* November 21, 1886.
This distinguished Frenchman is now dead at the comparatively early age of fifty-three. Although his illness was so serious, the French premier13 telegraphed that it would be impolitic for the Resident General to leave Tonquin suddenly. Thereupon Paul Bert replied, "You are right; it is better to die at my post than for me to quit Tonquin at the present moment." That dispatch was the last he was able to send himself. Subsequent dispatches came, from other hands, and at last the news arrived that Paul Bert was dead. The French premier announced the fact from the Tribune in a broken voice and amid profound silence. "The Chamber14 loses in him," said M. de Freycinet, "one of its eminent members, science an illustrious representative, France one of her most devoted15 children." The next day the Chamber, by an overwhelming majority, voted a State funeral and a pension of ￡400 a year to Mdme. Bert, with reversion to her children. The first vote was strenuously16 opposed by Monseigneur Freppel, Bishop17 of Angers, on the ground that the deceased was an inveterate18 enemy of religion, but the bishop was ignominiously19 defeated by 379 votes against 45. That is probably a fair test of the relative strength of Freethought and Christianity among educated men in France.
Monseigneur Freppel was right Paul Bert was an inveterate enemy of religion. He was a militant21 Atheist22, who believed that the highest service you can render to mankind is to free them from superstition23. No wonder the Church hated him. At a famous banquet he proposed the toast, "The eradication24 of the two phylloxeras—the phylloxera of the vine and the phylloxera of the Church." His handbook on the Morality of the Jesuits was a frightful25 exposure of the duplicity and rascality26 of priestcraft. About twelve months before Grambetta's death, that great statesman took the chair at one of Paul Bert's atheistical27 lectures. It was a bold thing to do, but Gambetta was a bold man. The great statesman did a bolder thing still when he took office. He scandalised the Christian20 world by appointing his atheistic28 friend Paul Bert as Minister of Public Instruction and Public Worship. Surely this was a piece of irony29 worthy30 the assiduous student of Rabelais and Voltaire. "Clericalism is the enemy," said Gambetta. Paul Bert accepted the battle-cry, but he did not content himself with shouting. He labored31 to place education on a basis which would make it a citadel32 of Freethought. The Tory Standard allows that he "laid the bases of military education in the schools and lycees" that he "first dispensed34 the pupils in State educational establishments from the obligation of attending any religious service, or belonging to any class in which religious instruction was given," and that he first organised the higher education of girls.
Paul Bert was a typical Frenchman and an illustrious Atheist. What do the clergy35 make of this phenomenon? Here is a man, trained by his father to hate priests, brought up from his cradle in an atmosphere of Freethought, and owing nothing to the Church; yet he becomes an eminent scientist, a fervid36 patriot3, an educational reformer, a leading statesman, a tender husband and father, and a warm friend of the best men, of his time; and on his decease the State gives him a public funeral and provides for his widow and children. The man, we repeat, was an open, nay37 a militant Atheist; and again we ask, What do the clergy make of this phenomenon?
During his lifetime Darwin was the bete noir of the clergy. They hated him with a perfect and very natural hatred38, for his scientific doctrines39 were revolutionary, and if he was right they and their Bible were certainly wrong. The Black Army denounced his impious teachings from thousands of pulpits. With some of them he was the Great Beast, with others Antichrist himself. And they were all the madder because he never took the slightest notice of them, but treated them with the silent contempt which a master of the hounds bestows41 on the village curs who bark at his horse's heels. Yet, strange to say, when Darwin died, instead of being buried in some quiet Kentish cemetery42 or churchyard, he was actually sepulchred in Westminster Abbey. Having fought the living Darwin tooth and nail, the clergy quietly appropriated the dead Darwin. The living, thinking and working man was a damnable heretic, hated of God and his priests, but his corpse43 was a very good Christian, and it was buried in a temple of the very faith he had undermined. Darwin, with all his gravity, is said to have loved a joke, and really this was so good a joke that he might almost have grinned at it in his coffin44.
By and bye, the great naturalist45 may figure as an ardent46 devotee of the creed47 he rejected. The clergy are hypocritical and base enough—as a body we mean—to claim Darwin himself now they have secured his corpse. Who knows that, in another twenty years, the verger or even the Dean of Westminster Abbey, in showing visitors through the place, may not say before a certain tomb, "Here is the last resting-place of that eminent Christian, Charles Darwin. There was a little misunderstanding between him and the clergy while he lived, but it has all passed away like a mist, and he is now accounted one of the chief pillars of the Church"?
