end justifies the
means was the cornerstone of Egyptian theology. When Pythagoras left
Egypt he took with him this cornerstone as a souvenir. That the priests
could hold their power over the masses only through magic and miracle
was fully believed, and as a good police system the value of organized
religion was highly appreciated. In fact, no ruler could hold his place,
unsupported by the priest. Both were divine propositions. One searches
in vain for simple truth among the sages, solons, philosophers, poets
and prophets that existed down to the time of Socrates. Truth for
truth's sake was absolutely unimagined; freethought was unguessed.

Expediency was always placed before truth.

Truth was furnished with frills--the people otherwise would not be
impressed. Chants, robes, ritual, processions, banging of bells, burning
of incense, strange sounds, sights and smells: these were considered
necessary factors in teaching divine truth.

To worship with a noise seems to us a little like making love with a
brass band.

Pythagoras was a very great man, but for him to eliminate theological
chaff entirely was impossible. So we find that when he was about to
speak, red fire filled the building as soon as he arose. It was all a
little like the alleged plan of the late Reverend T. DeWitt Talmage,
who used to have an Irishman let loose a white pigeon from the
organ-loft at an opportune time.

When Pythagoras burned the red fire, of course the audience thought a
miracle was taking place, unable to understand a simple stage-trick
which all the boys in the gallery who delight in "Faust" now understand.

However, the Pythagorean School had much virtue on its side, and made a
sincere and earnest effort to solve certain problems that yet are vexing
us.

The Temple of the Muses, built by Pythagoras at Crotona, is described by
Iamblichus as a stone structure with walls twenty feet thick, the light
being admitted only from the top. It was evidently constructed after the
Egyptian pattern, and the intent was to teach there the esoteric
doctrine. But Pythagoras improved upon the Egyptian methods and opened
his temple on certain days to all and any who desired to come. Then at
times he gave lectures to women only, and then to men only, and also to
children, thus showing that modern revival methods are not wholly
modern.

These lectures contain the very essence of Pythagorean philosophy, and
include so much practical commonsense that th