THE

QUARTERLY
JANUARY, 1944

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Flowers • • •

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Books Read
And, Talked About
Bloo~Sweat and Tears

The Keyes of the Kingdom
Sick Heart River
Thorne Apple Tree
The Robe
The Long Alert

·•

-ey Winston Church ill
-by A. J . Cronin
-by Bucham
-by Grace Camp,bell
~by Lloyd C. Douglas

-by Philip Gibbs

~~~T. EATON C<?1MITED
BRANCH STORE

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BRANDON
CANADA
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The Spectrum
Published
by tJhe

Board of Publications
of the

Brandon College
Students' Association

·Table of Contents

ELlitorial

-.---····---- --· .. ··-··-··---·-·· ________ __..,. ................. ____ Page 3

Ts Religion the Answer?-A Dia'ogue ...

--------··· L de Groot

M. A· English Page 4
011tal'io Summe-r 1943- Poem ...... ----- _____.................______ Desmond Pacey Page 6
I~ Science an· A rt ~-Article

1>cl i11quency-Sto1·y .

____ ..................................... Ira De1·amater Page 6
. ...... _---------------------- ______ John Crane Page 7

Interlude-Poem

Rene Boux ;Page 10

'rhe Philosopher Looks at the Futnre~-\.rticl e ........................ ___________ _

___ .J_ R II. Forrester Page 11

The Scientist Looj{_s at the Future.Article ---~----------·····- .. ·--------··-·--

----·----------- J. A. Martin Page 13

The Vision ---------···-------··········--······.. --------······· .. ··---·....... ··-----·

__ __ Gordon Lindsay Page 15

A transl.at ion - fr.om an original manuscr,i pt penned In 12 B.C. by the
ancient Greek philosopher, Silllcuss.

Eliot and the Waste Land-Article ......... ........ .

_____ John Crane Page Hi

THE SPECTRUM

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3

Tlm SPECTRUM

Spectrum Staff
Marion ff Epton ........................................................................ Editor
Genevieve Fuloski

Asst. Editor

Gordon Lindsay .........................................

Asst. Editor

Nettie W eselowski ......................................................... l\..rt Editor
John Crane .................................................................. Business Editor
Bob Crawford ···································· ...... Advertising Manager
Oorrlon Daly ............................................. Circulation Manager

EDITORIA.L
The reader will, I think, ruscertain from the contents of tihis
mag·azine, that students of Brandon College are seeking Somet hing-w hat, they can only dimly
perceive. It is the purnnse of the
Spectrum t o provide an outlet fol'
creative writin g w h i c h i n
itself will clarify and give substance to that Something for which
the writer searches. It LS aliso the
P.arneist desire of the edi'"::-rs of the
Spectrum that its articles and
stories will prove stimulating ana
informat~ve reading, reading that
will be not only interesting but

also thought-provoking, reading
that will appeal to both the Arts
and the Scie:t;1.ce student..
We are only too well aware that
one person's thought cannot be
thrust on another unless the recipient is first prepared and ready to
receive. It was Kahlil Gibran who
said ''No man can reveal to you
aught but thait which already lies ·
half asleep in the dawning oi
your knowledge.'' The Spectrum
can 1h elp create the atmosphen
and plant the seeds. out of which
greater wisdom ma;y grow- Let it
he your testing ground.

4

THE SPECTRUM

Is Religion the Answer?
Dialogue: Mr. Ecclesiasticus ' ' ivh Mr. Scepticus·
-by MARY ANN ENGLISH and LOUIS GROOT
Mr· Ecclesi8>Sticus : We hear a
lot 1h es e days · about the evils GJ .
I lie wol'ld, but it is surpdsing how
little we hear about a cure for the
1he evils of· the world. I believe
t:hat religion is that cure. ,
Mr. Scepticus: And just what do
you mean by relig·ion ·~
By religion, I mean belief in the
superhuman controlling power of:
a personal God and belief in th (
nece ssity for obedience to such a
God.
How do you think that religion
can remedy the world's ills.?
I think that r eligion will lead
people to a fuller life, first as individuals and then as nations \i\i' c
know that the great problems
of the world start because of tl1e
dissatisfactfon of people with th e.ii'
lot and with leaders taking advantage of that dissatisfaction.
Then do you offer religion as a
spiritual anaesthetic to dull the
sense s of the downtrodden and fo
blind them to their misfortunes?
No, I mean just the oppos,i te I
don't believe that religion should
anaesthetize, although I am willing to admit that it has .'>Et en r1one
so in tl1e past.
But if it has done so in rh0 past
. how are you going to mak e sri1 c
that it will change its -::1l:ara erel' i1t
tl1e future ?
