登陆注册
4610300000199

第199章 OLD MR. PREJUDICE, THE KEEPER OF EAR-GATE, WITH HI

3. Mr. Prejudice was an old man; and this also has been handed down about him, that he was almost always angry. And if you keep your eyes open you will soon see how true to the life that feature of old Mr. Prejudice still is. In every conversation, discussion, debate, correspondence, the angry man is invariably the prejudiced man; and, according to the age and the depth, the rootedness and the intensity of his prejudices, so is the ferocity and the savagery of his anger. He has already settled this case that you are irritating and wronging him so much by your still insisting on bringing up. It is a reproach to his understanding for you to think that there is anything to be said in that matter that he has not long ago heard said and fully answered. Has he not denounced that bad man and that bad cause for years? You insult me, sir, by again opening up that matter in my presence. He will have none of you or of your arguments either. You are as bad yourself as that bad man is whose advocate you are. We all know men whose hearts are full of coals of juniper, burning coals of hate and rage, just by reason of their ferocious prejudices. Hate is too feeble a word for their gnashing rage against this man and that cause, this movement and that institution. There is an absolutely murderous light in their eye as they work themselves up against the men and the things they hate. Charity rejoices not in iniquity; but you will see otherwise Christian and charitable men so jockeyed by the devil that they actually rejoice in iniquity and do not know what they are doing, or who it is that is egging them on to do it. You will see otherwise and at other times good men so full of the rage and madness of prejudice and partiality that they will storm at every report of goodness and truth and prosperity in the man, or in the cause, or in the church, or in the party, they are so demented against. Jockey is not the word. There is the last triumph of pure devilry in the way that the prince of the devils turns old Prejudice's very best things--his love of his fathers, his love of the past, his love of order, his love of loyalty, his love of the old paths, and his very truest and best religion itself--into so much fat fuel for the fires of hate and rage that are consuming his proud heart to red-hot ashes. If the light that is in us be darkness, how great is that darkness; and if the life that is in us be death, how deadly is that death!

4. Old, angry, and ill-conditioned. Ill-conditioned is an old-

fashioned word almost gone out of date. But, all the same, it is a very expressive, and to us to-night a quite indispensable word. An ill-conditioned man is a man of an in-bred, cherished, and confirmed ill-nature. His heart, which was a sufficiently bad heart to begin with, is now so exercised in evil and so accustomed to evil, that,--how can he be born again when he is so old and so ill-natured? All the qualities, all the passions, all the emotions of his heart are out of joint; their bent is bad; they run out naturally to mischief. Now, what could possibly be more ill-

conditioned than to judge and sentence, denounce and execute a man before you have heard his case? What could be more ill-conditioned than positively to be afraid lest you should be led to forgive, and redress, and love, and act with another man? To be determined not to hear one word that you can help in his defence, in his favour, and in his praise? Could a human heart be in a worse state on this side hell itself than that? Nay, that is hell itself in your evil heart already. Let prejudice and partiality have their full scope among the wicked passions of your ill-conditioned heart, and lo!

the kingdom of darkness is already within you. Not, lo, here! or, lo, there! but within you. Look to yourselves, says John to us all, full as we all are of our own ill-conditions. Look to yourselves. But we have no eyes left with which to see ourselves;

we look so much at the faults and the blames of our neighbour.

'Publius goes to church sometimes, and reads the Scriptures; but he knows not what he reads or prays, his head is so full of politics.

He is so angry at kings and ministers of state that he has no time nor disposition to call himself to account. He has the history of all parliaments, elections, prosecutions, and impeachments by heart, and he dies with little or no religion, through a constant fear of Popery.' Poor, old, ill-conditioned Publius!

