OUTRAGES UPON THE BODY.
It is barbarous to tattoo the body. Among civilized men, only low sailors, who spend their lives at sea, indulge in this barbarism; and they confine the tattooing to a limited surface, "pricking in" the figure of an anchor, or a ship.
The nose, lips, teeth, ears, and other parts of the body, are cut or distorted by some of the savages of Africa.
Wherever we find among men the custom of tattooing, cutting or distorting the body, we need make no further inquiry,—it is a land of barbarians.
Undeveloped peoples, in the service of false religions, maltreat their bodies; and even followers of Christ have immured themselves in dark cells, and caves, carried the accumulated filth of years, scrupulously avoiding water, starved themselves, pinched and whipped themselves, made long journeys on their knees or bellies, made pilgrimages with peas in their shoes, and kicked, cuffed and outraged themselves in many other ways.
Among advanced Christian nations, even now we sometimes observe a lingering reflection of this strange hallucination.
For example, a great many people rather fancy a dyspeptic, ghostly clergyman, and can hardly bring themselves to listen to a prayer from a preacher with square shoulders, a big chest, a ruddy face, and a moustache. The ghost, they seem to think, belongs in some way to the spirit world; while the beef-eating, jolly fellow is dreadfully at home in this world.
The ghost exclaims:—
"Jerusalem, my happy home,
Oh! how I long for thee;
When will my sorrows have an end?
Thy joys when shall I see?"
The other, like Mr. Beecher, enjoys a good dinner, a nimble-footed horse, a big play with the children and the dogs, seems joyous in the sunshine, and,—wretched sinner,—does not sigh to depart.