Because religion in the pa,;t 11a,.;;
been too n1uch concerned with
other-woraliness, and not enougl~
with the affairs of this wo1·lr1 '!'1 1e
religion I am talking about 'vVii l
be vitally concerned with the
things of this world
And is it your idea that ult-immclv the world wilJ have but one
religiion?
Yes; only so, I believe, can the
,1-orld be saved.
Then how do you propo~A t.o
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achieve this unity ? Do you plan
to liquidate the Moslerns auu. the
Hindus and the others?
·Certainly not by force, if that is
what you mean. I propose simply
that we propagate true religion
with all the earnestness at our ·
command-with all the earnestness that we are now applying to
the .Prosecution of the war. Thus
shall we ultimately conquer the
world-not b,y the powP-r of arms,
hut by the persuasion of a great
idea In conquering the world, we
shall iha,ve the worl~:
[n my opinion to advocate sucl1
a p1·ogram-one single religion fr l'
a ll peoples of the world-is to advocate the abolition of free
thought· But even if you are morally justified in 'inculcating yom
perfect relJigion how c ai n i t,
in a.ny practical wa,y, solve our
present problems?
Because I befayve tha1· the Oor1
w hnm I claim to worship jg a benevolent. God and sine<> I have said
that I believe that r eli gion necessarly includes obedience to tlv
Ood worshipped, I believe that tl1(!
acccptanc.e of such a religion
wni1 I rl i·<'snlt in a. kind and syrnpathcti<' ontlook by each incfo··idnn 1
upon his fellowmen, and conscnuentLy in a better relatjom; hip
he tween men .
Yl''S . hut .inst because vou crcnt0
kindness vou do not necessai·il v
~reate int.elligence Every day w r
see evidence of the trage<lks
wroug·l1t by "good" intentions
But intelligence, or as I s.l1011Jrl
prefer to call it, wisdom. would
be just exactly the result of the
religion I s11ggest. The world at
pr<'sent is full of knowledge but
what it lacks is the wisdom to use
it.
Granted that this ideal religion
1

THE S,P EGTRUM
might increase the store of wis- Greek Orthodox Churcn 111 Ibrnsia
dom in the world, but surely it in before the Communist Revolution?
itself is an unachfovaible goal· What about the reaction:ary HinWould we not be closer to the so- du religion so rigid that it will
lution if we accepted a more prac- accept no chauge1
tical substitute?
These religion~ have not conI am not so sure about this re- cerned themselves with the pracligion being an unachievable goal, tical. pro bl ems of life, and I think
but let us hear what you would that, if religon i1s to be effective
suggest as a more practical sub- at all, it must take these practical
problems into consideration.
_stitute.
You admit, then, that religion
Fir:st of all, economic reform, I
think, would alleviate a good part by itself can not possib~y hP. reif not the major part, of human garded as a cure-all?
That is it exactly. Mere religion
suffering . And how little religion
has done along this line in the be.lJief is not enough. It must result
in action and must be accompan· past!
ied by education.
Is it not true also tnat economic
And also it should be emphareform is very slow? How long is sized that economic reforms,
it since the first economic reform- whether through religious groups
e1· Legan to clamour tor thP. bet- or not, a.re necessary.
t ering of t he working man's conVv e are agreed, then, Mr. Spe.cition '?
ticus, that religion is a force reYou seem to fail to take in to sulting in progr.ess only when it
consideration the immense prog- works through the media of
r ess which has come about since social, e.conomic and political re''the first economic reformer be- form'S.
gan to clamour for the bettering
of the working man "s condition.''·
A re you not of the opinion that
the masses of the people are considerably better off today than
I
they were a hundred years ago ? I
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I
What has religion · done in the :
last hundred yea:ris for human
j
advancement?
The leaders of these economic
reform movements have been religious leaders. Think of_ the leader·s in the abolition of slavery·"
But the very fact that these religious men worked for economi c
It_
reform shows that they considered ,
:
Printing
religion to be insufficient in
itself.
'rhe point I want to stress i8
an-d_
.
that the springs for those reformPublishing
ers lay in the religious beliefs of
1
these men and women.
f
Then how do .you account for
f
the fact that so many religious.
134--Seventh
Street
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groups have actually hindered huI
man progress? What about th e
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ll-'"~U5ihing

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6

THE SPECTRUM

Is Science an Art?
Since Science is in the throes o:f'
de:velopment in Brandon College,
in Canada, and in the world, we
who are privileged to be among
the first Science graduates from
our Alma Mater must ponde:·
deeply over this matter. of oul'.'
relationship to and attitude toward our chosen vocation·
What do the Sciences ·mean to
the average students of today ?
Does Science offer to tihem onl···
a means to a very attractive end
in to day's technical world? I t]1in:(
we ha.ve lost the entire point of
our University education if we
graduate without realizing in par1
at least, the role science should
and could play for us ju the development of our characters. orn·
ideals, and our genc1·al outlook ()n
life.
