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THE ATLANTA GEORGIAN AND NEWS. SATUBDAT, JULY 20. 1907. ESTHER, OR THE POWER OF SANCTIFIED BEAUTY By REV. RICHARD ORME FLINN,. PASTOR NORTH AVENUE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH It was In th* year <13 B. C. that th* story of Esther began. It may be treat, ed as a drama and Its contents divided Into four acta, three scenes each, pre senting to ue In graphic form the char acter and court life with Its Intrigue and splendor of one of the greatest tyrants the world has ever known. The drnmntls pereonnae of the story are Xerxes (called In Scripture Ahoauerus), king of Persia, Vaahtl his queen. Es ther., a Jewess, her successor. Mordecal, the cousin and guardian of Esther, and Hainan, nn Amalektte, a subject, prince and favorite of the king. Xerxes had, by the accident of birth, been lifted to the Imperial control of a mighty realm, which his predecessors, Cyrus. Cambysee and Darius, had bultded, and which, containing 127 great divisions under satraps, reached from India on the east to the outer coniines of Libya on the west, while on the south the Persian ruif, the fled and Arabian seas were Its boundaries, as wera the Black and Caspian ssaa on the north. In <to B. C„ saven years previous to the opening Incidents of Esther, and four years previous to the death of Darius and the ascension of Xerxes, Mlltlades on the field of Msrathon, had shattered the flower of the Persian army, hltharto Invincible, and by one stroke, as he drove the Invaders to their ships, had stayed the Asiatic tide that threatened to deluge Europe aa It had covared Asia and northern Africa. He thua made poasibla aa ha checked the despotism of the east, the development of Ortolan liberty, which laid the foundation for the civilisation of today. For, as nns has Said, "At Marathon modarn history began." Amased and angered by this unex pected defeat, Darlua had laid great plana for a vaster Invasion of the Hel lenic states. Store cities had been ar ranged along the route of his pnoposed march, two great bridges of boata had been for years In the process of con struction across th* Hellespont and the raising and equipment of armies had proceeded steadily. Death, however, had cut short the plana of Darius. Per suaded by bis counsellors, Xerxes con tinued to prepare for the great invasion, and In the third year of his reign he calls together from all parts of his realm his princes and potentates, to whom he makes In succession a serlss of feasts which last for six months. It Is at lha close of these assemblages which have been held In order to pre pare for tlie raising and equipment of the army of Invasion, that the Incidents of our book begin. N Act I, Scans 1. Place, Slitiahan the palace. Stage setting, tha last of tbe great fi Voluptuous splendor and oriental mag nificence In dacxllng profusion are am ployed to impress the assembled multi tudes with'the glory and magnlfictnco of the king. Drunk with excess, the king calls for Vaahtl, the queen, t come, that ha may display her, un veiled, together with his other treasure, before hla assembled lords. Shrinking from such uncustomary publicity and from the danger, of entering Into the presence of the wine-maddened assem blage, Vaahtl refuses to come, and Is removed from her position as queen. 8eene 2. Three years have passed—the Inva sion of tha Greeks has been undertaken and hat ended In disastrous failure. Amazed and overwhelmed by tha bat tles of Thermopylae and Salamls, Xer xes has fled across his bridge of boats, back to Shuahan, leaving what remains of hi* army of more than two million men in Greece, which a year later at Plataea and Macnle suffers final de feat. Disappointed with hla military career, the monarch Is seeking such diversion aa may be found In hla harem and now misses Vaahtl, hla queen. In response to a' suggestion made by one of hls eunuena he hna Issued an order, ami we find hie officers In execution of the same, bringing from every part of hls realm the fairest maidens that can he found ae contestants for the place of queen made vacant by Vashtl. Among others Is a Jewish maiden, named Es ther, nn orphan, hnd the ward of a Jew named Mordecal, who Is one of the pal. ace officials. Her race, however. Is not known. In thle scene we And her un dergoing tbe preparation of twelve months necessary to At her for pre sentation to the king. Scene 3—One Year Later. Among the many maidens of the harem, Esther la fairest of all. When