THE SUBWAY OKEGONIAN, PORTLANT. FEBRUARY 26, 1923-
THE WORLD BENEFITS THROUGH THE PROGRESS OF CHRISTIANITY
Constant Readjustments Made by Church to Make Fuller Truths Known Pastor Declares Science Is Aid to Religion and Does Not Conflict With Bible.
BT DIV HAROLD LEONARD
BOWMAN.
Pastor of the First Presbyterian church.
Y rrsii be my witnesses both in Jerusa
lem, and in all Judt-a aiwi Samaria, and
unto the uttorraoat jart of the earth,
Acta 1:8.
THERE has been published re-
cently a volume written by 30
self-styled "young intellectu
als." There are 30 chapters dealing
with phases of American life such
as politics, education, sex, the drama,
and the like. But from this score
and a half of subjects, religion is
omitted. The editor in explaining
this omission, stated, "There Is no
religion in America worth the name
and I could find no -one to write
about what there was." This in
stance is cited because it represents
a point of view which must be taken
into consideration, namely, that re
ligion is a thing which has no place
In modern life.
Ian understand some of the fac
tors that produced' this attitude, be
cause Christianity at one time seemed
to me to be simply a mass of anti
quated unrealities, a conglomerate of
forms that were hollow and beliefs
that were quite outworn. Such an
attitude is far from rare today. The
majority of people whom one meets
are little interested in Christianity
if they are not openly hostile toward
it. To them It is simply a system
of doctrinal shackles, a dead hand of
dogma reaching out from the past.
They think that a man Is a Chris
tian only because he has submitted
to mental petrification and doctrinal
Imprisonment.
The tragedy of the situation is that
there i3 just enough truth in these
charges to give them in the minds
of many a complete verification.
There is just enough superstition
clinging to the faith of the average
Christian just enough of a flavor of
unreality Just enough of a residue
of prejudice about current Chris
tianity to convince John Doe, the
man on the street, that that is all
there Is to religion.
Religion Aid to Living.
But we who are Christians know
that that is not all. The true religion
of Jesus Christ is a vital reality to
day. It is Indispensable to the fin
est living. It is of incalculable value
By
The Head of the House of Coombe, by
Frances Hodgson Burnett. Frederick A.
Stokes Co., New York city.
Jlrs. Burnett was ..born in Man
chester, England, reared in the Ten
nessee mountains, was a young wife
and mother in Washington, D. C, and
lived successively in Kent, England,
and in Bermuda now she lives in
Plandome, New York. She is the au
thor of several successful novels, the
best known of which are "The Secret
Garden" and "Little Lord Fauntle
roy." In the latter, she has visual
ized the eternal boy, and made him
internationally known.
In "The Head of the House of
Coombe" Mrs. Burnett has taken a
wonderful girl as her model, a lovely,
neglected, poetic fairy whose name
is- Miss Robin Gareth-Lawless. Her
father was Robert Gareth-Lawless, a
member of the blue blooded family of
Lord Lawdor, and one of the close
friends of the Gereth-Lawless family
is Lord Coombe, a bachelor, an aristo
cratic man who somehow has an
evil reputation, but who is often rich
in good deeds done in secret.
Miss Robin's mother is called
Feather, for a pet name! and she
ought to have been called Feather
the foolish, for if ever there was a
more irresponsible, vain, pretty, con
ceited woman, she was. Her only as
sets were her good looks and her
ability to induce other people to wait
on her and to work for her.
In the portraiture of these three
persons Robin, Feathers and Lord
Coombe 'Mrs. Burnett has shown in
Coombe fine literary ability of the
highest order. Her novel is one of
infinite charm, and will be cherished
Because it is clean, quiet and digni
fied 'particularly by women readers.
Miss Robin must have been born to
genteel poverty, about the year 1894,
reaches early womanhood when the
recent world war is apparently about
due German threats to sack London
on "the day" being discussed.
Robin's father died suddenly when
she was a baby, probably from worry
to exist on aristocratic appearance on
nothing a year, and exhaustion due
to his efforts to escape creditors and
promises to,pay generally.
When her husband is dying, Mrs.
Gareth-Lawless is ignorant of the.
fact, and weeps because a plan had
been arranged to go to an operatic
performance and to enjoy supper aft
erward. Don t, Rob, don t, his wite ex
claimed, "Lord Coombe Is taking us
I'm going to wear. Oh, do try to sit
up: Don't give up till afterwardB."
In less than two weeks, lovely and
foolish Mrs. Gareth-Lawless, aristo
cratic parasite, was a widow, penni
less and not able to support herself
or her littla daughter. She refused
to wait on herself, even when her do
mestic servants left because she
couldn't pay them. She yelled in ter
ror. It was one of her boasts that
she could not and would not touch
or care for her infant child, and ac
cordingly the latter sobbed in her
little bed, from hunger and lack of
care generally.
No Louisa (servant), no light, no
milk. What the child Robin knew
in the dark, perhaps the silent house
which echoed her might curiously
have known. But the shrieks wore
themselves out at last and Bobs came
awful little sobs shuddering through
the tiny breast and shaking the baby
body. A baby's sobs are unspeak-v
able things incredible things. Slower
and slower Robin's came with small
deep gasps and chokings between
and when an uninfanile druglike
sleep came, tne outer, nopeiess, Deal
cn little sobs went on. But. Feather's
head was still burrowed under the
soft protection of the pillow."
Why? Because the young (and
pietty) mother was' too lazy to stir
herself. The agents of her landlord
arrive to eject her because of failure
to pay rent.