Does our study of science in any
way help or hinder our groping
for a true religious faith? Scien1i<:;ts too often becomP ;i ;t.hei~t"­
not because they want to dish
liev (' hut because too limited a
t1·aining. too narrow an outlook
block their vision of a spirit ual
world which cannot . Le pinned
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down by definite laws and hypotheses· ''If we cannot explain
God rationally," they say, "as we
can explain why x sq uared plus ;y
squared equals 4 is the equation
of a circle, then we cannot believe
that there is a God.'' If sciern.:e is
doing this for us, we are not avpreciating its full value· Grant€-d
that scientists are essentially realists, or, perhaps I should say because scientists are essentially ·
realists, they should be more
acutely aware of the fact that
scientific laws and instruments
cannot explain such matters which
are entirely of the soUl·
If we beliewe then, that ihe explanation of God and tihe unive1·se
does not lie in the ''ken' of scien~
tific research, al'e we to bellieve
that scientific knowJ.edge detracts
from rather than enhances om· belief in a Divine Creator? I think
not· The more extensive our study
of science becomes, the more we
come to realize that om· nniverse
c>onJd only have been planned hv
a Divine Being, a Master Mind
who endows us with intellects that
- Continued on Page 9

Ontario Summer I 943
-by DESMOND PACEY
Cent.red here, 1li e eye survey
A s 1,o wly ripening field of hn.y
Deliberately
A bumble lwe
Hovers over
A purple clover
The mind, however,,

Has a longer tethe1·Sees
Beyond the trees
Beyond the clovc1'
Over, over,
'l'o where, above the sleeping t own
'rh e screaming bomber hurtles clownBee \vith a <leadlier· sting!

T HE S.PEC'l'RUM

New Library Books
The Book of
Canadian Poetry
By A. J. M. Smith (Ed); 452 p,p, ;
Toronto, Gage.
Most Brandon CoHege students
would admit only a sc.ant knowledge of Canadian poetry, pnncipal\y because we ihave been
exposed to comparatively little
of it. Because of this, any new
anthology is welcome and fulfills
a need· This one particularly so
because it is so good. the editor,
one feels, has achieved the wellnigh impossibe task of doing justice to all of the contributa l'y
sti·eams to Canadian poetry sirn:c
its late eighteenh-century beginings· 'l'he book g ives a sense of
adequacy and fullness, in place
of the meagreness of t he usual
Canadian antihology. Gratifying
are the comparat~ve! ,y generous.
selections from cont.emporary
poets, and the absence of the customary over-emphasis on the
school of Roberts and 1Carme11.
Th ere is 1·athcr a more adequate
representation ·o f voices w hi ch
have perhaps greater value for
th e present day, snd1 as KJ. Prnlt
and Earle Birney· TJ1 e latte 1· har;
1en p age s", inchtding . David,
Anglo-Saxon Street and Hands .
J;"'rom the book, too, one is enabled to form an idea of t lu? development of Canadian poctl'y
from its beginnings in Indian
poetr,y and French Canadian folk
song·s. Its early connection with
the eighteenth century Neo-Clasical in England can be seen in
the poetry of Oliver Goldsrrtithgrandncphew and namesake o E
the famous poet-who in 1825
published The Rising Village as a
sequel to the Deserted Village. 'l'h e
poem, though not parti<'ula1·ly dis-

tingnished, makes in te l'csting
1·cading.
'l' l1e quality of the ve1·se in t he
book i:s patchy; often it is hom ely
and unpretentious, for examp le
the verse of \\T-lL Dnm1mo11d.
But trl1is implies uo del'ogation,
and docs not lessen our 'interest.
As the editor points out iu his excellent critical intro,d uction: '' it
is when our poets have gathe1·cd
their singing robes about them
to hymn the mysteries of life . . .
that the,y have tended to be.c.ome
a little tires ome, " .Altogether mi
enli g htening au cl
informative
book, to be "read with pleasure
and ed ification.''

The Golden Bough
By Silo .Jamc·s 0 . F1·aze.1',
MacMil lan, 751 p p.

In any list of the t~n mO'lt impol'tant books of h is century, this
volume would certain! v find a
place. To read it i!S to ha~e opened
before the mind new and fa:;;e inating vistas of thought, for it is
one of those rare books wh ieh
have the capac ity at once to say
much and suggerst more.
