Page:Folk-lore - A Quarterly Review. Volume 2, 1891.djvu/114

 106 ignorant impostor of the type of George Psalmanazar. It is no affair of vulgar abuse, or reckless slander, but distinct and specific charges supported by evidence that must be dealt with. I earnestly hope, I would fain believe, that he has a full and complete refutation to give to these charges. If so, he owes it to science even more than to himself to give it, and to give it quickly. He is the president of a new German Folk-Lore Society, the editor of the Zeitschrift fur Volkskunde, and he holds a public and responsible position in Germany as a teacher of youth. Trifling with an accusation like the one before us is hardly calculated to inspire confidence in him in either of these capacities.

It is needless for me to disclaim any personal or national feeling; if I had any it would be in Dr. Veckenstedt's favour, as the person attacked. Indeed, were the question a personal one, or even a national one, it would find no place in these pages. But it is far more than personal or national. Folk-lore is a science dealing with phenomena, the evidence of which—especially in the department of Folk-tales—is more liable to distortion, conscious or unconscious, and presents greater opportunities for imposture, especially in this age of literary activity on every side, than many others. It is, therefore, of supreme importance to ensure the good faith, the competence, and the accuracy of collectors; for on these depend the entire conclusions of the science. Dr. Veckenstedt claims to be a collector who has rendered signal service to science. He has, he tells us, discovered for science more than a hundred figures of Lithuanian deities previously unknown. Results so amazing naturally challenge scepticism; and it is but reasonable that they should be submitted to the most searching scrutiny. Truth can only shine the clearer for such a scrutiny; and to refuse, or parry, inquiry is to take up the weapons and resort to the tactics of error, if not of imposture. Far be it from me to suggest that Dr. Veckenstedt is guilty of imposture: I only desire to point out that the scientific public has a right to know every detail of