What was Feathers (Mrs. Gareth
Lawless) to db? She wrote to Lord
Coombe a beggar's letter for help,
and Lord Coombe called upon her. She
asked him to be her protector, to pay
her debts, and she wept and she
howled, and she knelt and clutched
h's knees, just like a lap dog.
"If you were a marrying man," she
hinted.
"I am not," said Lord Coombe, with
a finality which cut as clearly as a
surgical knife.
So it was arranged that Lord
Coombe was to be her financial pro
tector, and that he was to call on
her frequently. How the gossips
talked. But was not Mrs. Gareth
Lawless fd and waited upon?
Servants arrived to take care of
tie widow and ch'ld. The latter was
sourly watched over by a cruel nurse
named Andrews, and often the baby
was left In her dark play room alone.
She liked to- look, out the dirty win
to the college student. It Is not
only harmonious with, but it is in
eradicable from sound, up-to-date
thinking. But how can this be demon
strated? In answer to that, question let us
think together of the two elements
of permanence and progression in the
Christian religion. The joining of
these two words is not original. They
may be' found in the "Table Talk"
of Samuel Taylor Coleridge. Coleridge
once asked his friend Charles Lamb
if he had ever heard him preach.
Lamb replied, with his inimitable
stutter: "I n-never heard you d-do
anything else." From these two
words, at least, a sermon may be
gained.
There are some Christians who
do not admit the presence of pro
gression in their faith. To them
Christianity is a static things a de
posit of truth, a faith once delivered
to the saints forever unchanging and
unchangeable. They conceive of it
as a system in minutest detail invio
late, never to be adapted, never to be
augmented. So there is built up a
reverence for the old and the estab
lished. The traditional is haloed and
the new is scorned. Christianity be
comes for them not a growing thing,
but one that came complete, like
Athene, who sprang full-armed from
the brow of Jove. It is this posi
tion which justifies the position of
John Doe.
But our contention is to be that
in our religion there are factors that
are permanent and others that are
progressive. Some changeless and
some, ever-changing, some temporal
and "some timeless, some fluid and
some eternal. Upon the proper un
derstanding, of these two elements
depend the rationality of our faiti
and its effectiveness In the modern
world.
"Ye shall be my witnesses in
Jerusalem, in all Judea and in Sama
ria, and in the uttermost part of the
earth." Do you see the widening
circle there? Do you behold in that
one verse the mighty sweep of human
kind? Do you find there the pro
gramme of universal Christianity?
Does there spread out before you the
vast panorama of races, languages,
customs, temperaments, mentalities
and philosophies, reaching to the far
horizon of human existence?
This .parting command of Christ
carried with it not only the idea of
numerical increase, but also an adap
tation. The methods which suited
Jerusalem had to be adapted to Ju
dea. These had to be adjusted to
cfeeEPH Macquekn,
dows, and to watch the sparrows
playing in the square below.
When Robin grew to be 6 years old,
she began to call her beautiful moth
er whom she rarely saw Lady
Downstairs, and then she - and her
nurse walked in the square. Mothers
a-ua uLner cnnaren oiten avoided her,
because gossip questioned the social
relations between Feathers and Lord
Coombe.
Once a beautiful Scotch boy, 8 years
old, named Doval, met Robin in the
square, played with her, and kissed
her on her little rosy mouth. She
had never been kissed before, not
even by her mother. She told Donal
she loved him and Donal said he
loved her. But when his mother
discovered that her son loved a girl
who lived in that "awful" Gareth
Lawless house, she was afraid, and
took her son with her to Scotland.
Robin's heart was broken because
her boy friend had gone, and her
mother mocked at and laughted at
her. Lord Coombe, who was the fam
ily financial support, was looked
upon by Robin as her enemy and
hated.
The novel pictures Robin being
pinched black and blue by her nurse,
fs-ii 'ff
Frances Hodgson Burnett, au
thor of "The Head of the
House of Coojnbe."
and beaten, often. Once Lord Coombe
discovered the nurse in her tortures,
and saved the child from further
harm. A new norse and a good one
was engaged.
'Robin's growth to native girl
hood and- great personal beauty is
visioned. A German nobleman who
speaks of the impending blow by
Germany to rule the rest of the
world, tries to ruin Robin and she
is saved by Lord Coombe. The lat
ter has a romantic reason for his
kindness to Robin and her mother a
pure, good reason.
Perfect love Is practically por
trayed. It is announced that the sequel to
this novel soon will appear, under
the title of "Robin." Probably it will
oescrioe iungiana in the late war
period, and the rise of democracy.
The Garden ot Memories, by Henry St.
John Cooper. George H. Doran Co., New
York city.
An eloquent, heart-satisfying Eng
lish story, with scenes set in an old
garden, and a romantic past that per
sistently takes part in the lives of
three present-day interesting people.
The scenes change rapidly, almost in
moving-picture fashion.
The Dragon In Shallow Waters, by V.
Kackville-West. a. O, Putnam's Sons,
New York city. .
This is a novel that has been highly
lauded in England. It is powerfully
written in Its descriptions of realism
in English life, and is just a bit som
ber in its message. There is too much
death in the 2S pages.
Midnight, by Octavus Roy Cohen. Dodd,
Mead & Co., New York city, N. Y.
Prior to the receipt of this novel
for review, an advance leaflet was
received from the publishers which
had the imprint of a-clock, with the
hands set at midnight. Such a mes
sage whetted one's curiosity.
Now cornea the. movel, itself. It 4
!f J" n
4 . A
meet the needs of Samaria. And what
a revolutionary change had to be
made in the thinking of these Chris
tians when the witnessing passed on
to the Gentile world. The birthday
of the church, the day of Pentecost,
revealed what a mobile, adjustable
thing the faith was. We read that
each man heard In his own tongue.