'I.' h e book is Sll ht it l eel '' 1\
Study in Mag·ic and R eligio11"in other words, it is a su:rvey of
man's efforts through the ·ages
to come to terms vvlith the world
in which he lives,. to establish u
sa.:·isfaC'tory relatirnship wi'·h t·1 1C:'
:11011- 11nman and fl1e supcl'hmnan
in his rni:ii-onmrnt. Hs T'lOGt Rnn:ges+]ye 1·cHlati<:n is th e ba:;iC'
·~imi]a.ritiy rxisi·ing hfltwecn i li r
customs rites , and be1'ie fs of men
in all ti111rs and all plaC'eG fo i li r
most primitive . tl1 e most l'Cmotr,
soc ieties we <'an dis<'en1 ;i + ]east in
outli ne rnanv rf i ho <'11 lh 11·c-pn 1·te1·11s of th e most civilizr<1 arnl
mos t familiar.

8

THE

~PEC'I1RUM

Stmlents should f ind especial
interest in }~razer's discussion of
the l'elations betweeu magic,
science, and l'eligion. '' Tihe analo gy between the magical and the
scientific conceptionR. 0 f t. h e
world~'' he writes, '' i.s l'lOsP.. In
both of them the succession of
event·S is assumed to be perfectly
regular and certain, being determined by immutable laws . . .
'' Ma.gic, however, is based upon
the illegitimate, science upon the
legitimate, application of the principte of ass:ocia6on: tihus magic
is ''the bastard sister of science ''
Religion, on the other hand, differs from both in that it regards
the world as governed, not by immutable haws, but lw a God or
gods whom 'it is man's duty and
.interest to propitia.t e and conciliate.
Richly stored with ideas an<l
with curfous examples of primitive culture, this book is a rare
fea st for· the reader.
1

Toward the Freedom

g1.·ess Party here re;veals on every
page.
There is noth'. i ng e q u i \rocal
about Nehru's position; he is no
trimmer. "1lv e want," he says
forthrightl,y, ''independence and
not Dominion or any other status.
. . . We want to be completely
free with no reservations or exceptions, except such as we ourselves approve, in common with
others, in order to jofa a Federation of Nations, or a n ew '\Vorld
Order If this new Wor\d Or·der
or Federation does not come in
the near future , we should lik e to
be cosely associated in a fede1·ation with our neighbors-China,
Burm a, Ceylon, Afghanistan ,
Persia . vV e are p rcpal'ed to take
rjsks and face dangers. '\¥ e d.1
not want the so-ca:iled protection
of the British Ar·my 01· Navy. W e
shall shift for ourselves ''
As tha.t ~paragraph 'i-mgg:.- sts .
thiR is not the wm·k of a narrow ·
nationalist hut of a man with tl1 0
i11ternationa.1: vision Olli' t im e ;-;o
direly needs.

'l'lw Autobiography of Jawahai-1ial
Nehru, Jo•l m Day, 449 pp.

Towards An
Abiding Peace

Among· the myriad problems
fac in g the world today the1·e is
non e more baffling nor· mm·e
prcss.ing than that of the fntme
of India. ]~or a. fnll understanding
of the Indian situation, this hook
is imperative reading. Nelwn. wit h
the pos~ih\e excention of C1andhi ,
has done more than any oth er
rnan to advance the eanse of
Indian inclepC'nden c>e, and his
'lutobiogaph y . is a magn ificen :·
l·ecorcl of his strugg'.es an cl of his
passionate convictions vVhatevce
one's persona.I attitude to tl1e future of India may be, on e cannot
hnt be impressed by the since ·ity,
the earnestne.:ss, the love of liberty,
t.li e in1·{c'1lectnal gTasp, the fai1·n ess , ti11 e m!i.ssionary zeal , which
the leader of the All-India Con-

B,y R M. Maciver , New York;
'l'h e MaclVfillan Co., 1943, 195 p .p.

1

If there is no vfrtnc in wi·iting
nothing that is new, then I foal'
tl1at very litt' c virtu e is
to be fo1i.ncl in this hook of P1·0fe·ssol' Maciver"s. 'l'he volume
YOi<'e <'SRent·iall.y t•lie same sociopoliti ca l approach to a lasting
p eace 1hat has be<'n eviliden<'ecl in
t he writings of must of th e internationalists of the past two cleeades. 'I1he necessity for outlawing
·war (and th e rules .of war) as an
undnly expensive instT'Ument of
internationa11 policy; the need of
replacing the present anarchic international system of sovereign
states by a democratically constituted, supra-national body posses-

THE qPECTRUl\f
sing f?-11 power of le~al sanction;
the ev1l1 of vengeful peace treaties
(and vcngefu1 attitude that promote them)-all these are fami lia r
grist for the mill of the international idealist.
'rhere is a certain c1•arity of
writing, and a realism of approach
that does give the volume a value,
however. Th e discussions of the
price of peace, and the r ecognition of the apparent weakness of
existing democratic government.:;
are a healthy sign of clear thinking. A recognition of the time
consuming nature of peace plaJt11ing and the necessity for a certain process of trial-and-error
mat·k l\fr. Maclver apart from
many of t he mor·e rash peace planners.