presented to the king, at first sight she la beloved and lifted to the place of royal consort. *Tho Persian women are In their flower at 12 or 14 years of age at 20 the bloom of youth has gone and their beauty Is faded. We conclude, therefore, that th* heroine must have been scarcely more than a child In years when she thus comes upon the stage. Act II, 8cone 1. In this scene we are Introduced to the Intrigue of this Eastern court. Two events of significance an presented. First, a plot to stay Xerxes la discov ered by Mordecal, communicated to Fa ther, the new queen and througli her made known to the king, whose life is thus saved and whose enemies nrp de strayed. A record of the event Is mad by the royal scribe, but the king's de Itverer Is overlooked and unrewarded. The other event Is. the exaltation oi Prince Haman to the place of grand vizier, or prime minister of the rdulm. Scene 2. Haman, the Amaleklte, called an Ag aglte because he belonged to the royal line of Amalek, as he passes out of th" palace at the door,, meets Mordecal, who alone of all the people falls to uo obeisance to him. By this affront from the Jew, who doubtless because of a race long antagonism between hls pen- lie And the people of Amalek, disdains o bend the knee. Human la angered so deeply that he determines upon a ter rible revenge. Mordecal, the offender, seems almost beneath hls anger, and so he plana to destroy not only himself, but with him all hls race, and easts the lot (since evidently hh Is a fatalist) to determine when he shall arrange to have the massacre occur. It falls on the 13th day of tha last month, almost a year later. 8cane 3. Haman represent* to (he king that the Jews are a people disloyal to him THE ETERNALLY UP TO DATE Terse Comments on the Uniform Prayer Masting Topic of the Young People’s Societies—Christian Endeavor, Baptist Young People’s Union, Epworth Liagut, etc.—For July 21, "Present Day Application of the Last Six Com mandments," Ex. 20: 12-17. By WILLIAM T. ELLI3. MJ 1 iios«,'"*nd'"ara""bonnS'"tfi*t there shsfl .he greeter obedience to tbe old, require n man to enro for hls has been too much her one, and too uur the world Their eternal up-to-dateness Is one of the marks of the dlvlno Inspiration of the ten commandments. To pot It most plainly, all the social and ■rf 1 unrest of the hour means one thing, pis are tired of selBsh' there ahall he old Inns whleh eBmgSoWtSS brother. There uch looking out for nmu- much disregard for number two. Bo the world Is twin* compelled to 1 hear, In the stern role* of law's sentenee, In the popular socialistic clamor, and In ttie coho of th# anarchist's bomb, the nn- changing mandates of the last six command ments delivered on .Blast meant. Tho gospel doss not abrogate the law. It creates a higher |gw, without .abolishing the older, holt Is s twofold transgression for a Christian to violets the command ments. There Is n danger ot being so en grossed In porault of the splrltuimtles thnt the plain moralities will be overlooked. Tho newspapers told the other dsy of s "holi ness'' preaeber who had deserted hls wife end had run off with n member of hls con gregation. For s considerable time he pro- tested, quite after the fashion of tbe most worldly roue, that tho aocnml woman was hls "affinity," tnd so ho wna above tho sev enth changed he i andtnent. Hut after n time kfl ;er a tiias ko forgave him, church—stlpu- be permltCsd ami hi advertised for s now church fating, however, that ho most bo psi to presrh holiness, flnch onset at this lire rare; they represent the extremity of hu * “ *—•— they point out the SB fatty. Never!beli__ - - aeceselty of squaring all cresda and conduct with the old-fashioned decalogue. It Is slg- DUleagt that most advanced religions "Isms'' ir* generally mixed up, ere long, srtth aadakMU Immoralities. Nothing It splr Immoralities. Nothing Is si dual which does not observe tbe law gfi on the mount. No end of religions eataclea triU atone for lack of square dealing with one'* fellow mon In tho affoln of every day. Prayer meeting piety It no jnstlflcs- tlon for counting room rascality; It only makes the knavo a hypocrite. Tho young man who la not raapeated and There la __ —„ ... .. •ton In the commandments, ranging tho hlgheat to tho loweat. Tho drat com- alone After the four comraiudmsnta deal tog with »Jim! coiium tin* ono on honoring father find mother. Parent* atand next to t*od. Half tbe world ylenla aneeators a ruv- * worship. ’ * f that atnonnta to \ . . . . iay mtddle-aftd Kgrptuto dragoman It bo bad not been to Mecca; no, because Ills fattier bad not !