The Greek heard the gospel in Greek,
the Roman in Latin, the Egyptian In
his' own language. But that change
in language was as nothing compared
with the adjustment of the Christian
religion to the temperament of these
races. At first God had to compel
this adaptation. By startling means
he had to split open the mind of
Peter before Peter would even tell
the gospel' to the Gentile Cornelius.
The Jerusalem church had to be forced
at the sword's point withal it was
the sword of the spirit to let the
Gentiles into the church.
John, the beloved disciple, passed
the simple conceptions of the new
faith through the atmosphere of Greek
thought. From Greek philosophy he
seized upon, the word Logos, the word,
and with this Greek word he enlarged
and adapted jnen's thinking of Christ.
Paul, too. helped to adjust the new
faith in the Greek and Roman world,
thinking of new terms and more com
prehensible phrases in which to ex
press its truth. One is surprised by the
almost cavalier way in which Paul
ignored the phraseology of Jesus. The
term, "the kingdom of God," which
Jesus used so frequently, was practi
cally meaningless to the Greeks, so
Paul discarded it and used instead
the term salvation, pouring into it the
full significance of the Christ-changed
life. He was willing to change the
superficial if he could only get Jesus
himself into human hearts. So we
see that in the early church men did
not conceive of Christianity as a
thing cut and dried, static and change
less; instead it was a vital, growing
religion. Moreover, that progress was
not unguided by the divine hand, for
had hot Jesus promised that the spirit
would guide them into fuller truth?
That guidance of the spirit into
fuller truth has been going on
through the ages.. The succession of
church councils restated this and that
phase of Christian thought, each one
pouring religion into a mould of its
own thinking, each one eradicating
some misconception of earlier days
and substituting some larger aspect
of truth. In the fourth century there
met in Nicea a council which set out
to state the true nature of the. person-
a puzzling murder mystery, with the
clew difficult to unravel, well told,
and with the interest finely sustained
to the last and 281st page. The scenes
are set in a large town on the At
lantic seaboard, and, the author takes
pains to make it clear that New York
city is not chosen as the place de
picted. "Taxicab No. 92,381 skidded crazily
on the icy pavement of Atlantio ave
nue. Spike Walters, Its driver, swore
roundly as he applied the brakes, and
with difficulty obtained control of the
little closed car. Depressing the
clutch pedal, he negotiated the frozen
thoroughfare and parked his car in
the lee of the enormous union station,
which bulked forbiddingly in the De
cember midnight.
"The city was in the grip of the
first cold wave of the year. For two
days, the rain had fallen, a nasty,
drizzling rain which made the going
soggy and caused people to greet
one another with frowns. Late that
afternoon, the mercury had started
a rapid downward Journey. Fires
were piled high in the furnaces, and
automobile owners poured alcohol
into their radiators. Winter had
come with freezing blasts which
swept around corners and chilled to
the bone. The rain of two days be-
camea driving sleet, which formed a
mirror of ice over the city. Nowhere
was there a sign of life, nowhere an
Indication of warmth or cheer or com
fort With fingers so numb that they
were almost powerless to do the bid
ding of his mind, Spike drew forth
his watch .and glanced at it. Mid
night. Spike knew he must wait. The
company for which he worked spe
cialized on service. It boasted that
every train was met by a yellow taxi
cab and this was Spike's turn for
all night duty at the union station.
The cold bit through Spike's over
coat, and chewed to the bone. It was
well ' nigh unbearable. The young
taxi driver's lips became blue. He
tried to light a cigarette, but his
fingers were unable to hold the
match.
Such is the dramatic introduction to
this story. The description reminds
those of us who have lived in the
east, of weather conditions of that
part of the country, in mid-winter,
and are thankful that western Ore
gon weather Is different.
A solitary woman traveled appeared
at the outer door of the station, and
apparently she had just alighted from
a train. "Cab, Miss?" said Spike, and
she answered, "Yes. Drive to 981
East End avenue," which was on the
outskirts of the city, about five miles
away. She stepped on board, and
ESpike started the car, through the
storm. Suddenly he jammed on the
uranes, ana louna ne naa almost col
lided with a moving freight train. At
last he reached the designated num
ber on East End avenue, and when
he opened the door to allow the wom
an fare to, alight, he found that she
was not there and that the cab con
tained a dead man who had been
shot. Spike became alarmed. On in
quiry at the house indicated on East
End avenue, the people Inside did not
know of any expected traveler, and
were sure they did not know the dead
man. Spike phoned police headquar
ters and the mystery began. .
Detective David Carroll said he
identified the dead man as Roland R.
Warren, bachelor and capitalist, worth
about $100,000, and who had had many
aiia-ira oi me neart with various mar.
ried women. He had been engaged
to marry Miss Hazel Gresham, a girl
wno aiso is ricn. Tne dead man. has
a large sum of money in his posses
fiion, and two railroad tickets.
Comedy is introduced into the story
by one foolish character, Miss Evelyn
sogers, sister or Mrs Naomi Law
rence, a wealthy married woman who
had been paid marked attention by
warren, airs. J-.awrence wag unhaD
pay marnea, ana it is surmised that
sne nad loved Warren. The nolice
suspect that Warren had been about
to elope with a woman. Proof la nh
tained that Miss Gresham was not
with WarreVi late on the night or the
murder.
Who then committed the deed hv
which the breaker of hearts had lost
nis me? ur course the guilty person
is discovered, and makes a.
of guilt, but until this is done, the
reaaer is Kept guessing.
xne Apple Tree, by L. H. Bailey. The
juaomuian co sew York city.
Dr. Bailey evidently is a man, who
has passed much of his life with trees
a man who loves them. The book
contains 117 pages, including index.
