600 THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



them the esteem of their fellows, and the latter follow with un- 

 equal steps, first showing outward respect and conformity to bet- 

 ter ideas and practices, and then making them more or less of 

 realities in their lives. 



Denunciation of hypocrisy forms a large part of the " prop- 

 erties" of lay and ecclesiastical moralists who exploit time- 

 warped schemes of salvation. Exercise of moderate reasoning 

 powers would teach them that calculating and persistent hypoc- 

 risy has been one of the most powerful factors in the moral ad- 

 vancement of the world. We all aspire higher than we attain, 

 and in the moral domain pretense constantly precedes practice. 

 We begin by appearing to be better than we really are, and the 

 force of habit soon makes an actuality out of what was merely 

 assumption. Hamlet explains this clearly to his mother : 



"That monster, Custom, who all sense doth eat 

 Of habit's devil, is angel yet in this : 

 That to the use of actions fair and good 

 He likewise gives a frock or livery 

 That aptly is put on. Refrain to-night, 

 And that shall lend a kind of easiness 

 To the next abstinence the next more easy 

 For use can almost change the stamp of nature, 

 And either quell the devil or throw him out 

 With wondrous potency." 



Those who pretend to be much better than they are have at 

 least begun the upward development, and recognized the goal to 

 which their faces should be turned. 



No man is made worse by simulating goodness. There is every 

 chance that he will be made better by the mere act of simulation. 



Beyond doubt, the much-abused Pharisees were powerful pro- 

 moters of the ethical development of the Jews. Their firm insist- 

 ence upon higher moral ideas and purer lives could not have been 

 without marked influence upon those around them. If the only 

 motive for doing this was to enhance the esteem in which they 

 were held by the community, it speaks well for their shrewdness 

 in recognizing the drift of public sentiment, and for the commu- 

 nity which honored superior goodness. 



Jesus Christ's denunciations of them should be given the 

 allowance usually accorded the polemic blasts of a sorely nagged 

 sectary against his rival sectaries. If, indeed, they only cleaned 

 the outside of the cup and platter, they certainly did much better 

 than those who let both outside and inside remain foul. The 

 very denunciation implies that this must have been the rule with 

 those around them. If a man, seeking the applause of his neigh- 

 bors, begins by furbishing the outside of his platter, in order to 

 be superior to them, there is every probability that he will soon 