What the clergy have done in the concrete with Darwin they have done in the abstract with his predecessors48 in the great struggle between light and darkness. What are all the lying stories about Infidel Death-Beds but conversions49 of corpses51? Great heretics, whose scepticism was unshaken in their lifetime by all the parson-power of the age, were easily converted in their tombs. What the clergy said about them was true, or why didn't they get up and contradict? All the world over silence gives consent, and if the dead man did not enter a caveat52, who could complain if the men of God declared that he finished up in their faith?
Recently the clergy have been converting another corpse, but this time it has been able to protest by proxy53, and the swindle has been exposed all along the line. Paul Bert, the great French Freethinker, died at Tonquin. The nation voted him a state funeral, and his body was shipped to France. The voyage was a long one, and it gave the pious40 an opportunity of leisurely54 converting the corpse, especially as Paul Bert's family were all on board the steamer. Accordingly a report, which we printed and commented on at the time, appeared in all the papers that the atheistic Resident General had sent for a Catholic bishop on his death-bed and taken the sacrament. Thousands of Christians55 believed the story at once, the wish being father to the thought. They never stopped to inquire whether the report was true. Why indeed should they? They took the whole of their religion on trust, and of course they could easily dispense33 with proof in so small a matter as an infidel's conversion50. Some of them were quite hilarious56. "Ha," they exclaimed, "what do you Freethinkers say now?" And with the childish simplicity57 of their kind, when they were told that the story was in all probability false, they replied, "Why, isn't it in print?"
Now that the fraud is exposed very few of the journals that printed it will publish the contradiction. We may be sure that the story of Paul Bert's conversion will be devoutly58 believed by thousands of Christians, and will probably be worked up in pious tracts59 for the spiritual edification of superstitious60 sheep. Give a lie a day's start, said Cobbett, and it is half round the world before you can overtake it. Give it a week's start, and if it happens to be a lie that suits the popular taste, you may give up all hope of overtaking it at all. First in the way of exposure was a telegram from the Papal Nuncio at Lisbon on December 29, saying that his name had been improperly61 used. He was not the author of the telegram that had been fathered on him, and he knew nothing of Paul Bert's conversion. A day or two later the ship conveying the heretic's corpse arrived at the Suez Canal. Madame Bert heard of the preposterous62 story of her husband's conversion, and she immediately telegraphed that it was absolutely and entirely63 false. Madame Bert, who is a highly accomplished64 woman, is a Freethinker herself, and she is too proud of her husband's reputation to lose a moment in contradicting a miserable65 libel on his courage and sincerity66.
Before dropping the pen, we take the opportunity of saying a few words on Madame Adam's article on Paul Bert in the Contemporary Review. She is an able woman, but not a philosopher, and she labors67 under the craze of thinking that she is a great force in European politics. She confesses that she hated Paul Bert, and she betrays that her aversion originated in pique68 and jealousy69. We do not wish to be ungallant, but Gambetta had good reasons for preferring Paul Bert to Juliette Lambert, although the lady is ludicrously wrong in saying that "it was to Paul Bert that Gambetta owed all the formulae of his scientific politics." She forgets that Gambetta's speeches before Paul Bert became his friend are in print. She also ignores the fact that Gambetta was a stedfast Freethinker from his college days, and was never infected with that sentimental70 religiosity from which she assumes that Paul Bert perverted71 him. Certainly he was incapable72 of being moved by the hackneyed platitudes73 about science and religion that form the prelude74 of Madame Adam's article, and seem borrowed from one of M. Oaro's lectures. Nor did he need Paul Bert to tell him, after the terrible struggle of 1877, that Clericalism was the enemy. Still less, if that were possible, did he require Paul Bert or any other man to tell him that France imperatively75 needed education free from priestcraft. Madame Adam is so anxious to deal Paul Bert a stab in the dark that she confuses the most obvious facts. Gambetta and he fought against clericalism, and labored for secular76 education, because they were both Freethinkers as well as Republicans. In venting77 her spite, and reciting her own witticisms78, she fails to see the force of her own admissions. This is what she writes of a very momentous79 occasion:
"I saw Gambetta at Saint Cloud the Sunday after the mishap80 at Obaronne. He had just been taking the chair at the Chateau81 d'Eau, at an anti-clerical meeting of Paul Bert's.