This is the first volume of what Is
called the "open country series," and
is historical, medieval, absorbing and
helpful. Not only will the general
message give pleasure in the reading,
but It will be found of practical help.
; The apple tree in the landscape r the
weeks between the flower and the
fruit; the pruning of the apple tree;
maintaining Its health and energy;
how an apple tree is made; the varie
ties of trees; the pleasant; art of graf t-
statement seemed destined to win,
when there stepped forward a young
man Athanasius by name who led
that council in the formation of a
statement which safeguarded for the
world the belief In the divinity of
Christ So heroic was his stand, so
courageous was he against all odds
that the phrase was coined, "Athan
asius contra munda" ("Athanasius
against the world").
Church Makes Adjustment.
Throughout the centuries the church
has been adjusting Itself to new dis
coveries, relating its thinking to the
widening horizon of the human mind.
There came the revolutionary con
ception that the world was-not flat
but round and that it swung around
the sun. Copernicus delved Into the
far regions of space and magnified
the natural world a million times. At
first the church rebelled against this
conception. "This science must be
false, it is not in our creed, it is not
writteii in our Bible. The 6criptures
depend upon a belief in a. square, flat
earth. To give up that idea is to give
up the Bible." But the truth outlived
the anathemas of the church. Chris
tians came to see that even though
the apostollo church knew nothing
about interstellar spaces, nevertheless
the Christian faith could be adapted
to the new facts.
Then came Luther, who Invaluably
restated the fundamentals of belief.
Calvin added the products of his
thinking. Wesley rephrased Christian
ity for his generation. There is an ele
ment which is almost humorous pos
sibly it had 'better be called ironical
in the attitude of these men. They
claimed for themselves a right to
change, which they denied to their
successors. Each one restated what he
considered the truth, ruled out what
seemed spurious, and then believed
that he had arrived at the final truth,
yet the world, while it has profited
incalculably by the contributions of
each one ot these men, it nevertheless
passed beyond some of their teach
ings. We have transcended some of
Luther s conceptions. Even a Calvin
ist today will not espouse all the
teachings of Calvin. Even John Wes
ley was not infallible. He at one
time said, "If you give up the belief
in witches, you have to give up your
belief? In the Bible. They stand , or
fall." But Wesley was wrong, we
ality of Christ. Alow and unworthy
Ing; the mending of the apple tree;
the apple-tree regions; the harvest of
the apple tree, these are some of the
significant topics discussed.
Kittens, by Bvend Fleuron. Alfred -A.
Knopf, New York city.
Translated from the Danish of Svend
Fleuron by Davidi Pr.itehard and with
a foreword by Carl Van Vechter, this
story is a delicious surprise and an
admirable nature study. Its heroine is
Grey Puss, a mother cat. She had
become aware, In her soft, petted
domestic life, that her kittens had
invariably been drowned by cruel peo
ple. So she becomes a wild cat, lives
In the fields and' at the bottoms of
hedges, and her next kittens live,
grow up and lead honorable cat lives.
A wonderful animal record, with real
heroes, and heroines.
Way of Revelation, by Wilfrid Ewart.
G.
P. Putnam's Sons, New York city.
Our author has written an excellent
story of England in the gay days of
1914, just before the world war began,
the progress of that war, the armis
tice of November, 1918, and afterward.
One of the heroes is Captain Sir
Adrian Knoyle, and not only his war
services in France are skillfully de
scribed, but the services of several
other brave English soldiers. Of
course there is a love story, a splen
did one. A war tale eminently worth
while.
The Lady of North Star, by Ottwell Binns.
Alfred A. Knopf, New York City.
A realistic, well-told story of the
Canadian northwest, with its ice and
old and storms. One of the principal
HieBe?t Joke
On Second Thought.
o1
LE asked Hilda to go buggy
riding this was before the day
of autos. As neither one was
much of a talker the conversation
soon lapsed into silence. After a long
time Ole turned to Hilda and asked
her to marry him. She gladly ac
cepted. Then there was more silence
and still more.
Finally, in desperation, Hilda said
to Ole, "Ole, why you don't say some
thing?" And Ole answered laconically, I
tank too much bane said already."
PEORIA.
Weary of Well Doing.
One day as I was walking along a
country road I heard voices in a barn.
"Golly, but I'm tired," sighed one.
"What is the, trouble?" asked the
other.
"Well, you see,. Pa's settin' fence
posts, and I'm just five feet tall. So
I've been a-Iayin' down and a-gettin'
up all round his ten-acre field, so's
he kin measure posts ten feet apart."
F. B.
A Gloomy Report.
"Dad, can you sign your name with
your eyes shut?"
"Certainly."
"Well, then, shut your eyes and
sign my report card." E. P.
Why They Write.
Wife Ta ta, dearie, I'll write be
fore the end of the week.
Husband Great Scott, Alice, you
must make the check last longer than
that.
One Way to Do It.
A school teacher received the fol
lowing note:
"Dear madame, please excuse my
Tommy today. He won't come to skul
because he is acting as timekeeper
for his father, and it Is your fault. U
gave him a example of a field is 5
miles around, how long will it take a
man walking 8 miles per hour to
walk times around It?' Tommy
ain't a man, so we sent his father.
They went early this morning, and
father will walk around the field, and
Tommy will time him," but please
don't give my boy such an example
again, because my husband must go
to work every day to support his
family." M. B.
Yea, of Conrae.
Interested Old Lady: "And so you
were actually in service in France.
Did you see action while you were
there? .
.War Vet: "Er yes, but I was there
after the Germans had bombed it,
and there wasn't much left of the"
place." H. F.
Just In Time,
"Father, there Is a man crying out
Bide. May I give him a nickel?"