However, it appears to me that
the most vital pro bl ems of international planning have either
been ignored or i nadequately answered. In the matter of re-educating the Nazi masses, I doubt
if lVIr. lVIaclver 's faith in brotherly lov e offers sufficient basis for
a concrete progrnm. Moreover, jt
won~d appear that in solving t l1 c
Largest of the post-war problemsthat of maintenance of investment at full employment-the
avenue of approach in om· laissezfaire society, in th e absence of:
more concrete sugge1stions from
the internationalists, will be along
lines of nationalism that will likely pre-elude the international economic order lVIaclver envisiorn'\.

Is Science an Art?
Cont inued from Page G
we · may discovel' little by little
the migh ty scientific, social and
spiritual laws of t he universe·
Ji'ailing this, what else is the purpose o.E life? If God is manifest
anywhere, lle is manifest in t he
scientific realm, if we in onr
haste to acquire much teclrnienl
knowledge, do not ignore Him.
Does our outlook on science,
t hen, lead us to atJheism or firm
religious fai th ? Vve can only answer this for ourselves·
The attitude o.E t he modern
world to science is perhaps what is
most likely to lead us astra,y from
seeing as our ultimate goal a mastery of the sciences whereby we
are made aware of the connection
and intertwining of science wit h
our fundamental concep tis of morals and religfon . T•he growth of
the industrial world has led the
modern youth to think of science
in terms of dazzl.ing neon signs
and fascinating· automatic labo1·saving devices· I do not mean to

beli ttle the efforts of the modem
scientists, for it is to them vve owe
the debt of the ease and gTace of
our living conditions, but rather I
wish to emphasize the fact that we
must be constantly awm·e tiMt
science holds much more for its
followers than mere techn i('al
knowledge.
·wh en we graduate, then, let us
each go into his chosen work, us~
ing the mechanical skill 1he has
gain ed, but being fully conscious
of the fact that science in i1·s
broader sense is. as its Latin de1·ivation implies, knowfoageknovv ledge coordinated, arranged,
svstematized and broadened int o
fields of greater scope than those
covered by mere formulae a nd
mechanirs·
Science ]s t11en truly an art. in
that it joins and coord inates the
laws of the physical
wol'lcl
about us with orn· r eli gious and
moral beliefs·
T .TD

10

THE SPECTRUM

Interlude
-by RENE BOUX

I feel
the presence
of 'the night about me.
I vague ' .ry grasp
to find it but my haiid
is carressed by a breeze
which mocks the reason
that would strive
to touch
that which is nongl1t
. but essence and
abstract·

But still remains
a baffled m·ge,
half-blushing
at the taunt,
half-wondering
if aught were there
or just the wind.
'rl1 e cheated senses.,
the prnsence which they felt
l1aving vanished in the dark ,
retire in perplexity
to brood.
Th e 110iseless nigl1t
unruffled and serene,
t.elJs nought
of what has passed,
and the soft '\vinds
rustle through the tree$
their subtle accents
whispering of
delusion.

u

THE SPECTRUM

,.fhe Pilospher Looks at the Future
-byJ.R·H. FORRESTER
Too often the most regrettable
characteristic of civilization is
also the feature which is most distinctive of it- It is a commonplace
that the distinguishing feature of
our civilization is the discrepancy
between its wisdom and its power. Scienc.e · has conferred tremendous powers upon man, and he
uses those powers in ways which
suggest the maniac· One is incl ined to wonder whether t h e '' aonor·mal" w hie h psych.la try in vestig·a tes is not actually the "normal.''
Consider the disconcerting co nsequences of our vaunted achievements· Has not the panacea whi.ch
men sought in tech~ilogical advance turned out, rather to be a
c1wse 1 Is it not the case that
machines which one might have
thought would make wo r·k less
burdensome have only made it
mo r e prosaic 1 Facilities for internat.ional communciatio n h a v e
nover been better, but i nternational relations have never been
wo11se. Tille resources of learning
are used to patch together a rn an
who has been blown to pieces by
o1 h er· resources of learning so that
still other resources of lea rn ing
may blow him to pieces again· 'l'he
av 1·op lane has made possible pu hJie murder on a scale hith eno un- ·
dreamed of·
OT· consider the fai lure of man';.;;
poli tical wisdom to keep pa.re
witih his technological adrn1Wl·
which is evinced by the cult oE
nationa] isrn· Today economic and
tcclmical deve lopment has reached
a 8ta.ge ·where some fo1·m of intc1·national world state is the approvt'iate political structm·e. The
wo r·ld is econom ically and technically .a unit, but it is rut across by
the boundaries of obsolete stat~s
maintained hy <irerd :ind Fem·.

and in the last analysis, by Stupidity.
