The saving feature of the Erewhonian Musical Bank system (as distinct
from the quasi-idolatrous views which coexist with it, and on which I
will touch later) was that while it bore witness to the existence of a
kingdom that is not of this world, it made no attempt to pierce the veil
that hides it from human eyes. It is here that almost all religions go
wrong. Their priests try to make us believe that they know more about
the unseen world than those whose eyes are still blinded by the seen, can
ever know--forgetting that while to deny the existence of an unseen
kingdom is bad, to pretend that we know more about it than its bare
existence is no better.
This chapter is already longer than I intended, but I should like to say
that in spite of the saving feature of which I have just spoken, I cannot
help thinking that the Erewhonians are on the eve of some great change in
their religious opinions, or at any rate in that part of them which finds
expression through their Musical Banks. So far as I could see, fully
ninety per cent. of the population of the metropolis looked upon these
banks with something not far removed from contempt. If this is so, any
such startling event as is sure to arise sooner or later, may serve as
nucleus to a new order of things that will be more in harmony with both
the heads and hearts of the people.
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