Calling Names
Moses E. Lard, in September 1863, wrote of a discussion he had been reading between Errett and Franklin and gave his endorsement to the pointed discussion that had been carried on. He says:
"It cannot be denied that at times the discussion has become a little piquant; and I have thought that now and then I could even taste in it some slight traces of acetic acid and salt. Perhaps this was all imaginary. But suppose it was not, what then? I love to read a thing when it becomes a little racy, and can stand it well when it becomes even a little rare, to use a favorite term of the Epicurean, when ordering his steak. I do not mean that I like to see a discussion look bloody; but with me let it look almost any way rather than cadaverous. Away with that sickly sentimentalism which screams out at every strong epithet of an earnest man! I love epithets; and if they detonate like percussion caps or flash like meteors, all the better. Only let them be not unbecoming the gravity of religious discussion and the fraternity of Christians. As for the condiments just named, they are excellent things, as is well known even to children. Salt is a capital disinfectant, keeping out bad odors, and both salt and acetic acid have fine conservative properties. Even religious discussions cannot do well without them."