Contrast this with an orthodox Sermonette — one that is repeated every seventh day, in thousands of sacred sanctuaries by consecrated black-robed clericals, who have been specially trained from boyhood to weepfully, unctuously rehearse the same “with upturned eyes and skillful snuffle or in classic diction, sounding, sonorous, nay! Sublime — as suits the occasion.
Dearly Beloved Brethren!!!
— Gawd answers all who kneel and pray, is a Trewth accepted day by day. Behold! their bright and joyful lot, who’ve faith in what Christ Jesu taught!
If you’ve empty pockets and tables bare, demand ye not your natural share; that would be wrong; but, creep and sigh and ‘you’ll go to heaven when you die’.
For the meek and humble who obey, there’s a happy land, far, far away; but a fearsome, fiery, brimstone pit, shall melt their marrow, who won’t — submit.
If foemen smite you on one cheek, turn round the other, tearful, meek; if perjured knaves your votes betray: come ‘wicked sinners’ kneel and — pray.
If Hebrews fleece and flay your hide, heaven’s gates for you, shall open wide; Christ your Shepherd, won’t lead astray, O! lambs of Gawd! come bleat and pray.
If bruised and beaten, shorn and sold, you’re sure of stalls in your Father’s fold; but — robbers rob, or rulers slay! Hell roast your souls for ever and aye.
If elected persons invade your wealth, with bribes and lies or deadly stealth, and threat your bones with a bannered host: Christ is your refuge and the Holy Ghost.
You’ll triumph thus ‘in the dawning years’ hope on! toil on! in this vale of tears — sing, “Rock of Ages cleft for me, O! let me hide myself in thee.”
CHAPTER III: THE SPINNING-OF-THE-WEB!
Just as the spider weaves his silky web, to lure flies into the larder of his banqueting hall in order that he may at his leisure, pick the flesh off their bones, so deceitful Ideals are cunningly woven by dexterous, political spiders, to capture and exploit Swarms of human flies.
What are the grandiose paragraphs of the Declaration of Independence, but the weft and woof of a dazing spider-web? And what are the American People but the flies that have been cleverly entangled in its gossamer meshes? For over a century this ‘Declaration’ has been the parchment divinity or all public orators, from the curbstone dervish at the street corner, to our Elective Monarch in the White House. Every 4th of July, Americans habitually scream themselves hoarse over its sounding generalities: making the welkin ring with tin-horns, giant fire-crackers, flag-idolatry, brass bands, toy pistols and herd-bellowing generally. Although the great majority of them are mental and physical dwindlings, poverty-stricken, and property-less yet how insanely they delight in amusing a sardonic world with their loquacious flamboyant charlatanry. ‘We are sovereigns and equals’ is their everlasting Barmecide chorus. ‘Sovereigns and Equals!’
In all lunatic asylums may be found inmates who fancy themselves kings and queens, and lords of the earth. These sorrowful creatures, if only permitted to wear imaginary crowns and issue imaginary commands, are the most docile and harmless of all maniacs.
As for the American People of to-day: is not their written constitution but a cunningly constructed straight-jacket — their moral codes, padded prison-cells: their statute laws handcuffs and leg-irons — their Captains of Industry keepers and turnkeys in clever disguise? One hundred years ago they ostensibly commenced ‘independent’ operations with the richest continent on earth as their private property — their subscribed capital; and during the whole of that period, have they not been as busy as so many relays of draught beasts-of-burden, pumping the tremendous natural wealth out of their home soil, and pouring it over-sea, into the cess-pools of Europe?
Is not that the work of lunatics? They smashed and splintered the wooden political yoke of an English king and then proceeded to rivet around their necks a brand new yoke of bolted steel, which they forged especially to fit themselves: and which they dignified under the name of “Constitutional Freedom”.
Is not that also the work of lunatics? Cursed indeed are the harnessed ones! Cursed are they even though their harness be home made — even though it tinkle musically with silver bells — aye! even though every buckle and link and rivet thereof is made of solid gold.
How absurd of men to hurrah over their ‘glorious political liberty’ who have not even been able to retain possession of the substantial products of their own laboriousness. After a century of ‘constitutional progress,’ ten per cent of the population are absolute owners of ninety-two per cent of all the property.
Now, O reader, Are not these things the outward and visible sign of organic dementia?
The Declaration of Independence commences by proclaiming an unctuous falsehood, a black, degrading self-evident lie — a lie which no one could possibly believe but a born fool. With insolent effrontery it brazenly proclaims as ‘a self evident truth’ that ‘all men are created equal’ and that they are ‘endowed,’ by their ‘Creator’[5] with certain ‘inalienable’ rights — rights which it thereupon proceeds to define in canting phraseology, imbecile and florid as it is false.
Indeed the mock-heroic preamble of this rhetorical pronunciamento is but a cunningly constructed piece of blague deliberately intended to deceive and betray. It consists of a patchwork of plagiarized catchwords, annexed wholesale from the ravings of seventeenth-century Levellers, crazed puritanic Mattoids and eighteenth-century cretinous French Jacobins: — all mixed up and jumbled together with a long rigmarole of semi-meaningless pretty phrases, culled mostly from an old time melodrama.
The Declaration of Independence has less real meaning for present conditions than a bottled-up Indian war-whoop of the same period would have, if uncorked now. It is a back-number, musty, high smelling, and worm-eaten: only fit for the walls of a museum or the brain-cells of — a daft philosopher.
Its ethical and most of its political conclusions are shams, deceptions, and cold-blooded dishonesties — incandescent Lies — glorified, belauded, printed in letters of gold, but nevertheless — Lies.
Indeed it has always been considered a piece of amusing mockery by those who really understood the secret intent for which it was originally constructed: viz: — as a lasso for the bellowing Herds, that, about one hundred years ago were beginning to run wild, and escape from their herdsmen, and herdsmen’s stock-whip, in this (then) boundless New World.
5
A mythical airy being who roams about Eternity manufacturing Things out of No-Things — A fable.