*en there yet, nud bo would not go before hls father. On another occa* •Ion he Mid that h** hnd declined to accom* patty it traveler to the Holy f«and. much as he desired to do so, simply because hla father hnd expressed the wish that ho Vwld not. In Ita ' * * .je Ka*t i* undmi “clrlllaed" West. The bad son la a bad dttsen. lrocot of the sixth commandment. 8o Interpreted the Urent Teacher. There la nothin* that society needs todny so tha chambers of are a aln ■car g un c ib uuiuiuh umi »«tvtj G och a* a cleaning up of the etui iftgery. Unreined Imaginations i agnfnst God's commandments, as i to bn " — ' sod by the sort nr stories which wmrij pass current for humor, Is a profound rea son for uneasiness on the part of those who fe«l n concern for th# health of society. Tbo remedy lies In a stern and courageous ap plication of the seventh commandment as rendered by grins. There are no divorce problems end no scandals In tho high Ills where the deca logue Is honored. Joslsli Strong, lllnstratlng tbo sods! obli gation of the gospel, says Chat tho churches are holding a service Instead of giving their nerviest. There I* a deal of old-fashioned stealing, whleh has been masquerading as ."high dagnes," and "business enterprise;" bat tha maaka are being lorn away In theaa days, and many o man who lately waa esteemed aa s grant capitalist Is uow regarded as s common thief. Tha law la ntcesaaey to order. Thomaa Carlyle. tbs moat profound.- hnppine* Hkylng, I take I'll keep then company. —anon. Live In a thankful spirit and you will find morn to bo thankful for.—Brooks Herford. Nsws ahd Notes Tho Christian churches In heathen lands The the Society ry a A good motto, since tne hanging or mot toes I* an approved fashion ot th* dsy—to put op befoM every sewing society, every corner store crowd, end to hang from every village eteepla, le the ninth r.nmnnndinent, "Thun shelf not hear falee wltneaa against thy neighbor.' Thla la the common offeuse of good people. Men nnd women who would not hnrt a fly think nothing of sticking tho knife of scandal into a neighbor’s back; sml B enin, who would not steel t straw take a ndlsh pleasure In robbing a man of hi, sod name. Tbo pathway of peace Ilea srlthtn the fences of the moral law. Watching i crowd of p«opl* scrambling frantically off tho Itoaton ferryboat on* morning. I remnrked to th* friend he.tde me, "Ulve ns tbts ilsy oar .Infix bread." "Theea people are after cake," be tersely answered. There wns point to tho remark; those late-goere to itore and office repre- seated tbs greet boat of people who think that luxuries ore necessities. Almost every ono of them wns probably riealroua of oomo prise which he did not need. It Is because the twentieth century Is covetous of bouses equal t» a neighbor's, of raiment surpassing thnt of other people, and of the neeeasortes of social position possessed by the few, that It wears such n wrinkled, careworn fnco. Covetousness, which the New Testament rails Idolatry, Is the century's sin. glon Is a religious experience.— Anon. Christ-gives a new heredity when Its tenches ns "Oar Father,"—Maltbls D. Bnb. cork. God mark* how long this haman lift shall adly broad with retch of sympa- ta Its growth,-ht _ —Aldls Dunbar. The situation that ha* not It* duty, Ita alble, the flftv different mlsetonnrr agencies In Chinn. The eight I'renbyterlnn bodies a greet! to form ono church, tho Episcopa lians, Baptists nnd Methodists llkowlso. so that these. In turn. Will work together In a co-operation thnt will nmnunt to practical union. Orest r* ’ pnrtnuro of m thorite of In Chins nro resolved to escape the fric tion which hai existed between th* for eigner, and tbo natives In tho Japanese church, The largest Mohammedan colony In ths Wostorn world Is at Worcester, Mass It Is composed of Turks snd Koords who era employed In lbs fsetorles. Thera are as many Lutherans on the globe ns nil the other Protestant denomi nations put together. In point at member, ehlp. tbe Lutheran church stands third In tho United States, having 1,6*9,0*0 commit- nlcnnt members, this being n gain of 90,415, or 4.30 por cent ovor last year; 13,820 fund gregutlons snd 7.874 pnators. Ten par cent of the tncranes In church membership of ths United Stotei for last year was In tbs Lutheran church, tha big shops n practical healtL • -- -i- - slclsns bavo told men REV, RICHARD ORME FLINN, self, and suggests that they should be