pace
 with the material progress4  ,better   
still1 the universal application of the 
material progress has been far in       
advance of the universal acceptance of  
mental achievement4 ,the automobile1 the
 gigantic ocean liner1 the talking      
machine1 the electric fan1 the elevator1
 the telephone and the other marvelous  
achievements of man are being used by   
the greater portion of the people1 whose
 mental status belongs to the           
wheelbarrow1 the simple chair1 the ox   
cart and the tallow candle4  ,slight is 
the realization by the users and        
beneficiaries of science's modern       
methods1 of the heroic struggles and    
battles that the great men and women of 

the past suffered to make possible these
 accomplishments4  ,oh1 how many        
suffered torture and death at the hands 
of the very people they were striving to
 benefit6  ,this same fate has been met 
by all the brave and courageous1 during 
the past1 who have made any attempt to  
broaden the life and to ease the pain of
 the troubled heart of humanity4  ,the  
unselfish endeavors of man have made it 
possible to take the dumb matter of     
earth and mold it so the voices of the  
present can be heard by the ears of the 
future2 so that several generations may 
hear and know1 with a touch of human    
affection1 the traits1 features and     
characteristics of their ancestors4     
,language gives us their thoughts1 the  
camera gives us their natural1 life-like
 features and the phonograph their      
actual1 living voices6  ,nature never   
did so much4 ,as far as ,nature is      
concerned1 bastardy may rule the world6 
,one of the comforts of life is that we 
live again in actions and scenes1 which1

 although they are apart from our own   
lives1 really belong to the past or     
future races4 ,but ,nature sees to it   
that the births and deaths1 the         
knowledge and acquaintance of each and  
every generation1 are so closely allied 
that none of us is allowed to escape the
 suffering of the world and the agony of
 life and death4 ,no person can avoid   
the pain and the terrible fear that all 
must endure4  ,no one person can live1  
move about and possess the varied       
improvements of the earth's materials   
all by himself4 ,he is indebted to      
others for their accomplishments1 and   
they in turn are indebted to him for the
 improvements he renders4 ,in short1 we 
are all so closely allied with the      
actions and lives of one another that   
there should be a mutual appreciation   
and a common understanding among all4   
,the farmer may know nothing about      
manufacturing2 the manufacturer may know
 nothing about farming2 the artist1 the 
explorer1 the thinker1 the inventor and 

the scientist may know nothing about any
 field of endeavor other than his own1  
yet all are inter-dependent4  ,with such
 a condition existing1 and with the     
uncertainty of life forever staring us  
in the face1 and no one exempt from its 
terrible enactment1 it is a marvelous   
wonder to me why there exist so         
tenaciously in the human heart all the  
petty and aggravating tempers1          
prejudices and jealousies4  ,what man   
has done with the forces of ,nature are 
inspiring deeds4 ,what progress has been
 made in opposing the forces of ,nature 
is marvelous4 ,what man will accomplish 
in the future with the arrogant forces  
of ,nature stimulates our hearts with   
the sweet satisfaction of a victory of  
the first magnitude4  ,but in the final 
analysis1 what does it avail us8        
,geologists tell us that the greater    
portion of the materials that we have   
taken from the field of ,nature consists
 of the buried bones and bodies of our  
ancient ancestors1 who passed through   

greater periods of agony1 torment1      
disease and death than we are finally   
and eventually to meet6  ,what sort of  
crust in the earth's formation are we to
 make8 ,what will be the product of the 
future living forces that will utilize  
the materials that our bodies will make8
 ,what will be the future living forces8
  ,it is fearfully sad to contemplate   
that life must continue and be subject  
to the miserable laws that now govern   
it4  ,insect man1 with his almost       
tireless industry1 makes clothes to     
cover his ugly and awkward body2 builds 
houses to shelter him from the winds and
 the torrents of ,nature2 fashions      
glittering palaces of amusement to cheer
 his troubled heart2 compounds          
ansthetics to ease his pain2 carves wood
 to replace his broken limbs2 molds     
metal to take the place of those things 
that ,nature has made inadequate for his
 use4 ,in short1 man has improved upon  
,nature to uphold his frail body1 to    
strengthen his weak bones1 and to soothe

 his tender heart4  ,that man1 fighting 
the forces of ,nature1 has been able to 
accomplish so much is simply glorious1  
and this progress is an achievement of  
such wonderful magnitude that we are    
thrilled at the thought1 and bow in     
grateful recognition for the benefits   
derived and the relief enjoyed4  ,but   
why did not ,god institute all the      
benefits for the immediate use of man1  
so they could be enjoyed upon the first 
manifestation of his understanding8     
,why was it necessary to go through the 
fearful period of past history and gain1
 only after a most gigantic struggle1   
the few things that we now use for our  
comfort8  ,that these things could have 
been done is proved by the fact that man
 has done them4 ,fundamentally they     
always existed4 ,man has only discovered
 and applied them4 ,and these things    
that we have gained to-day1 from the    
struggles of the past1 would have been  
equally enjoyed by those who lived      
before us1 with the same degree of      