"Certainly, my son, her Is a
have passed beyond some of his mis
conceptions. ,
Some things which former genera
tions have considered important, we
are finding insignificant, and what
they thought of little moment, we are
discovering to 'be paramount. Consider
the Westminster confession of faith,
which d'd not even Buggest the possi
bility of any missionary activity.
While those earnest divines were
deeply interested In their own mental
processes, yet they possessed no
awakened conscience regarding the
winning of the 'millions in the non
Christian world. Because on some
subjects our thinking has passed be
yond them we conserve the value of
their statements, but concede-to them
neither infallibility, no finality.
Christianity has thus been a pro
gressive thing. The creedal statement
which satisfies one generation will
not satisfy the next. The doctrine
which is adequate for one age must
be Tethought and rephrased for suc
ceeding ages. The minds of men are
broadened with the progress of the
suns, and men's religious ideas par
take of that broadening change. "The
highway of Christian progress is
strewn with fragments of rejected
dogmas which at one time were
deemed essential to the faith"
We are facing an interesting adap
tation today; the adjustment of re
ligion and science. Some arSksaying,
"Religion Is a static thing. It cannot
be adjusted. Science which runs
athwart religious conceptions must
be opposed." It is the same old ar
gument with which people of a cer
tain stripe opposed the Copernlcan
theory of the universe. Neverthe
less, that adjustment is being made,
William Jennings Bryan, who In
many other ways we admire, to the
contrary, notwithstanding. We are
discovering that the findings of sci
ence in regard to an age-long devel
opment of the world and the life upon
it, a development which at every stage
has witnessed the power and the guid
ing laws of God, are not only not
contrary to true and Biblical religion
but are an invaluable adjunct to it.
The reason why a few years ago it
was not uncommon for young people
to lose their faith when they went to
college was because they took with
them a static religion incapable ol
adaptation. When new truth dawned
upon them, they had either to reject
it or to reject the religious teaching
which called that truth false. That
lost faith was due as much to faulty
religious preparation as to biased sci
entitle instruction. But better days
characters is Corporal Bracknell of
the northwest mounted police, who
in the course of duty follows a man,
Koona Dick', whom he hoped to arrest,
over more than 400 miles of frozen
waste. The fugitive is found mur
dered. NEff BOOKS BECEIVED.
Snowdrift, by James B. Hendryx, a
bravely-told, manly novel of the icy north
land, vlsioning the Klondike and the Mac
kenzie river region; and The Joy of Liv
ing, by Sidney G-owing, a delicious, spar
kling comedy in the form of a novel, and
describing lively life in England (Putnam's,
New YorK.).
Auction, for two Or three, by Milton C.
Work, 222 pages, an admirable book, with
a new code of laws for these card games,
Including an appendix which gives im
proved methods for two-handed rum and
Canfield, also Russian bank. (Winston
Co., Philadelphia).
Guest the One-Eyed, by Gunnar Gunnar
son, translated from the Danish by W. W.
Worster, the most important and widely
read novel of this noted Iceland-Danish
authoi' a story that is rich in its realism;
Explorers of the Dawn, by Mazo de la
Roche, a first novel by a new and tal
ented author who was born in Toronto,
Canada, and whose present book is so
splendid in its art that it ought to win
many admirers; and The Fair Reward, by
Thomas Beer, a first novel by an army
officer in the recent world war, one who is
a Yale graduate and a talented writer of
magazine stories this is a great Amer
ican novel -of the theater, and filled with
fine sentimentallsm and artistry. (Alfred
A. Knopf, N. Y.).
Efthel Opens the Door, by David Fox, a
smart, entertaining novel of the exploits
of an extraordinary band of reformed
criminals who uncover various mysteries.
(Robert M. McBrlde & Co.. N. Y.)
The Story of Rico, by Johanna Spyri, 21
chapters of splendidly written .Swiss fairy
stories, attractively illustrated, and just
the stories that little children like; 163
pages. (Beacon Press, Boson).
I &er Heard
nickel. You are Very charitable.
What is the man cryln about?"
He s crying, 'Fresh roasted pea
nuts, 5 cents a bag,' " answered the
son, as he hurried from the house.
R. V. Z.
Closing the Argument.
L. Hale, a product of Great Britain,
was visiting a friend in New York.
One morning during his visit his
American friend took him about the
city, showing him the points of in
terest. No matter how grand, how large, or
how rapidly any of these city monu
ments were erected, the Britisher Al
ways knew of one better in England.
This got on the American's nerves
and he decided not to entertain his
friend any longer.
Just then they were passing the
Woolworth building.
The Englishman adjusted his mon
ocle and asked, "And what building
is this?"
The American indifferently an
swered: "That? Why, I don't know.
That wasn't there this morning."
x J. R. V.
ELECTRIC LINE PLANNEQJ
Large Waterfalls of North and Cen
tral Sweden to Be Utilized.
STOCKHOLM. The first section of
a high-power electfic line which is
designed' to pass through the center
of Sweden from north to south has
Just been completed and is now in
operation.
The section connects the high
power electric station at Trollhaettan
falls, in central Sweden, to the city
of Vae9terao3, one of Sweden's most
important manufacturing center. . It
cost more than 10,000,000 kroner
(about $2,500,000).
The large waterfalls of north and
central Sweden will be utilized to
provide the power for the great ceni
tral power line when completed. This
is intended to enable Sweden not only
to run its trains with electric power
but also to electxify the big industrial
plants of the country.
It is expected in that way to greatly
decrease If not entirely to eliminate
the use of coal.
New Weather Records Established.
