"Oh, yes! I know the charm of sin!" he continued with mingled
mockery and passion vibrating in his voice;--"The singular
fascination of pure devilry! All of you know it too,--those of you
who court the world's applause on the stage, or in the salons of art
and literature, and who pretend that by your work you are elevating
and assisting humanity, while in your own private lives you revel in
such vice as the very dogs you keep might be ashamed of! There is no
beast so bestial as man at his worst! And some of you whom I know,
glory in being seen at your worst always. There are many among you
here to-day whose sole excuse for a life of animalism is, that it is
your nature, 'I live according to my temperament,--my disposition,--
I do not wish to change myself--you cannot change me; I am as I am
made'! So might the thief argue as he steals his neighbour's money,-
-so may the murderer console himself as he stabs his victim! 'It is
my nature to stab and to steal--it is my nature to live as a beast--
I do not wish to change; you cannot change me'. Now if these
arguments were true, and hold good, man would be still where he
begun,--in the woods and caves,--an uncouth savage with nothing save
an animal instinct to lead him where he could find food.
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