'l'hus tihe very devices which
make mterdependence and therefore internationalism necessa1·y
for the well-be ing of humanity,
are used to promote nationalistic
i11Llepcnde11cc with its c.on-scque11t
misery for mankind· So with Iris
infernal combustion engine (as
Mr· Churchill caJls it) attached to
his aeroplanes and 1his ships and
ihis trucks, man is unhappily engaged in destroying his civilization .
Obvious l,y the blame for tliis
son·y s t a~ e of affairs cannot be
laid at tire feet of Science in i:•sel i:.
It lies rather with human kind
which uses Science· Now, it i's difficult to read historiY and know
whether to be more disgusted or
rnore ·ho r-rified at t he spectacle of
misery and wickedness presented.
One can 0nl y conclude that most
lnmran d0:Ri1'CS whirh h:n e f P l i llll
colle ct ive express.ion hav c hec11
evil. They have been aimed at the
s ubjugation of conquered peoples,
the exploitation of the downtrodden masses,. the peI"Secution of Hi e
non-conformi sts·
Grant, then that the heart of
men is at least in part wicked-a·~
Christianity tellis us it is- and
it is obvious that to increaJSe man's
power is to increruse his pow:er tor
wickedness- It is like "doubling ; ;
in bridge· You increase the pos·s i bilities of both gain and loss· Tn
·SO far as man
is. good you increase his power for . good ; in RO
far as •h e is Civil you increase his
power for evil.
Can anything he done 1o increase the effectiveness of his
urges toward good and i-o decrease the effecti venC1S1<; of his instinc(s fo1· wickedness, or· perhaps to sublimate th em in snt. 1'..l
0

1

12

THE SPECTRUM
way? Can one introduce a measure of control into a determination of the relative amounts of
good and evil in the universe?
Is there perhaps ihope in education? Can education do anything to improve man, to make
him better and happier? First,
can man be taught? If we believe
with Aristotle that reason is the
distinctive attri15ute of man, we
believe that he can be reasoned
with· We tihen believe that if only
we reason patiently and cogently
enough, and for a sufficiently
long period, he will eventually
see the point and perhaps even do
act upon his new understanding.
If man can be taught, what
shall we teach him ?-Briefly, a
lesser amount of 'useful education' and a greater amount of
'uselesis education.' By useful instruction is meant training in the
techno~ogies which he uses to his
great iharm; and by useless instruction is meant training in such
branches of learning as pJ1ilosophy, literature, sociology, ps.y:chology-subjects which purport to
study man and perhaps to discover means of controlling and directing him.
It i:s sometimes held that the1'e
are certain ultimate principles or
ideals in the universe, namely,
Truth, Goodness and Beauty· It
might be a function of educat.ion
to promote closer contact with
these ultimates However, I am
afraid thart. if this is education's function it has not been,
nor is it likely to be, very successful· Education may acquaint
one with the True the Good and
the Beautiful· It cannot. indttce
the purisuit of these ideals. As
Ovid has it,
''I see the better and approve
it; I follow the worse·''
Why do I follow the worse? The
only answer in the long run is,
because that is what I am like·

And so I do those things which
I ought not to have done and I
leave undone those things which
I ought to have done.
ls there any help? I cannot see
that it may be found in any form
of education alone. Education can
tell us what shou~d be done; it cannot generate the desire to d_o
what should be done· Perhaps it
would seem that the only source
from which the strength and
ardor necessary to pursue the
True the Good and the Beautifu.l ~ay be obtained is religion.
Some form of religion, then.
which will give vitality and fervour to an educaton calculated to
instil irusight into moral values
is essential Only when man is able
t.o handle the dangerous powerG
of .science in a way which. will promote happiness and a good society
should he be permitted access to
scientific achieNement·

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THE SPECTRUM

'fhe Scientist Looks at the Future
-:-bY J. A· MARTIN
It was very fashionable a :i_ ew
.years ago for iu<.1.1 vid.ua1s conce1·n-

oi tli::iease which arise fr0111 causes

iJeyouJ the coutrul ui men·
W e observe the spectacle of uned with the destiny of the human race to ·1ay b}ame for employment previous to this war.
n-rany of our ills upon the in- In that period a few machine~
creased power which the dis- made all tihe goods our people
coveries of science have placed in could afford to buy; it would
men's hands· It becomes in some seem obvious that if there were
qll!arters fashionable to denounce fewer machines more men would
the scientific investigator for be at work, and hence that tihe
working in his. field; to advocate scientist had conferred no favor
that his activities be curtailed in pr omoting technical advance·
that his discoveries be supressed'. But it shouliQ. be noted t hat the
'rhis dangerous tendency in hu- ~ncr c ased use of machinery has,
man thought seems to me an echo m normal times, permitted a defrom the Middle Ages· I hear crease in the working hours, an
again the clerics rage against increase in leisure time and a
Galileo and there is brought to higher standard of living than at
mind the accounts of unspeakable any other period in history· An
ex te 11s ion of this process cannot
intolerance of that time·
be obtained by curtailing scienH you were able to blot fro1n
tific
inve1stigation.