SOUTH BEND, Wash. Two new
weather records were established in
southwest Washington in 1921. This
section had the wettest year on rec
ord and the wind attained a record
velocity during the year. The rain
fall here was 117.55 inches, or 2M
inches less than ten feet. The record
wind came on January 29, 1921, when
the recording Instruments at North
Head registered 132 miles an hour
before they were destroyed oy tne
gale. It was this same gale which
blewdown millions of feet of stand-
Ing timber pa the Olympic peninsula.
are here. We- are finding now our
religion is a thing which can adjust
itself, like the human mind, to new
truths, rising step by step nearer to
the pinnacle of absolute truth. It
has been a privilege this winter to
take a group of high school seniors
preparing for college, through a
course of studies in Christian funda
mentals, in order that they might
enter the science classroom with an
open mind, parting with neither their
Intellectual integrity nor their re
ligious faith.
Some Suspicions of Change.
All of this meana that Christianity
Is a vital, progressive, growing thing.
It is like a leaven which is changing
and working, enlarging itself and de
veloping a race. There are some who
are suspicious of this chance, tra
ditional who still cling to that which
in a mistaken loyalty they would pin
to the inherent texture of Christian
ity. Better than their -conception,
however, is the faith of John Rob
inson, the pastor of the Pilgrim
Fathers, during their sojourn in Hol
land. He said: "There is yet more
light to break from the Word of
God." 1
More light! All truth has not yet
been learned. There is more truth
ahead of us. No doctrine has yet
been finally stated. Every Christian
belief will be stated again and again
each time nearer than before to the
full truth. In II Peter there Is the
phrase "present truths." It is this
present conception of truth by which
we are to live. It is for loyalty to
this present truth that we are held
responsible, and in spite of the fact
that many well-meaning people think
that present truth is absolute truth
we must yet face the advancement
of knowledge with an open mind. I
fear the man with the closed mind. I
fear the man who says; "I do not
want to believe a certain thing.'
There prejudice is stronger than the
passion for truth. I am pleading,
therefore, for the open mind, eager
for larger conceptions, greater
knowledge, fuller truth.
The hope of the church abides with
those people who have the youthful
spirit, those who are forward-look
ing, whatever their age may be, who
care more for the adaptation of
Christianity to the needs of the day
than for the maintenance of antique
conceptions for their sake. Of those
who came over to America in the
Mayflower, the oldest was 32 years
of age. They were not old men: they
were young men in whom the spiritterpretations of the atonement, state-
BY JEANNETTE KENNEDY, i
Assistant in the Circulation Department,
Public Library.-
THE "Gentleman With a Duster"
appears to find in modern life
plenty of occasions' for using the
duster. Having successfully whisked
about among the ornaments of the
political world in "The Mirrors of
Do wining Street" and) caused a bit of
a flurry in society by his reckless
handling of "The Glass of Fashion,"
he is now "after the church dignita
ries" in a new volume entitled "Paint
ed Windows," to be published in this
country by the Putnams.
- -
"The Man Who Poses" is the title
of a play which Ben Hecht, the Chi
cago newspaper man and author, is
to write for a September performance
by Leo Dietrichstein. Mr. Hecht, whose
recent novel, "Erik Dorn," has raised
on one hand a storm of protest, and
on the other has aroused critics to
extraordinary praise, is at work on ,
another novel, "Gargoyles."
The Widener memorial library of
Harvard university has received as a
gifV the letters and business records
of the late Henry Villard, covering the
period during" which he serve as a
railroad and steamship executive,
from 1875 to 1895, when he retired.
These papers are reported to give a
remarkable record of railroad devel
opment in the Pacific northwest.
Five volumes of "Modern Russian
Songs," which Ernest Newman has
spent years in, collecting, has been
published at last by the Oliver Ditson
company. Considering that this musi
cal development has taken place w'th
in less than a century, Mr. Newman's
assertion that "it surpasses the Ger
man in variety and almost equals it
in quantity," is noteworthy.
In an appreciation of William Mc
Fee and his "Harbours of Memory,"
Arthur Warner writes: "McFee
knows that steam has not destroyed
the romance of the sea; he under
stands that it has opened new fields
as old ones closed. . The same old
buccaneers who brandished cutlasses
and slit throats in the heydey of the
sailing ship are plowing the sea today
In liner and tramp, although a
changed environment has made cut
lass brandishing less general and
throat slitting more hazardous."
The Travel Club of America is
launching a travel book contest to be
closed March 10. They are asking
for nation-wide nominations of not
more than 10 favorite travel books.
From these, which may be sent to the
Travel Book Contest, Grand Central
Palace, New York, 25 receiving the
most votes are to be displayed in
New York shop windows during the
International Travel exposition from
March 25 to April 1. Visitors to the
exposition will make a selection of
the 10 best travel books out of the
25, and this final choice will-make up
what will be known as the "Wander
lust Shelf." The announcement of
titles will be made March 31.
Ethel" Dell, who is known as a
rather prolific writer of tales that
move briskly and smack "melodram
mer," has managed to keep her per
sonal life from the' public gae by
never being Interviewed, or photo
graphed, and has kept the seclusion
of her Guilford home by having a
high brick wall about the house and
grounds. Miss Dell's publishers have
received the first personal news re
garding her, In a cablegram announc
ing her engagement to Colonel
George Savage Jr., also of Guilford.
' ,
Stewart Edward White has been
translated into French, at least his
story of the north, "The Silent
Places," has been done by J. G. Dela
main. The familiar American term for
Indian, "redskin," has become in
translation "peau-rouge."
Among some "Remarkable Re
marks" published In "The Independ
ent" for February 11, the following
were noted:
Melville E. Stone It is almost as diffi
cult to name the conspicuous members of
the senate as to repeat the words of the
national anthem.
