Frederic Rowland Marvin

“ The beasts of the field, the birds of the air and fishes in the water, have the same right to life that we have. And I think it not absurd to assume that Divine Providence cradled the Christ in a manger, and surrounded him with dumb cattle, to teach us respect for the animal world. Certain it is that whenever the Christ is born again in the manger of the human heart, the fragrant flowers of mercy and kindness spring up on every side, and I would not give much for the religion of a man who has no sacred regard for brute life. ”

“ The effect of the barbarous treatment of inferior creatures on the minds of those who practice it is more deplorable than its effects upon the animals themselves. The man who kicks dumb brutes kicks brutality into his own heart. He who can see the wistful, imploring eyes of half-starved creatures without making earnest effort to relieve them, and feel no twinge of conscience, is on the road to lose his manhood, if he has not already lost it. ”

“ The life of an animal is sacred like our own, and may not be wantonly destroyed. Of course, there are circumstances that justify the sacrifice; thus we may take the life of a beast in self-defense, as when one slays a venomous reptile, a rabid dog, or a ferocious tiger. Life may be taken for the purpose of food, and, in fact, for any decidedly useful end. ”

“ Some men call it conscience, but I prefer to call it the voice of God in the soul of man. If you listen and obey it, then it will speak clearer and clearer, and always guide you right; but if you turn a deaf ear or disobey, then it will leave you all in the dark and without a guide. ”

“ The obligations of law and equity reach only to mankind, but kindness and beneficence should be extended to animals of every species ; and these still flow from the breast of a well-natured man, as streams that issue from the living fountain. A good man will take care of his horses and dogs, not only while they are young, but when old and past service. ”

“ Many horses are rendered permanently vicious and unnaturally timid by the cruelty which too often attends the process of " breaking." Treat a horse kindly and it will be gentle and obedient unless badly frightened. There is no reason why as warm a friendship should not exist between horse and owner as between dog and master. There is much in the study of the animal world to revive romance, kindle enthusiasm and cultivate the noble virtues of kindness and humanity. ”

“ When the air was filled with shrieks of agony, and mothers were burning with their little children, and strong men and delicate maidens were wreathed in flame, that monster let us not call him a man clapped his hands with delight and laughed in boisterous glee. A childhood of cruel sports prepared Nero for a career of inexpressible infamy. ”

“ Certain it is that whatever teaches us to be kind and considerate in our treatment of animals makes us better men and women. The horse is a brave, sensitive and intelligent creature, and it is not at all wonderful that men have loved him from the time of Melizyus to the present, but it is astonishing that any one could ever be guilty of the cruelty and brutality some have shown to innocent and defenceless animals. ”

“ There is nothing in the Bible, when rightly understood, to discountenance the belief cherished by our own Agassiz, and taught by Leibnitz and the poet Coleridge the belief that both man and beast enter upon a future life when the joys and sorrows of this are ended. And there is much in the unequal allotments of the life that now is, to render the immortality of the animal world highly probable. ”

“ Could the horses, cattle, dogs, creatures of the barn-yard and frogs and insects find a voice, I fear we should discover incipient Neros not far from home. I read not long ago, in a daily paper, of a youth who dipped a cat in kerosene and then set the creature on fire. There you have a young Nero training himself for a life of crime and cruelty.
Hogarth, who was a shrewd observer of human nature, in his "Four Stages of Cruelty," makes a boy begin his criminal career by tormenting animals. The youth advances from stage to stage until at length he commits murder, and ends life upon the gallows. ”

“ The time will come when humanity will extend its mantle over everything which breathes. We have begun by attending to the condition of slaves ; we shall finish by softening that of all the animals which assist our labors or supply our wants. ”

“ There is a vast difference between destroying an animal for its warm and serviceable fur, and shooting a bird for its plumage ; and yet the story of the butchery of seals in Arctic waters is sad enough to make the stoutest heart faint, and is attended with so much wanton cruelty that even the seal hunters themselves are often filled with dismay. ”

“ What possible knowledge of real value could all that suffering lead to? I stigmatize the act as simply infernal." Are our medical colleges to be turned into torture chambers, and are our young men to be systematically educated to cruelty in the learned sciences? ”

“ I cannot believe that any creature was created for uncompensated misery; it would be contrary to the attribute of God's mercy and justice. I am sincerely happy to find that I am not the only believer in the immortality of the lower animals. ”

“ Alas for Science, if instead of ameliorating the condition of man and beast, it is to be her mission to brutalize the former and bring untold agony to the latter.
The man who will intentionally maltreat a horse is deserving of severe punishment. I knew of a wretch who, because his horse balked, deliberately cut out its tongue and cast it on the roadside. Twenty years in state prison should have been the consequence of that brutal act of wanton cruelty. I wish we could share the Arab's attachment to his horse. ”

“ Through many years of training this keen observer and friend of nature had penetrated deep into the individual souls of his dogs, and he was as convinced of their personal immortality as he was of his own. ”

“ Behold the Lamb of God that taketh away the sins of the world. ' And He is also represented as a shepherd, illustrating in His own watchful care over His people the spirit He would have us manifest in dealing with the creatures dependent upon our will and pleasure. "He shall feed His flock like a shepherd ; He shall gather the lambs with His arms, and carry them in His bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young." ”