"He came in a little late to dinner. Some dozen of us were already assembled on a flight of steps at the bottom of the garden when he appeared. He spied me at once [a woman speaks!] across the green lawn and a vase of tall fuchsias, and called out in his sonorous82 voice:
"'Admirable! superb! extraordinary! Never since Voltaire has such an irrefutable indictment83 been brought against the clergy! And what a style! What consummate84 art!'
"'And what bad policy!' said a great banker who was with us, in a low voice, to me [note the me].
"Gambetta went on as he approached us:
"'And such an immense success—beyond anything that could be imagined! Ten thousand enthusiastic cheers!'
"'The ten thousand and first would not have come from me,' I said [said I], as we greeted one another.
"'You yourself,' cried Gambetta, 'you yourself, I tell you, would have been carried away; if not by the ideas, by the genius lavished85 in propounding86 them.'"
Yes, and notwithstanding Madame Adam's "religion" and the great banker's "policy," Gambetta and Paul Bert were in the right, and miles above their heads.
Following Madame Adam's lively nonsense, the Echo says that Paul Bert tried to set up another Inquisition. "In France," says this organ of Christian Radicalism87, "they strive to prevent a parent from giving his child a religious education." They do nothing of the kind. They simply insist that the religious education shall not be given in the national school. Every French parent is free to give religious instruction to his children at home, and there are still thousands of State priests who can supply his deficiencies in that respect. Meanwhile national education progresses in good earnest. The Empire left nearly half the population unable to write their names. Now the Republic educates every boy and girl, and Mr. Matthew Arnold assures us that the French schools are among the best in Europe, while the sale of good books is prodigious88. Gambetta and Paul Bert worked, fought, and sacrificed for this, and they cannot be robbed of the glory.
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1
founders
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| n.创始人( founder的名词复数 ) | |
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patriots
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| 爱国者，爱国主义者( patriot的名词复数 ) | |
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patriot
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| n.爱国者，爱国主义者 | |
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titanic
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| adj.巨人的，庞大的，强大的 | |
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organisation
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| n.组织，安排，团体，有机休 | |
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distinguished
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| adj.卓越的，杰出的，著名的 | |
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eminent
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| adj.显赫的，杰出的，有名的，优良的 | |
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mere
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| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
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doctrinaire
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| adj.空论的 | |
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galling
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| adj.难堪的,使烦恼的,使焦躁的 | |
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idol
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| n.偶像，红人，宠儿 | |
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rampant
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| adj.(植物)蔓生的；狂暴的，无约束的 | |
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premier
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| adj.首要的；n.总理，首相 | |
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chamber
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| n.房间，寝室；会议厅；议院；会所 | |
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devoted
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| adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的 | |
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strenuously
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| adv.奋发地，费力地 | |
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bishop
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| n.主教，（国际象棋）象 | |
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inveterate
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| adj.积习已深的，根深蒂固的 | |
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ignominiously
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| adv.耻辱地，屈辱地，丢脸地 | |
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Christian
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| adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒 | |
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militant
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| adj.激进的，好斗的；n.激进分子，斗士 | |
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atheist
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| n.无神论者 | |
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superstition
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| n.迷信，迷信行为 | |
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eradication
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| n.根除 | |
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frightful
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| adj.可怕的；讨厌的 | |
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rascality
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| 流氓性，流氓集团 | |
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atheistical
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| adj.无神论（者）的 | |
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atheistic
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| adj.无神论者的 | |
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irony
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| n.反语，冷嘲；具有讽刺意味的事，嘲弄 | |
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worthy
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| adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的 | |
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labored
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| adj.吃力的，谨慎的v.努力争取(for)( labor的过去式和过去分词 )；苦干；详细分析；（指引擎）缓慢而困难地运转 | |
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citadel
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| n.城堡；堡垒；避难所 | |
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dispense
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| vt.分配，分发；配(药)，发(药)；实施 | |
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dispensed
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| v.分配( dispense的过去式和过去分词 )；施与；配（药） | |
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clergy
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| n.[总称]牧师，神职人员 | |
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fervid
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| adj.热情的；炽热的 | |
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nay
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| adv.不；n.反对票，投反对票者 | |
