THE TORCH OF REASON, SILVERTON, OREGON, JULY 6, 1899.
Abroad.
BY P. W. GEER.
of me
I wonder .hat „he did not grow to supply the cattle.
Dairy- placed in stocks or executed
in
the
address me as “Grandpa” after
that Mr. and Mrs. Gruber joined
Ing is a good industry.
name of rehgton. If ever a place
We visited the park at Taunton, is subject to being haunted Boston
„ the invitation for me to visit at
but it is not equal in any way to Common is surely the most appt0.
M
Sat theirebome and when I informed the one at Brockton. We returned priate place in the United States.
I arrived at Brockton, Masse, feat-
£ wou,d ca„ h
eBUr. to Brockton through Bridgewater While Boston in times past w as
urday afternoon, and it d ll n
, •
had a view of a beautiful the scene of many noble deed^,
take long 10 fi"d
, ^ ” 7 ' Our l a i d l / a supply ofToU cushions^ country and a lake, with a name while it is the birthplace of Fr.nL
Secular poet, Grace E. Grub, r
u
(‘ >
co[n. to(, long to be remembered or writ- lin and many noble patriots, and
readers are quite familiar with her
gQ
They gup. ten Eastern Massachusetts is one although it possessed the Cradle
writings, and I am sure all of them
courge
wag deaf, vast network of railroads and elec- of Liberty,” still Puritanism has
would be delighted to have a visit
’ j l iv ’ d thei oice8 fo^ tHc lines and traveling is, indeed, left a stain that could not be
Altbnntrh but
a
. I I convenient.
. . . . Mr. Gruber
j e. wa6hed away bv a thousand years
with her. Although
but seventeen
seventeen an
jQudtalki
a day or bo . before
years of age, she has the appear-
w
Q
,jghtful company> and our tour of wehfoot rain,
I awoke from my reverie and
ance of a young lady of a I • formed her cousin tbat an aged man over the country will always be
twenty, and her bright mt llect,
was lo call soon, and remembered by me. Mrs. Gruber looked about to see a typical Bos-
advanced ideas, and winning wajs,
»
l . is excellent . company and an ideal tonian looking at me thiough on--
make her very interesting indeed. I went to her file of magazmes to get
eyeglass, and wondering if I were
Her father and mother are young, my picture To her surprise she mother. She is justly proud of her a real human being or a sea ser­
and Miss Grace is often judged, b y , had mistaken the name and the daughter and seems to live for her. pent strayed from the zoo. I got
strangers, to he Mr. Gruber’s sis- J »Id gentleman she had admired so I also found Mr. A. W. Dellquest my long legs under me and started
of El Paso, Texas, at the Gruber
ter instead of bis daughter. The much was not the one who was to home, and I was pleased to meet for Appleton street, where is locat­
Gruber home is an ideal one, and call. She was at a loss lo know him and enjoy several good visits. ed Paine Hall, the home of the
the time I spent there was one what kind of a being was coming, He is a fine young man, and it is Boston Investigator. I found Ralph
round of pleasure. The evening of and still bad in mind an aged gen­ too bad we haven’t thousands of Washburn Chainey iu the office
Imagine her surprise
my arrival, Miss Grace and I took tleman.
Secularists like him. He is going and enjoyed a visit with him until
a stroll through the city, and on when I arrived, and she beheld a to open a book store in Brockton the arrival of Mr. L. K. Washburn,
our rounds we visited the new city tall, slim, long-legged, smooth-
and I hope he will do well. He is the editor-in chief. Mr. Chainey
hall and the public library, which shaved youth. I am sorry to have greatly in love with New England is a bright, intelligent, young man,
is verv interesting to us botn. A so disappointed the whole family, and Boston arid we had some heat­ with good habits and splendid bus­
free public library is one of the be3t but it is not my fault. It seems
iness ability. Mr. Washburn is
ed discussions on the subject.
things a city can possess. It is that people are hound to have
Tuesday morning I went to Bos­ well known to Freethinkers gener­
needless to say that MiRft Grace is erroneous opinions of me, and while
ally. He is a splendid worker, an
quite familiar with Brockton’s | it is often laughable, it is some ton, arriving at the largest union able writer and one of our best lec­
library. She is a great student and times uncomfortable. I am con depot in the world at 10 o’clock. turers. He is popular with all who
Boston is a great place. I was not
reader, and knows the kind of liter tinually being mistaken for a lady,
in love with the city at first, but I know him, and although he never
ature which is best for her to read. and receive many letters addressed,
don’t believe in love at first sight conceals his ideas, he is respected,
“
Dear
Miss,”
and
I
have
twice
had
She does not stuff her head full of
anyway, so I decided to get better and even admired, by Christians.
useless trash, and I am sure there offers of marriage from wealthy
acquainted with the place. I don’t His ideas iu regard to carrying on
widowers,
besides
numerous
sweet
is a bright future for her. She
like Boston’s crooked, narrow, the Secular work coincide with
hasn’t the faults of many of the letters from young men.
