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and was devouring it with avidity； she was horrified； and hid it away from
me lest it should break my soul as the pony might have broken my neck。
This way of producing hardy bodies and timid souls is so common in
country houses that you may spend hours in them listening to stories of
broken collar bones； broken backs； and broken necks without coming upon
a single spiritual adventure or daring thought。
But whether the risks to which liberty exposes us are moral or physical
our right to liberty involves the right to run them。 A man who is not free
to risk his neck as an aviator or his soul as a heretic is not free at all； and
the right to liberty begins； not at the age of 21 years but of 21 seconds。
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A TREATISE ON PARENTS AND CHILDREN
The Risks of Ignorance and
Weakness
The difficulty with children is that they need protection from risks they
are too young to understand； and attacks they can neither avoid nor resist。
You may on academic grounds allow a child to snatch glowing coals from
the fire once。 You will not do it twice。 The risks of liberty we must let
everyone take； but the risks of ignorance and self…helplessness are another
matter。 Not only children but adults need protection from them。 At
present adults are often exposed to risks outside their knowledge or
beyond their comprehension or powers of resistance or foresight： for
example； we have to look on every day at marriages or financial
speculations that may involve far worse consequences than burnt fingers。
And just as it is part of the business of adults to protect children； to feed
them； clothe them； shelter them； and shift for them in all sorts of ways
until they are able to shift for themselves； it is coming more and more to
be seen that this is true not only of the relation between adults and children；
but between adults and adults。 We shall not always look on indifferently
at foolish marriages and financial speculations； nor allow dead men to
control live communities by ridiculous wills and living heirs to squander
and ruin great estates； nor tolerate a hundred other absurd liberties that we
allow today because we are too lazy to find out the proper way to interfere。
But the interference must be regulated by some theory of the individual's
rights。 Though the right to live is absolute； it is not unconditional。 If a
man is unbearably mischievous； he must be killed。 This is a mere matter
of necessity； like the killing of a man…eating tiger in a nursery； a venomous
snake in the garden； or a fox in the poultry yard。 No society could be
constructed on the assumption that such extermination is a violation of the
creature's right to live； and therefore must not be allowed。 And then at
once arises the danger into which morality has led us： the danger of
persecution。 One Christian spreading his doctrines may seem more
mischievous than a dozen thieves： throw him therefore to the lions。 A
lying or disobedient child may corrupt a whole generation and make
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A TREATISE ON PARENTS AND CHILDREN
human Society impossible： therefore thrash the vice out of him。 And so
on until our whole system of abortion； intimidation； tyranny； cruelty and
the rest is in full swing again。
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A TREATISE ON PARENTS AND CHILDREN
The Common Sense of Toleration
The real safeguard against this is the dogma of Toleration。 I need not
here repeat the compact treatise on it which I prepared for the Joint
Committee on the Censorship of Stage Plays； and prefixed to The Shewing
Up of Blanco Posnet。 It must suffice now to say that the present must not
attempt to schoolmaster the future by pretending to know good from evil
in tendency； or protect citizens against shocks to their opinions and
convictions； moral； political or religious： in other words it must not
persecute doctrines of any kind； or what is called bad taste； and must insist
on all persons facing such shocks as they face frosty weather or any of the
other disagreeable； dangerous； or bracing incidents of freedom。 The
expediency of Toleration has been forced on us by the fact that progressive
enlightenment depends on a fair hearing for doctrines which at first appear
seditious； blasphemous； and immoral； and which deeply shock people who
never think originally； thought being with them merely a habit and an echo。
The deeper ground for Toleration is the nature of creation； which； as we
now know； proceeds by evolution。 Evolution finds its way by
experiment； and this finding of the way varies according to the stage of
development reached； from the blindest groping along the line of least
resistance to intellectual speculation； with its practical sequel of
hypothesis and experimental verification； or to observation； induction； and
deduction； or even into so rapid and intuitive an integration of all these
processes in a single brain that we get the inspired guess of the man of
genius and the desperate resolution of the teacher of new truths who is
first slain as a blasphemous apostate and then worshipped as a prophet。
Here the law for the child is the same as for the adult。 The high priest
must not rend his garments and cry 〃Crucify him〃 when he is shocked：
the atheist must not clamor for the suppression of Law's Serious Call
because it has for two centuries destroyed the natural happiness of
innumerable unfortunate children by persuading their parents that it is
their religious duty to be miserable。 It； and the Sermon on the Mount；
and Machiavelli's Prince； and La Rochefoucauld's maxims； and Hymns
Ancient and Modern； and De Glanville's apologue； and Dr。 Watts's rhymes；
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A TREATISE ON PARENTS AND CHILDREN
and Nietzsche's Gay Science； and Ingersoll's Mistakes of Moses； and the
speeches and pamphlets of the people who want us to make war on
Germany； and the Noodle's Orations and articles of our politicians and
journalists； must all be tolerated not only because any of them may for all
we know be on the right track but because it is in the conflict of opinion
that we win knowledge and wisdom。 However terrible the wounds
suffered in that conflict； they are better than the barren peace of death that
follows when all the combatants are slaughtered or bound hand and foot。
The difficulty at present is that though this necessity for Toleration is a
law of political science as well established as the law of gravitation； our
rulers are never taught political science： on the contrary； they are taught
in school that the master tolerates nothing that is disagreeable to him； that
ruling is simply being master； and that the master's method is the method
of violent punishment。 And our citizens； all school taught； are walking in
the same darkness。 As I write these lines the Home Secretary is
explaining that a man who has been imprisoned for blasphemy must not be
released because his remarks were painful to the feelings of his pious
fellow townsmen。 Now it happens that this very Home Secretary has
driven many thousands of his fellow citizens almost beside themselves by
the crudity of his notions of government； and his simple inability to
understand why he should not use and make laws to torment and subdue
people who do not happen to agree with him。 In a word； he is not a
politician； but a grown…up schoolboy who has at last got a cane in his hand。
And as all the rest of us are in the same condition （except as to command
of the cane） the only objection made to his proceedings takes the shape of
clamor