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hatred
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| n.憎恶，憎恨，仇恨 | |
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doctrines
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| n.教条( doctrine的名词复数 )；教义；学说；（政府政策的）正式声明 | |
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pious
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| adj.虔诚的；道貌岸然的 | |
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bestows
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| 赠给，授予( bestow的第三人称单数 ) | |
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cemetery
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| n.坟墓，墓地，坟场 | |
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corpse
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| n.尸体，死尸 | |
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coffin
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| n.棺材，灵柩 | |
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naturalist
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| n.博物学家(尤指直接观察动植物者) | |
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ardent
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| adj.热情的，热烈的，强烈的，烈性的 | |
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creed
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| n.信条；信念，纲领 | |
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predecessors
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| n.前任( predecessor的名词复数 )；前辈；（被取代的）原有事物；前身 | |
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conversions
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| 变换( conversion的名词复数 )； （宗教、信仰等）彻底改变； （尤指为居住而）改建的房屋； 橄榄球（触地得分后再把球射中球门的）附加得分 | |
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conversion
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| n.转化，转换，转变 | |
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corpses
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caveat
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| n.警告； 防止误解的说明 | |
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proxy
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| n.代理权，代表权；（对代理人的）委托书；代理人 | |
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leisurely
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| adj.悠闲的；从容的，慢慢的 | |
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Christians
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| n.基督教徒( Christian的名词复数 ) | |
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hilarious
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| adj.充满笑声的，欢闹的；[反]depressed | |
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simplicity
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| n.简单，简易；朴素；直率，单纯 | |
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devoutly
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| adv.虔诚地，虔敬地，衷心地 | |
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tracts
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| 大片土地( tract的名词复数 )； 地带； （体内的）道； （尤指宣扬宗教、伦理或政治的）短文 | |
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superstitious
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| adj.迷信的 | |
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improperly
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| 不正确地，不适当地 | |
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preposterous
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| adj.荒谬的，可笑的 | |
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entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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accomplished
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| adj.有才艺的；有造诣的；达到了的 | |
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miserable
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| adj.悲惨的，痛苦的；可怜的，糟糕的 | |
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sincerity
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| n.真诚，诚意；真实 | |
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labors
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| v.努力争取(for)( labor的第三人称单数 )；苦干；详细分析；（指引擎）缓慢而困难地运转 | |
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pique
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| v.伤害…的自尊心，使生气 n.不满，生气 | |
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jealousy
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| n.妒忌，嫉妒，猜忌 | |
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sentimental
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| adj.多愁善感的，感伤的 | |
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perverted
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| adj.不正当的v.滥用( pervert的过去式和过去分词 )；腐蚀；败坏；使堕落 | |
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incapable
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| adj.无能力的，不能做某事的 | |
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platitudes
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| n.平常的话，老生常谈，陈词滥调( platitude的名词复数 )；滥套子 | |
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prelude
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| n.序言，前兆，序曲 | |
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imperatively
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| adv.命令式地 | |
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secular
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| n.牧师，凡人；adj.世俗的，现世的，不朽的 | |
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venting
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| 消除； 泄去； 排去； 通风 | |
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witticisms
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| n.妙语，俏皮话( witticism的名词复数 ) | |
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momentous
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| adj.重要的，重大的 | |
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mishap
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| n.不幸的事，不幸；灾祸 | |
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chateau
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| n.城堡，别墅 | |
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sonorous
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| adj.响亮的，回响的；adv.圆润低沉地；感人地；n.感人，堂皇 | |
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indictment
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| n.起诉；诉状 | |
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consummate
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| adj.完美的；v.成婚；使完美 [反]baffle | |
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lavished
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| v.过分给予，滥施( lavish的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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propounding
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| v.提出（问题、计划等）供考虑[讨论]，提议( propound的现在分词 ) | |
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radicalism
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| n. 急进主义, 根本的改革主义 | |
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prodigious
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| adj.惊人的，奇妙的；异常的；巨大的；庞大的 | |
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