the memol.'y of man those scien1ifNow .c onsider some of the nonic p1·d1c·.ipl es w1hieh men are apply.ing mo·s t wickedly today, technical branches of learning,
wluch 011es would you _choose for such as philosophy, literature, hisoblivion '? In choosing you must to L·y- those thingis which seek t o
bca1· in mind that ,you will also embellish existence and to fathom
lw ve to fo1·ego all th e aclrnntages t he purpose of things- It is, perthat the appication of the for- haps. precisely a training in these
gotten principles confers I wish branches of learning which perto indicate then that the body of mit dangerous men to move others
seientific knowledge at our <.l" s- , to their will· B;y tJhe skilled appliposal cannot be arbitrarily prun- cation of t he principles of psycholed· We would be too likely to find ogy the Nazi leaders have led the
·oerma.n p eople and the world to
1 hat the very principles and skill s
we use for evil are the very ones t heir p1·esent predicament. ThP- i:;ow hi c h carry the gi·eatest benefit ea ll ed 'useless' fol'ms of edrn~ a t H1n
are t hemscl ves dangcl'Ous if rni :;when properly applied·
used·
In this war we obsel"vc that
There is or s hould not he a1 1\'
medical •s cience is trying to repai 1·
quarrel
between fields of l~an~­
the bodies shattered through the
good offices of chemical science. ing· ·w hatever has the attention of
But to be completely fair . we the best minds of the best minds
should note that the medical of men can be an instr ument for
scientist relies on many . of t he inculcating habits of mind which
skills and techniques of the C'l1em- w ill fi t the individual t·o d eal
ical and phiysical scientist· So with current problems·
Th en if we are 1o heli-e .. 0 tlia '
the medical man stretches out his
hand to the chemist for drugs and it is unwise to halt the pr og r cs.~
medicine to overcome the ravag·e~. of scientific investigation, what

.

J •)

14

THE SPECTRUM
possibility does man 1h ave of establishing rational behaviod It is
my belief that he is very likely to
to do just that in time. The natural instinct especially in younger
people seems to be to expe ct that
the world is growing better. Is
this just a result of ignorance '? Is
our youth just unaware of what
a sorrvr spectacle the behavior of
men and nations has presented for
so long~ Again to what instincts
do national leaders appeal when
they want the support of vm1th
for any cause~ They call a crusade· They appeal for sacrifice, for
the es,t ablishment of an order in
which for all mankind there shall
be freedom from want and fear·
This is universal· No matt er ihow
perverted the aim, does any national leader or government appeal to the people for support in
any conflict with anything but
the highest aIJ.d most laudible
aims ~ Yet it is 'Such appeals that
wake the greatest response. T1h e
regenerative for.ces are present
though perhaps misused·
There is too, in the AngloAmerican world, a growing r ealizat ion that just as the delegation of powers and rights had to
be made by individuals to municipal, state, and federal go.vernments, so nations must delegate
.S.ome of their sovereign powers
for the sake of law and order in
1

the world. The concept of world
citizenship i s becoming · recognized and established·
Again, in th e va1·ions democr atic nations engaged in this struggle, an intense interest in social
questions has arisen· The old
order is being challenged at ever}
turn b,y young and vigorous political groups whose members have.
noted the incongruity of behavior
of governments when faced with
national emergencies. The idleness
of machines and the lack of proper distribution of consumer goods
becaus e of the breakdown of
world economic systems did not
meet with the vigorous measures
which this war-time economy has
so clearly demonstrated should
ihave been employed. The responsibility of the community to those
less fortunate is receiving incr easing consideration; the responsibility to the community of those
with more than the usual privileges is being more clearly discerned·
These forces seem to m:e an expression of religion at work, the
only religion worthy of the name,
the religion which goes outside the
chapel and the church and con- ·
cern itself with the social and political problems of a nat ion and
nation$; the religion which ignores t he differences in creed and
doctrine, color and race, and ealls
all men-men!