President Harding Democracy has come
to Its great trial.
Sir James Cantlie, M. D. Ot alt sports
swimming is the most, detrimental phy
ically. ' '
Nicholas Murray Butler No inconsider
able part of the community now lives by
regulating the habits or activities of the
vast majority.
Vicente Blasr.o IbaneK The bet is un
known la the Spanish bull ring.
In "The Pleasures of Ignorance,"
by Robert Lynd, the author makes a
statement which quite justified his
of adventure had not' yet died. It
was that youthful, westward-facing I
spirit which made them tne jonn me
Baptists of America, the morning
stars of the new natinn. the heralds
of the dawn of democracy.! It is the
youthful-spirited people who have a
supreme faith In progress, and the
possibility of changing advancement,
who are to save for the world today
a sane, intellectual, dynamic Chris
tianity. New occasions teach new duties: time
makes ancient erood uncouth:
They must upward still and onward who
would Keep aDreasi or xrum;
Lo, before us gleam her campfires, w
ourselves must pilgrims be;
Launch our Mayflower and steer boldly
through the desperate winter sea;
Nor attempt the future's portal with the
past's blood-rusted key.
If it seems that the fact of pro
gression has been emphasized and the
element of permanence neglected it
has only been that we might be the
better prepared for the finest portion
of Christian belief. ' Is religion then
all flux? Is it constantly shifting?
Are there no fixed points? Let us go
back to our original text. "Ye shall
be witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all
Judea and Samaria, and in the utter
most parts of the earth." No, one
word was omitted. It was the word
mv. "Ye shall be my witnesses."
That word introduces - the personal
element. That word introduces the
element of the person of Jesus Christ.
There is mentioned the permanent
factor in or Christian faith. Other
thin-es chanee. but Jesus Christ
stands sure. Religion may be em
bossed with culture to make it ap
peal to the intellectual, or it may be
simplified so that it will be compre
hensible to the ignorant savage, but
Jesus Christ, with his pure character,
and his loving sacrifice, is the same
to both trroUDB.
The Lord's Suoner may be observed
in Central Africa with a palm leaf
for a plate to hold the bread and a
gourd for a goblet; or It may be ob
served in a Fifth avenue cnurcn witn
silver plates and golden cups, but the
Christian with whom the worshipers
commune in both instances is the
same.
Doctrines' Values Changing,
Our little systems have their day
They have their day and cease to be,
They are but broken beams of his
fadeless light. Our doctrines have
their changing values; ideas of bap
tism, doctrines of Biblical Inspiration,
ideas of sovereignty and free will, in-
M fnvmrrLl.njTTT""1"JIJ i
title when he says "May is remark
able for being the only month in
which one does not like cats."
"The Wilsonian" is a new journal
just being published in Philadelphia,
and it purports to be "a national
monthly publication that champions
the ideals and policies of our great
ex-president."
Knut Hamsun's recently-translated
novel is described by a London Times
critic as "incoherent in narrative; the
psychology trivial; the characters in
distinct, and the story is surrounded
by a huge mass of irrelevant detail,
Some novels announced for early
publication are "The Secret Places of
the Heart." by H. G. Wells; "The Con
fessions of a Well-Meaning Woman,"
by Stephen McKenna; "The Jewell in
the Lotus," by Rosita Forbes, the au
thor of the fascinating "Secret of the
Sahara."
A new guide book of Paris, called
"Paris and Its Environs." The Blue
Guides, is edited by Finley Muirhead
and Marcel Monmarche and is declared
to be the more readable and better ar
ranged than "Baedeker" more easily
carried and comprehensive, and at
least as accurate in short, quite a
perfect guidebook- for facts. There
are 60 maps and plans in the volume
The "Here and Now Story Book" is
a collection of experimental stories
for 2 to 7-year-old children of the
New York city and country school. It
is put out by Lucy Sprague Mitchell
to supplant "vicious" stories like
"Cinderella" and "horrible endings"
like that of "Red Riding Hood" and
"impractical" tales like "Jack and the
Beanstalk." The tales are said to be
attractive but without glamor. An
English commentator predicts that if
the old fairy, goblin and giant stories
are ever prohibited in the United
States in favor of the utilitarian story
telling "there will be, we suspect, a
good deal of seven-leagued bootleg
ging." "The most ordinary steamship
agent, talking to peasants in Europe,
can describe America in such a way
that those peasants will start' ther
at once. But the most gifted preacher
can't get men to hurry fb heaven,"
says Clarence Day Jr. in his new
work, "The Crow's Nest."
Printing of First Bible in
America Recalled.
fund Snld to Have Been Solicited
In England.
CHICAGO, Feb. 25. The first Bible
printed in the United States
sprang directly from a national solici
tation of funds in England and Wales
in a manner somewhat akin to the
liberty loan drives, according to
George B. Utley, librarian ' of the
Newberry library here. The library
has both the first American Bible and
the act of the English parliament
which led to It.
This Bible was a translation into
the tongue of the Massachusetts In
dians. For years John Eliot, a Purl
tan fleeing from persecution, who
landed 11 years after the Mayflower,
had been sending back to England re
ports about missionary success among
the Indians.
When the Turitans came into
power he found a friendly govern
ment, and in 1649, within six months
after Charles I was executed, when
Cromwell was supreme, parliament
passed "an act for promoting and
propagating the gospel In New Eng
land." This created a corporation
consisting of 16 Londoners, which
thereafter carried on this work.
But more especially it ordered "a
general collection in all the countries,
cities, towns and parishes of England
and Wales." It required the ministers
to read the act to their congregations
and instructed them, with others, to
"go with-all convenient speed from
house to house to everyone of the
inhabitants of the said parishes and
places respectively and to take the
subscription of every such person in
a schedule to be presented to them
for that punpose and, accordingly, at
the same time to collect and gather
the same."