sxtarmlnated. Tho king assents, gfvo4 Haman hla signet, bidding him dc os ha please. Decrees are sent out over the realm that on the appointed dny all the Jews should be destroyed, at which Intelligence consternation seises the Jews of Shuthan, and Mordecal mourns In sackcloth and ashes In the streets. . Act III, Scene 1. As the curtain rise* we find Esther fasting In the palace while the Jews throughout the city are assembled In fasting and prayer for her. Then, after three days of waiting upon God she ap proaches the king, enters the sacred enclosure and by her act stakes her life upon the caprice of this man who could hot tell himself what ho would do at any moment (for It Is a penal offense to enter the king's presence uncalled). The God touches hla heart, king see* h«r, her prayer Is h*ard. He bide her ap proach, asks her mission and accepts her Invitation as she requests that he and Haman come on the morrow to a banquet ot wine with her. Scene 2, Place, Haman's home, whore he discussing with hls friends the annoy ance occasioned by tlie unyielding atti tude of Mordecal. The king has loaded him with honors; the queen has asked him to a private banquet, but Mordecal Is the thorn In hls side which robs him of all pleasure. He Is counselled to erect a high gallows, speak to the king, and have Mordecal executed thereon, not waiting for the appointed day of the Jewish slaughter to arrive. He prepares a gallows 70 feet high and goes to the palace. While this has been transpiring at hla home, -at the palace the king has spent a sleepless night. From the rec ords which have been rend to him the kindness of f.Iofdecal has been recalled and he learns that he has been unre warded. As Haman enters, he asks him: "What shall be done to the man whom the king delights to honor?" Ha man, supposing thnt he was desiring to find some new token by which ho might further show hls favor to himself, makes a suggestion, which, chagrined, he Is commissioned to carry out In be half of Mordecal, hls enemy. Thus Nemesis begins as the mighty Haman leads Mordecal, ablaxe with the royal gems upon the royal charger, through the streets. 8cens 3. Place, the harem. It Is the second banquet scene at which Haman and the king are present with Esther. The face of Ilsman Is clouded, he has fore boding* of hls fate. Esther accuses him; the king, enraged, orders hls ex ecution upon the pole erected for Mordecal. Tbe curtain falls. Act IV, Scene 1. Mordecal Is made grand vlsler. Ha man's home Is given to Esther. Seen# 2. Mordecal acquaints the king with the plot of Haman and Is given by him hls signet, with permission to issue a different decree In order to checkmate the despicable plot of his defeated en SOCIOLOGICAL 8TATE 80CIETY President-Dupont Gnerry, Macon, Qa. Klrst V.-P.-Dr. A. R. Ilolderby, Atlanta. Second V.-P.—Dr. E. C. Peete, Macon. Sec.-Tress—Dr. W. T. Jours, Atlanta. Annual Meeting In May, 1907, at Mtcon. ATLANTA SOCIETY ....Miss Hnttlo R. Marti Treasurer C. R. Folsom Regular meeting second Thursday night of each month at tbe Carnegie Library. EDITORIAL COMMITTEE. Rev. C, B. Wllmer, J. D. Clanton, E, Marvin Underwood, Dr. R, R. Kime, The Superintendent and the Board of Education the big shuns a prnrtln noon. Lending physician how to live s healthy Ilfs. to th* ennuo of foreign mission* was one Keiuidor ha* boon adding to tbe small list ot South American countries permitting absolute freedom of worship. Ion Into churches of tela- l-lna, nnd of a device for enaDiing too noat to bear, hna heroins ao common that It no longer excites remark. Horn* youthful mends* of Bev. It. A. Campbell, the exponent of "New Theology" In th* City Temple, London, recently climb ed up ntu! deeply Inscribed "h-hnhod" ("tha glory bon departed"! over th* main entrance To the ehnren. Furiously enough, Sts years ago, Bev. Dr. Joseph l’nrker. Mr. Ctmp- liell'a predecessor, had prophesied: "Should It ever come to pass that the great troths of Christ's death and reeurrrctlnn be de nied by any future occupier of thla pulpit; should the feet of life gracious Godhead For the last three month* the tropi cal Island of Jamaica, surrounded by a warm sea, where the evaporation la great, has suffered from drouth aa se vere aa any which visit Island deserts, far from any large body of water. By EMMA GARRETT BOYD, , T HE movement to submit to tho people the question of electing tho superintendent of schools by popular vote has met with a atorm ot protest, and, In their seal to show the evils of