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第27章

lay morals-第27章

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These men may have something to say; if they could only say  it … indeed they generally have; but the next class are  people who; having nothing to say; are cursed with a facility  and an unhappy command of words; that makes them the prime  nuisances of the society they affect。  They try to cover  their absence of matter by an unwholesome vitality of  delivery。  They look triumphantly round the room; as if  courting applause; after a torrent of diluted truism。  They  talk in a circle; harping on the same dull round of argument;  and returning again and again to the same remark with the  same sprightliness; the same irritating appearance of  novelty。

After this set; any one is tolerable; so we shall merely hint  at a few other varieties。  There is your man who is pre… eminently conscientious; whose face beams with sincerity as  he opens on the negative; and who votes on the affirmative at  the end; looking round the room with an air of chastened  pride。  There is also the irrelevant speaker; who rises;  emits a joke or two; and then sits down again; without ever  attempting to tackle the subject of debate。  Again; we have  men who ride pick…a…back on their family reputation; or; if  their family have none; identify themselves with some well… known statesman; use his opinions; and lend him their  patronage on all occasions。  This is a dangerous plan; and  serves oftener; I am afraid; to point a difference than to  adorn a speech。

But alas! a striking failure may be reached without tempting  Providence by any of these ambitious tricks。  Our own stature  will be found high enough for shame。  The success of three  simple sentences lures us into a fatal parenthesis in the  fourth; from whose shut brackets we may never disentangle the  thread of our discourse。  A momentary flush tempts us into a  quotation; and we may be left helpless in the middle of one  of Pope's couplets; a white film gathering before our eyes;  and our kind friends charitably trying to cover our disgrace  by a feeble round of applause。  AMIS LECTEURS; this is a  painful topic。  It is possible that we too; we; the 'potent;  grave; and reverend' editor; may have suffered these things;  and drunk as deep as any of the cup of shameful failure。  Let  us dwell no longer on so delicate a subject。

In spite; however; of these disagreeables; I should recommend  any student to suffer them with Spartan courage; as the  benefits he receives should repay him an hundredfold for them  all。  The life of the debating society is a handy antidote to  the life of the classroom and quadrangle。  Nothing could be  conceived more excellent as a weapon against many of those  PECCANT HUMOURS that we have been railing against in the  jeremiad of our last 'College Paper' … particularly in the  field of intellect。  It is a sad sight to see our heather… scented students; our boys of seventeen; coming up to College  with determined views … ROUES in speculation … having gauged  the vanity of philosophy or learned to shun it as the middle… man of heresy … a company of determined; deliberate  opinionists; not to be moved by all the sleights of logic。   What have such men to do with study?  If their minds are made  up irrevocably; why burn the 'studious lamp' in search of  further confirmation?  Every set opinion I hear a student  deliver I feel a certain lowering of my regard。  He who  studies; he who is yet employed in groping for his premises;  should keep his mind fluent and sensitive; keen to mark  flaws; and willing to surrender untenable positions。  He  should keep himself teachable; or cease the expensive farce  of being taught。  It is to further this docile spirit that we  desire to press the claims of debating societies。  It is as a  means of melting down this museum of premature petrifactions  into living and impressionable soul that we insist on their  utility。  If we could once prevail on our students to feel no  shame in avowing an uncertain attitude towards any subject;  if we could teach them that it was unnecessary for every lad  to have his OPINIONETTE on every topic; we should have gone a  far way towards bracing the intellectual tone of the coming  race of thinkers; and this it is which debating societies are  so well fitted to perform。

We there meet people of every shade of opinion; and make  friends with them。  We are taught to rail against a man the  whole session through; and then hob…a…nob with him at the  concluding entertainment。  We find men of talent far  exceeding our own; whose conclusions are widely different  from ours; and we are thus taught to distrust ourselves。  But  the best means of all towards catholicity is that wholesome  rule which some folk are most inclined to condemn … I mean  the law of OBLIGED SPEECHES。  Your senior member commands;  and you must take the affirmative or the negative; just as  suits his best convenience。  This tends to the most perfect  liberality。  It is no good hearing the arguments of an  opponent; for in good verity you rarely follow them; and even  if you do take the trouble to listen; it is merely in a  captious search for weaknesses。  This is proved; I fear; in  every debate; when you hear each speaker arguing out his own  prepared SPECIALITE (he never intended speaking; of course;  until some remarks of; etc。); arguing out; I say; his own  COACHED…UP subject without the least attention to what has  gone before; as utterly at sea about the drift of his  adversary's speech as Panurge when he argued with Thaumaste;  and merely linking his own prelection to the last by a few  flippant criticisms。  Now; as the rule stands; you are  saddled with the side you disapprove; and so you are forced;  by regard for your own fame; to argue out; to feel with; to  elaborate completely; the case as it stands against yourself;  and what a fund of wisdom do you not turn up in this idle  digging of the vineyard!  How many new difficulties take form  before your eyes? how many superannuated arguments cripple  finally into limbo; under the glance of your enforced  eclecticism!

Nor is this the only merit of Debating Societies。  They tend  also to foster taste; and to promote friendship between  University men。  This last; as we have had occasion before to  say; is the great requirement of our student life; and it  will therefore be no waste of time if we devote a paragraph  to this subject in its connection with Debating Societies。   At present they partake too much of the nature of a CLIQUE。   Friends propose friends; and mutual friends second them;  until the society degenerates into a sort of family party。   You may confirm old acquaintances; but you can rarely make  new ones。  You find yourself in the atmosphere of your own  daily intercourse。  Now; this is an unfortunate circumstance;  which it seems to me might readily be rectified。  Our  Principal has shown himself so friendly towards all College  improvements that I cherish the hope of seeing shortly  realised a certain suggestion; which is not a new one with  me; and which must often have been proposed and canvassed  heretofore … I mean; a real UNIVERSITY DEBATING SOCIETY;  patronised by the Senatus; presided over by the Professors;  to which every one might gain ready admittance on sight of  his matriculation ticket; where it would be a favour and not  a necessity to speak; and where the obscure student might  have another object for attendance besides the mere desire to  save his fines: to wit; the chance of drawing on himself the  favourable consideration of his teachers。  This would be  merely following in the good tendency; which has been so  noticeable during all this session; to increase and multiply  student societies and clubs of every sort。  Nor would it be a  matter of much difficulty。  The united societies would form a  nucleus: one of the class…rooms at first; and perhaps  afterwards the great hall above the library; might be the  place of meeting。  There would be no want of attendance or  enthusiasm; I am sure; for it is a very different thing to  speak under the bushel of a private club on the one hand;  and; on the other; in a public place; where a happy period or  a subtle argument may do the speaker permanent service in  after life。  Such a club might end; pe

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