In spite of the disappointment I dingy streets. I left the depot and mine, and he and Mr. Chainey suc­
young girls wlio start out in the
ceed iu making the Investigator a
work of reforming the world; she was made welcome at the Gruber started in the supposed direction of neat, clean, interesting paper.
does not go to extremes. She has home, and Mr. Gruber was kind Boston Common. I passed Dewey These gentlemen are deeply inter­
ideas on the questions of the day enough to show me the city and Square, started up Federal street, ested in the Liberal University and
and is not afraid to express them, surrounding country. We went got off on to Sumner street, wrestled are going to use every effort to
but she keeps within the bounds of one evening to Highland Park and with Bedford street awhile and make it a success. I am proud to
reason, and does not fly from one saw the electric fountain, the vau finally landed on West street. I
enlist their favor and get the sup­
thing to another. I am inclined to deville entertainment, and other don’t know how I did it and don’t
think that she has the good sense' interesting features of the place, think I could do it again. Bos­ port of the Boston Investigator in
to behave herself. She knows that All of this is free and is well pat- ton’s streets are all curves and behalf of our work. How can they
she is smart and has ability, but ronized by the people of the city, angles. I look up the street and do otherwise than favor us? The
she also realizes that she does not who are kept at work all day in saw a green streak and made for it Liberal University is a grand en­
know it all, and that she has a the factories. Brockton is the great with all haste. I landed on Bos­ terprise aud receives the sanction
great deal to learn. The cause of centre for shoe factories, and this is ton Common, the most uncommon and support of all right-thinking
Secularism may well be proud that where the great “Douglas $3 Shoe” thing about Boston. I knew where Secularists, both east and west.
it has Miss Grace E. Gruber as an is made. W. L. Douglas is one of I was and where I came from, but That makes me sure of success,
I don’t know how I got there. The and wheu I return to the west,
advocate, and her prose as well as Grace Gruber’s best friends,
her poetry will some day be famous.
Sunday was a lovely day, and Common is in the center of the which I hope will he soon, it will
There is a little anecdote that I Mr. Gruber and I took a ride on an city and contains 48 acres, with be with the satisfaction that I have
must tell, and I will leave the electric car to Taunton, sixteen beautiful trees and a fine carpet of succeeded in placing the Liberal
reader to judge whether the joke is miles to the southwest of Brockton. grass. There are no signs, “Keep University on so firm a basis that
on Miss Grace or on me. Some­ I had a splendid view of the coun­ off the grass,” and people were it will never be overturned.
time ago I wrote to her asking for try, and, in fact, it was the first lying about under the shade of the
The presence of policemen at a
some poetry for the Torch of Rea- good idea I got of New England, trees. 1 have heard so much
church function is not an unheard
son, and incidentally informed her After I have seen the rest of it I about Boston Common, and it is
of thing, but one would hardly have
that she would find my picture and will describe it for the Torch. Mr. such a noted place, that I decided
expected Bishop Potter to provide
an account of my life in a recent Gruber and I tried to get into the to enjoy it awhile. I stretched my­
thus for the ordination of a man to
number of the Freethought Maga- insane asylum, hut they would not self ou the grass under the shade of
the Episcopalian priesthood, yet
zine. In a short time I received an let us in, so we looked over the wall au old elm tree and looked up into
that is just what he did when Dr.
excellent letter from her, and a and walked several miles around the clear sky. For a moment I eu-
Briggs was ordained, and the reason
very cordial invitation to call if I the grounds. Taunton used to be joyed Boston, hut my thoughts car- given for it was the fear of a dis-
ever visited the east. Of course I the location of iron foundries h u t,
Iue hack to “ye olden time ¡'urk)ance growing Out of the oppo-
was sure that she had seen my pic- they, having moved west, Taunton al‘d 1 thought of Boston Common öjtjon to the doctor’s ordination,
ture and admired my beauty. I is losing population rapidly. New aö in days gone by. I closed my The “gospel of peace” does not of
was still of this opinion until my England is dependent almost en- eyes aud imagined that I could see itself insure peace among those who
recent visit, when I learned that tirely on factories, and wher the two heretics dangling from the gal- ^ daC^he 1y olEV^ pirt^ ° ‘^ h
instead of looking at my picture she factories move New England loses, lows and Christiaus shouting with ^ ere ¡geneej
t he police. Will
had turned to that of a large portly tor the soil is not productive, and gKe at their triumph over heresy.
people never learn what a hol-
man, sixty years of age, with a full there is barely room enough be- 1 could see people being flogged for |ow sham the Christian religion is.'
beard, and took it to be a picture tween the rocks for the grass to their honest opinions and Quakers —[Independent Pulpit.