The great principles of the law have all been
announced and applied to every conceivable form of human rights and
controversy. For example, in our own country there will be no more new
and great constitutional arguments. Everything, from now on, will be
only an application of what has already been said and decided.
"In invention, there may be some improvements on old and present
devices, but there will be no more Edisons, no more Marconis. In
medicine, we are about at the top of the mountain. In literature, the
creative and fundamental things have all been done. There will be no
more Shakespeares, no Miltons, no Dantes, no Goethes. Even Hugo is
dead. From now on books will be mere second-hand talk.
"In statesmanship, nothing is left except that common housekeeping
which we call administering government. In diplomacy, the same old
lies will continue to be told, and so on."
This young man's profoundly melancholy view of life is that which I
have found crushing the _elan_ out of many young men; and particularly
college students. In their hearts they feel that progress is finished,
so far as individual effort _by them_ is concerned. They feel that
_for them_ there is nothing but to eat, sleep, laugh, grieve and go to
their graves.
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