benefit1 just as the future will find1  
use and enjoy those things that we do   
not possess1 and without which we shall 
be pinched1 and pained1 through the     
helter-skelter of this troublesome life4
  ,i brand as brutal tyranny this scheme
 of life1 that forces us to be a link in
 a long series of lives to produce      
something for the benefit of the        
far-distant future1 that we1 ourselves1 
imperatively need but shall not possess4
  ,i cry and denounce and plead1 in     
behalf of future humanity1 to circumvent
 and to defeat this sorry scheme of     
life1 that uses us as an instrument to  
produce something that we cannot use1 do
 not know about and have not the        
understanding to comprehend4     ,,xvi  
,in ,god ,we ,trust1 on coins that      
represent our labor and our endeavor1 is
 an insult to the intelligence1 courage 
and independence of the people1 and a   
stinging rebuke to those responsible for
 our progress4  ,a motto that more      
truthfully represents our material      

progress and intellectual development   
would be3 ,in ,science ,we ,trust2 or1  
,humanity and ,justice ,our ,aim4  ,the 
more we eliminate ,god from us1 the more
 we are one without him1 the better for 
us all1 the better for humanity1 the    
better for all the world4 ,the less we  
know of ,god1 the less ,god that is in  
us1 the more human we become4  ,the     
greatest1 most frightful and destructive
 wars of all time have been those which 
were started in defense of ,god1 as if  
he cared what man says or does4  ,the   
most frightful and torturous instruments
 ever conceived by man are those that   
were made to force people to believe in 
,god4  ,the history of religious        
persecution and torture is the horror of
 the world4  ,may ,i ask1 where was     
,god1 and what did he do1 to stop this  
frightful nightmare of torture committed
 in his name8  ,and may ,i answer for   
you1 that he was where ,moses was when  
the light went out8  ,remember this3    
,there will never be a solution to any  

of our fundamental problems1 and mankind
 will never1 in the full sense of the   
word1 be free1 as long as there exists  
in the human mind the insanity of       
religious belief4 ,as long as ,god      
occupies a portion of our thoughts1     
mankind must be content to suffer the   
hatred and antagonism of man4  ,let us  
make up our minds now1 let us resolve   
now1 to stop fighting one another1 and  
fight ,god by helping one another4  ,let
 us stop fighting our fellow prisoners  
and fellow sufferers1 and fight ,god4   
,let us help our fellow prisoners and   
fellow sufferers4  ,let us cleanse our  
minds of this superstitious poison of an
 after life1 and work and labor for the 
good and welfare of ,here and ,now4  ,we
 possess the knowledge and the means    
and1 within the span of only one day1   
could bring about the much-longed-for   
,brotherhood of ,man4  ,we could        
eliminate hatred from our hearts1 and   
instill ,justice as our guide4 ,we could
 eradicate poverty from our midst and   

bring happiness to sorrowing mankind4   
,we could blot out tyranny among men and
 exchange it for the priceless legacy of
 freedom and make the relation between  
man and man bear some semblance of      
humanity4  ,but--and ,i say this with   
redoubled conviction1 and with all the  
power1 force1 energy and vehemence that 
,i possess--if we are ,nature's best    
endeavor1 if man is ,nature's best      
product1 if the ,natural world is       
incapable of any improvement1 and life  
will forever be made to submit to the   
tyrannical conditions of ,nature1 then  
it were better ten thousand times over1 
that life were never called into        
existence1 and that the universe were   
null and void6  ,,the ,,end     ,,edison
 ,,letter ,,to ,,joseph ,,lewis         
99       99       99       99       99  
,from the ,laboratory of ,thomas ,a4    
,edison1 ,orange1 ,n4,j4       ,august  
#ah1 #aiba4       ,mr4 ,joseph ,lewis1  
c_/o ,the ,truth ,publishing ,co41 #adjj
 ,broadway1 ,new      ,york ,city4      

,dear ,sir3--       ,i received your    
book--,the ,tyranny of ,god--and have   
read it      through4 ,i think as you do
 that death ends all1 yet ,i do not feel
      certain1 because there are many   
facts that seem to show that the        
real units of life are not the animal   
mechanism itself1 but groups      of    
millions of small entities living in the
 visible cells4 ,the      animal being  
their mechanism for navigating the      
environment1 and      when the mechanism
 fails to function1 i4e4 die1 the groups
 go out      into space to go thru      
another cycle4 ,the entities are each   
highly      organized and perform their 
allotted task4 ,if there is anything    
like this we still have a fighting      
chance4 ,you have doubtless read        
interviews ,i have given lately on this 
subject4 ,they appeared in      the     
,scientific ,monthly for ,october #cj1  
#aibj and the ,cosmopolitan      for    
,may1 #aibj4       ,yours very truly1   
,thos ,a ,edison   ,famous ,inventor    

,gives ,views of ,death and ,immortality
 in ,correspondence with ,author of ,the
 ,tyranny of ,god4