Better education of the Indians
was also named among the purposes
of the corporation. Twenty-five years
later there were four Indian towns
with schools In Massachusetts and
"the praying Indians" there num
bered 4000.
This collection ordered) by .pajlla-
ments of Christ's second coming,
theories of the church these all dif
fer from age to age; they differ In,
this group of Christians irom that
group, while both may be earnest
and loyal to the common master. All
these, which some would have us be
lieve are permanent and inviolate, do
yet in the passage of time change
and assume places of lesser Import
ance, while above them all there rises.
tnere towers In eternal glory. Jesus
Christ, the same yesterday, today and
forever. He Is the permanent factor
in Christianity.
The religion, then, which is to- meet
the needs of the world today and to
morrow must do a religion which Is
vital, which clings to reality, which
is growing, which does not scorn the
aid or the methods of the intellect;
but which welcomes every new truth,
which the mind of man perceives. It
is . religion of which the personality
of Jesus Christ is the center. It is a
religion which may express itself not
in vapid augmentation, but in Christ-
lnrusea lives lives which in brother
ly service, in pure conduct, In high
minded) devotion to eternal truth re
veal the redeeming presence of the
Savior of men. You are all familiar
with Watts' painting, "Hope." It rep-
resents a. woman blindfolded, sitting
upon the globe, holding a harp with
all the strings broken save one; with,
dejection she reaches out to pluoK
the one unbroken e bring-, hoping
against hope that it too will not
break.
So has the world tried one andi an
other means of redeeming itself arwi
one after another each has failed).
Wealth has not brought it. Economii
ascendancy has not served. Culture)
has not satisfied, or Greece would bet
regnant today. Education has) not!
done it, us Germany can testify. Wan
in which many pin their faith has
failed. From out the chaos of suf-
fertng, stricken world humanity ist
reaching to pluck the unbroken string'
of Christianity, hoping that ita
power will redeem from chaos an4
save from ruin.
Will that string break? Remember?
that in Watts" picture, "Hope," Chore
is a faint star glimmering in thai
sky with symbolic promise that th
last hope would not be shattered.
'Christianity will not fall. We shall1
'not be found wanting. The world!
will find Christianity the religion
that satisfies her every need, a re
ligion progressing with the advancing1
minds of men, yet ever bringing to
the world the eternal power of the
changeless Christ.
ment brought 4m about 11,000 pounds
it is reported.
Fourteen years later. In 1663. EHot
finished, the first ccrmpleta Bible
printed In the western hemisphere.
Its title page bears the lines: "At tho
charge and with the consent of the
corporation In England for the pro
motion of the gospel amongst the
Indians lm New England."
The place of printing was Caron
bridge, Mass., where 23 years before
Eliot had helped compile the Bay;
Psalm book, the first book to coma
off the press In what Is now the
United States.
Three Great-Grandchildren
Born in 48 Hours.
Urn. Bertha Perkins, OS Next
April, Gets Real Thrill.
SABETHA, Kan., Feb. 25j Mrs.
Bertha Perkins, who will be S3
years old next April, found a real
thrill recently when three additional
great grandchildren arrived in three
Sabetha homes, within a period of 4S
hours. They brought the number of
her descendants up to 274.
Mrs. Perkins five generations of
descendants are divided as follows:
Ten children, eight of whom are living.
Seventy-five grandchildren.
One hundred and fifty-five great-grandchildren.
Twenty-five great-great-grandchildren.
ine Breat-great-great-srrandchlldien.
Mrs. Perkins was- born in Virginia,
April 25, 1S24; married David Pekins
in Ohio, March 16, 1843. Her maiden
name was Bertha Marcum. In 1848
they emigrated to Iowa, and in 1857
took a homestead in this Nemaha
county where she has lived ever
since. Mr. Perkins died in 1893.
"Good and oldi-fashionedt cooking,
is the recipe Mrs. Perkins gives) for
her longevity. "It is no wonder peo
ple do not live to old age like they
used to, considering the rich foods
they put in their stomachs nowadays.
People do not eat enough coarse food.
Corn bread once or twice a day would
improve their health. Here are a few
of her ideas as she expressed them;
"I believe women should aid their
husbands in voting right, but do not
believe women should go into polltcis
or vote.
"Cooking courses In schools and
colleges run too much to fudge and
fancy dishes. I believe still, that the
best place for a girl to learn house
keeping and cooking is from her
mother but I am in doubt whether
some of these modern day mothers
know much about such things.
"Work Is the best tonic. Why, I do
something every day. In the summer
time I take care of my vegetable
garden. Last summer I raised so
many vegetables I had them to pass
around among the neighbors."
Mexiean Railway to Electrify.
VERA CRUZ, Mexico. A contract
has been signed between the Mexican
Railway company (British owned)
and an American engineering firm to
electrify the line between Vera Cruz
and Mexico City. The new service
will be inaugurated first between Es
peranza and Orizaba and will be used
for the movement of freight. Later
a passenger service will be started.
This is the first railway electrifica
tion in Mexico.
Salaries Regulated by Living.
STOCKHOLM. The Balaries of
state and city employes in Sweden
are regulated by the index finger In
dicating the rise or decline of living
costs. These calculations are pre
pared by a government social board.
The last report of the board reduced
the index finger about 5 per cent,
and consequently, salaries will be
automatically reduced in proportion.
mrrnumcnu'e great
llUlOiilHUOII o
NOVEL
If Winter Comes
325th Thousand
$2j00
LITTLE. BROWN & CO
Publisher.
procured
renewed
air
GILL'S