THE SPECT.RUM

"fhe Vision
''And lo, as I sat one night out- pedagogues do permit them to
side my villa, pondering on the govern them.selves and accomp1 i s h their own undertakings·
accomplishments of the creature
Man, and the fortitude and earn- In certain of their organizaest zeal with which the youth of tions they do elect c.o nsul and
our kind were appl;ying them- procter and do permit t h e m
to. assume full reiSponsibility
sel':~ to their studies of Logic,
for
all projects· These of:Qcers
Stoici:sm and Cooperation in our
Academics of Learning, I wa'S sud- must now · work single-handed· It
denly transfixed by a ball of burn- is not permissible for them to reing splendor plunging across the ceive aid for this trial ii~ considerHeavens above. And yea as I gaz- ed of great value in the building·
ed fascinated by ye Splendor of of character· Likewise are tihese
the celestial body, methought I executives the butt of much critiih e a r d a Voice commanding, cism and disparagement as this
"Come, 0 Sillicuss, Sage of Sal- is thought good for the soulTo cite an example of these prourus, and view the wonders of
Posterity·" Yea, I was travelling jects, I find they have a tabloid
edited twice a. fortnight which
t~rough Eternity and the · years
slipped by as grafos of sand was: full of the ·fri1volities of misthrough an Hour-glass, and I be- guided youth.'Yea, at times it doth
held myself in the dim year of tickle the funny bone and doth
One Thousand Nine Hundred and cause a smile, .yet doth it lack the
Forty Four.
essentials of good [iterature as
I straightaway betook myself to set down by my forebearer, the
ye Nenerable institutions of learn- silver-tongued Marcus Cicero. But
ing. And lo, I beheld a marvellous in vain do the Editors of this
sight. For on being guided to the worthy tabloid seek a prophet to
seat of learning, I beheld a col- inspire the 'scholars' to utilize t 1he
losal structure of time-honored tabloid to air their views, not only
brick rising above all the domi- with rega.r d to their Religious
ciles around· And yea, I did enter zeal, but also to Questions of the
unto the corridors of the Institute Hour, or to those of lasting· significance. Forsooth the students do
tion an<l <lid cast my eyes a h0
take such a degree of disinterest
me .
".rihen verily was I beset with in the advancement of this Literthe signs of enthusiasm portrayed ary endeavor that the time~orm
on t.he countenances of the inhab- sagas of accomplishments of the
itants of the place, or 'scholars,' past threaten to become obliteratas they are called· One striking edLikewi se on every side did I
feature of their faces is the exceptional size of their mouths· T1his
perceive enthusiasm dil·ecied not
as I was later informed, is a. direct in proper channels, but in 1.hr
result of the gargling eery ·S ound · little obligations of tilieir Religion·
which . they are accustomed to There upon I did call upon my
make, known as a 'howl·'
guide to return me to my villa i~1
Inquiring further
into the Salurus· And lo, I found myself
·workings of the Institution. I wa·s · once more in my own progressive
astonished at the amazing man- age, ref~ecting on the depth of
ner in which they do plan and ex- wisdom and the vfrtue of Manecute certain projects. For thril' kind.
1.,_:

1

15

16

THE SPECTRUM

Eliot and The W@ste Land
Eliot '.s aim in The W wste Land
has been vers aptly expressed by
F · O· Mathieson, in hi\S book, The
Achievement of T.s. Eliot, when he
says that Eliot i\S "pro bing the
implications of certain tragic elementS, inherent in the ver,y nature
of life.'' He wishes to show the
universality of these tragic element'S, to s how their working ont
in as many phases of human experience as he possibly can; in
other words he must project an
awareness of human experience in
its broadest implications· What
the poet is aiming at is thus the
projection of an all-inclusive 1Jmman consciousness. To do this he
has sacrificed dramatic and
narrative unity and ha\S cast the
poem in a mode which defies all
the unities· The poem, as Eliot
has ,s tated in a note, can well be
thought or as taking place in the
mind of Tiresias, as central
spectator of the whole· Tiresias
more or less embodies an imne"sonal conscionsness such as Eliot
is aiming at, being bi,-sexual, in1mortal, and capable of '' fore-suffering all "
The anthropological hackground of the poem helps in attaining the kind of · unity Eli,ot
desires. ·what is essentjal in it is
the fact. that the various mythR
1

have a common basis in tlrn search
for the mysteries of life and reproduction· This was seized upon by
Eliot as a means of suggesting the
essential unity of life, the essential equivalence of all human experi ence. The ,s urface difference's
between the .c ustoms and beliefs
of man are suggested to mask profound resemblances· Eliot infers
that the Human Tragedy is much
the same wherever we look.
T h e anthropological b a c kground of the poem contrasts
sharply and ironically with the
<'Ontemporary scene, but the
modern Waste Land is only made
more real by the haunting presence of the medieval
Eliot's device of juxtaposing
the past. and present through literary borrowings has a similar
function. An example is provided
in the famous closing lines of ''A
n-a.rn e of Chess· ''
'' Goonight Bill· Goonight Lon·
Goonight. Mag. Goonight
Ta ta.. Goonight· Goonight·
Goodnight ladies, good night
sweet ladies, goodnight good
nig-ht-"

At first the effect is one of contrast. but the implied identification of Lil with Shakepeare 'R
Ophelia suggests the fundamental
similarity between the two, both
being frustrated in love.

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