5. And, then, his sixty deaf men under old, angry, ill-conditioned Prejudice. We read of engines of sixty-horse power. And here is a man with the power of resisting and shutting out the truth equal to that of sixty men like himself. We all know such men; we would as soon think of speaking to those iron pillars about a change of mind as we would to them. If you preach to their prejudices and their prepossessions and their partialities, they are all ears to hear you, and all tongues to trumpet your praise. But do not expect them to sit still with ordinary decency under what they are so prejudiced against; do not expect them to read a book or buy a passing paper on the other side. Sixty deaf men hold their ears;

同类推荐
热门推荐
  • 锦衣卫

    锦衣卫

    如果在明朝的历史中选取关键词,“锦衣卫”是为必选。 这是中国最早的特务机构,从建立之初。其触角就遍及了王朝的每一个角落。他们不是钦差大臣,但却有着比钦差大臣更为恐怖的力量。他们是专属于皇帝的监察机构、侦察机构,以及最为有效的行动队伍。在明朝276年的历史中,锦衣卫成了秘密审查与特别行动的代名词,而它与东西两厂之间的权力斗争更让人触目惊心……
  • 观自在如意轮菩萨瑜伽法要

    观自在如意轮菩萨瑜伽法要

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。
  • 以武化修仙

    以武化修仙

    尸身破碎伏满地,山河踏遍行万里。武道苍宇多浮沉,帝王俯视人间戏。胸怀大志却突临厄难,逃出尸山却卷入阴谋。看龙泽如何左右逢源瓦解危机,将利益最大化!脚踏武道绝巅,手拥富可敌国!
  • 情敌联盟渣男现形

    情敌联盟渣男现形

    他是一个不骗财也谈不上骗色风度翩翩,能让女人产生好感的魅力男人。他肯花钱,够体贴,喜欢用行动感动女人的谦谦君子。他身边的女人环肥燕瘦,冒似每一段感情他都付出了真情,却从没停下追寻的脚步……这样的男人是好男人还是渣男?小说告诉你怎样慧眼识人。
  • 快穿之情定男神

    快穿之情定男神

    时空阁,一个不为人所知的组织,他们凌驾于众生之上,负责管理三千世界的秩序,一切违反秩序的事或人发生统统抹杀。楚鱼儿,一个时空阁不知道排多少位的小可怜儿,突然有一天金牌系统找她签约,说收集齐一万心愿值就把她调去女主组。楚鱼儿:不想当女主的宿主不是好宿主!于是她跟着金牌系统完成一个又一个心愿任务,突然她发现每个位面的狗男人都不对劲,这是要吃鱼啊!阿统救命!
  • 被迫成为勇者的村姑

    被迫成为勇者的村姑

    林天音发现自己重生了,变成了某本蛋疼勇者与魔王故事里的肥婆反派。原著的作者是个变态,整个故事里都没几个正常人,因此她只能努力变得更变态。--情节虚构,请勿模仿
  • 紫藤萝

    紫藤萝

    一个可以指挥千军万马的部队首长,却指挥不了一个叛逆的儿子;一颗负罪心灵的自我救赎,却摆脱不了残酷命运的捉弄;一个敢恨敢爱、一心想走出樊篱的女人,最终却走向毁灭;一个美丽清纯的少女,却走向爱恨交织的深渊……这一切,谁之过?这是一部令人深恶、令人回味的作品。
  • 宠妻100式:爹地放开我妈咪

    宠妻100式:爹地放开我妈咪

    “你都是有孩子的人了,为什么还揪着我不放?”“因为,我爱你?”她心中一软,但还是不愿意就范:“你孩子他妈怎么办?”“你来做孩子他妈。”--情节虚构,请勿模仿
  • 穿越之天后进化论

    穿越之天后进化论

    素有“东方夜莺”之称的民国歌女白疏影,死后借尸还魂,成为21世纪的一个三流明星。谁知这三流明星还是个重生之身,前一世寄希望于影帝男友,到头来却被人抛弃,成为整个娱乐圈的笑话,最终想不开寻了短见。重活一世,白疏影决定好好经营她的人生。影帝?她可没兴趣,她的目标是凭借自己的努力成为天后!
  • 定居禁令

    定居禁令

    即使没有政府正式颁布的禁令苏美尔地区也没有人定居了。定居禁令规定任何人在苏美尔停留的时间不得超过三个月,实际上人们往往呆不上一个月就会开拔启程,像拉大棚的马戏团,风风尘仆仆地转移到另一地谋生。苏美尔的房屋像蚁穴和土丘一样随风倒,人流小的时候,初来者根本看不出这里是苏美尔。大部分出生在苏美尔的人都不懂什么叫思乡病。那些记得古老成语的人在寸草不生的沙砾地带哼着悠远的小调出没,像一群野狼。他们最终都用上吊解决了思乡问题。他们留下了诸如“狐死首丘”之类的词,人们觉得很新奇,很陌生,像是一个全新的词。