Progress. 297 



little harm till then. Instead of undertaking to 

 complete the work, which will take the time, and 

 strength, and wisdom, and suffering, of many gen- 

 erations, let us write upon all our work, '' To be 

 taken away, zvke?i better materials and better methods 

 are discovered'' Let us encourage those who are 

 to come after us, to make progress, by sweeping 

 our work away as soon as its defects are seen. But 

 instead of this, we are likely to be satisfied with 

 a defective structure because it is the work of our 

 own hands, or of those whom we admire, and to 

 pronounce anathemas upon him who shall dare to 

 remove its foundations, or even speak slightingly 

 of its boasted perfections. Thus the influence of a 

 great name has reached down through generations, 

 protecting gross errors that ought to have been 

 swept away— errors that palsied the power of thought, 

 and forbade the growth of man's better nature. 



In contrast to this veneration for established error, 

 because it has long passed current for truth, we find 

 those who would sweep from modern life every ves- 

 tige of the past. Their strength is spent mainly in 

 demoHshing ; or, if they build at all, it is with wood, 

 and hay, and stubble, hastily gathered and destined 

 soon to perish. 



We claim for ourselves no right to entail errors 

 upon those who come after us ; nor dare we yet 

 stand idle, for fear of making mistakes. He w!io 

 waits till he is sure of not making them, will do 

 very little for the world. 



When I consider how m.uch still remains un- 



