No man has a right to hurt the character of a neighbor. He has no right to utter slander. He has no right to bear false witness. He has no right to be actuated by any motive except for the general good--but the things he does here to his neighbor--these are easily defined and easily punished. All that I object to is setting up a standard of authority in the world of art, the world of beauty, the world of poetry, the world of worship, the world of religion, and the world of metaphysics. That is what I object to; and if the old doctrines had been carried out, every human being that has benefited this world would have been destroyed. If the people who believe that a certain belief is necessary to insure salvation had had control of this world, we would have been as ignorant to-night as wild beasts. Every step in advance has been made in spite of them. There has not been a book of any value printed since the invention of that art--and when I say "of value," I mean that contained new and splendid truths--that was not anathematized by the gentlemen who believed that man is responsible for his thought. Every step has been taken in spite of that doctrine. Consequently I simply believe in absolute liberty of mind. And I have no fear about any other world--not the slightest. When I get there, I will give my honest opinion of that country; I will give my honest thought there; and if for that I lose my soul, I will keep at least my self-respect. A man tells me a story. I believe it, or disbelieve it. I cannot help it. I read a story--no matter whether in the original Hebrew, or whether it has been translated. I believe it or I disbelieve it. No matter whether it is written in a very solemn or a very flippant manner--I have my idea about its truth. And I insist that each man has the right to judge that for himself, and for that reason, as I have already said, I am defending your right to differ with me--that is all. And if you do differ with me, all that it proves is that I do not agree with you. There is no man that lives to-night beneath the stars--there is no being--that can force my soul upon its knees, unless the reason is given. I will be no slave. I do not care how big my master is, I am just as small, if a slave, as though the master were small. It is not the greatness of the master that can honor the slave. In other words, I am going to act according to my right, as I understand it, without interfering with any other human being. And now, if you think--any of you, that you can control your thought, I want you to try it. There is not one here who can by any possibility think, only as he must.