“ Little care is taken to teach children the principles of kindly humanity. Most parents seem to think it of little consequence whether their sons and daughters grow up with regard for the rights of animals, or without such regard, and I believe many a life of cruelty and brutality dates from early youth, and may be traced to its source in little acts of wanton and malicious ill-treatment of dependent animals. ”

“ It is to be feared that some of us show want of delicacy and bluntness of moral perception in dealing with the animal world. It was the fashion, not long ago, for ladies to wear birds' wings in their hats and dresses, and innocent song-birds in every land were slaughtered to gratify a savage and repulsive taste. ”

“ Another author assures us that whoever cherishes a horse for God's sake will becounted among " the charitable whose sins will be forgiven." The Arab lives in the saddle, and his safety in flight as well as success in battle depends on the speed and courage of his charger. He loves his horse with an ardor that appears absurd to western men, who seldom put the animal to such romantic use, and whose safety and happiness are not so dependent on the creature's speed and mettle. ”

“ I intend, however, to go back to my experiments in the Foundling Asylum at some future time." In this connection as showing the cruel spirit of Science when separated from the sense of moral responsibility and from regard for human rights, we may quote the words of a scientific instructor published by himself in the New York Independent for December 12, 1895: "A human life is nothing compared with a new fact in science. * * * The aim of science is the advancement of human knowledge at any sacrifice of human life. ”

“ The considerate and respectful way in which the Bible, and the sacred scriptures of all great religions, speak of the lower orders of creation, ought to inspire us with like spirit. Truly and beautifully Ruskin describes the attitude a good and noble man assumes toward the animals: " The gentleness of chivalry, properly so-called, depends on the recognition of the order and awe of lower and loftier animal life. ”

“ The recognition of the rights of men has now made human vivisection criminal, and the scientific inquisition of the present time counts animals alone as its victims. And here the Act of 1876 has fortunately, though not sufficiently, restricted the powers of the vivisector in Great Britain. ”

“ That God intended many animals to be food for man there can be no reasonable doubt, but it is our duty to take life in such cases in as painless a wayas the purpose to be served will permit. The art and science are not wasted that mitigate the distress of even the humblest of God's creatures. ”

“ Another form of cruelty practiced for the sake of fashion is the manufacture of gloves, the skins for which come from France, Italy, Spain, Mexico and South America. In France the cruelty is revolting. Great care is taken in raising the kids, and they are sewed in covers to keep their skins in a condition of perfect softness. The kids grow, but the covers are not changed. Untold pain is inflicted on the little animals. ”

“ Much more in all that conduces to the sustenance of man may we give pain to brutes, as also in the pursuit of science. Nor are we bound to any anxious care to make this pain as little as may be. Brutes are THINGS in our regard."↑ The honor is claimed for Jeremy Bentham of being the first in modern times to definitely and persistently demand for animals those common rights which are now fully accorded them by all good men. He wrote in his "Principles of Penal Law," chap, xvi: "The legislator ought to interdict everything which may serve to lead to cruelty ”

“ Here are two horses equally deserving of kind treatment, but one falls into the possession of a cruel man who is a stranger to mercy, and the other is owned by a man who illustrates the soul of Christian gentleness in the just and humane treatment of creatures dependent upon his will and pleasure. ”

“ We certainly ought not to treat living creatures like shoes or household goods, which, when worn out with use, we throw away; and were it only to learn benevolence to human kind we should be merciful to other creatures. ”

“ The door being open, the skinless and bleeding sheep followed the physician to the bedside of his patient, and in its agony, actually leaped upon the bed. We are reminded of the story of Caesar Borgia who had a living ox disemboweled in his apartments, and as soon as the operation had been performed, leaped into the still living body of the ox, putting himself in the place of the intestines, that he might receive into himself the life the creature was to lose.
The men and women who have defended animals have not been weak, sentimental and silly, as is sometimes averred ”

“ There is Scripture authority for saying that you will be called to account for your treatment of animals, and that God will hold you responsible for every act of cruelty. [1] Said Jesus when speaking of the birds, " Not one of them is forgotten before God." Let the London dealer in dead birds remember that. The same Heavenly Love that provides for your every want cares for them. " Behold the fowls of the air, for they sow not, neither do they reap, or gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them." " Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? ”

“ It changes one instantly into a living corpse, hearing, seeing and knowing everything, but unable to move a single muscle, and under its influence no creature can give the faintest indication of its hopeless condition. The heart alone continues to beat. ”

“ I know of a woman who will not allow her children to destroy a fly in sport, nor to pull the wings from a butterfly, nor to treat harshly a dumb beast. That woman is training her sons and daughters in the direction of a good and useful life. Nero, when a youth, took great pleasure in tormenting animals. ”

“ The small gulls and sea swallows are shot for their wings, and the fowlers, in their haste, do not stop to kill the wounded birds; they merely wrench off the wings and throw the little creatures back into the water to die in agony. ”

“ Were the experiments of value to the world were they calculated to further the interests of the healing art, or to mitigate human misery and lengthen the life of man I would approve and encourage them, but they are practically worthless, as many eminent physicians have confessed. ”

“ Thus the people of Athens, when they had finished the temple called Hecatompedon, set at liberty the beasts of burden that had been chiefly employed in the work, suffering them to pasture at large, free from any other service. ”