forcing th# superintendent into lolltlcs, tho opponents of tho measure ,,nv n overlooked certain other aspects of the matter. It Is on* thing, for In stance, to say that wo must keep our schools from becoming political spoils; It Is quite another thing to Ignore tho fact that under the present system the people of Atlanta have no direct voice In the management of the schools upon which their children are dependent for education, and for which so largo a proportion of their taxes la applied. No matter how decidedly the policy of tho board of education may vary from the wishes of a majority of the citizens, there Is no way of holding the board members accountable to a body of constituents nor even of electing such members to carry out the wishes of their fellow.citizens. Tho board Is apnolnted by council, and the history of all large cities show* that granting the power to appoint members of such boards to Individuals or organisations Is not by any means a certain method of keeping such boards out of politics, though the gam* may be played on a very small scale and only by those directly interested In Its outcome. The schools of any city are possibly the most vital part of that city's or ganisation; the men who are given con trol of Atlanta's schools spend annu ally over $200,000. Naturally the ex penditure of such a sum of money ne cessitates the securing of good busi ness people on the board; naturally, also, as the whole purpose of the board Is to develop and maintain the city's system of education, the members should bo persons of line education themselves, and, If possible, of a wider knowledge of educational affairs than can be gained In small or primary schools. Without wishing to cast the slight est reflection on our boards of educa tion, past or present, or on any mem ber of such boards, It I* the belief of the writer, and a belief often corrob orated by others, that Atlanta's boards of eduentlon have too often represented men who were chosen first of all for their business ability or for their gen era! Interest In the welfare of our children, but In regard to whose spe cial and definite knowledge of educa tional matters there was too little em phasis. In other words, *hey have been business men first or public-spirited men first, and educators second. Now, It by no means follows that because a man Is interested In children he can best select the course ot training for those children; when* wo want advice' In sickness we do not send for our beat friend, but for a physician, and Atlanta has long outgrown the state where the standards of village schools can be kept her standards; she has long outgrown the need of choosing men who are "prominent citliena," ■Inca she has x number of men who are of fine business ability and public spirit, and who, In addition, have been trained at tbe best universities in America and abroad.* These men, though they are msstly of the younger generation, should be given a part in the development of our schools. Great as the development of these schools has been during the past ten years, It has by no means brought them, so far In advance that they may not be greatly bettered, and this better ment can only bo brought about by people who add to Interest a consid erable amount of special and definite training. Our board should be com posed ot n\en educated at the very best colleges and universities. It might not be possible alwayo to elect such men, If the vote were tho direct one of the people, but there might at least be a definite and concerted effort to make such an election, and such an effort could not help but raise the standard of the board. That the best method of choosing the board of education I* by direct voto seems to be borne out by the adoption of this method by two-thlrda of the leading cities In the United States, In 1904 the United States commissioner of education Investigated the matter and sent a circular letter of Inquiry to the ninety-two cities that had a population of over 40,000. Ninety out of the tUne. ty-two cities nnswered. It was found that In slxty-thrce of these cities the board of c-ducatlon was chosen by pop ular vote at a regular election, and In one or two other cases by popular vote at a special election. In fifteen cases they were appointed by the mayor of the city; In six cpses they were elected by the city council, and In six other cases other methods were used. It Is also Interesting to note that In elglity-slx cases the superintendent was elected by the board, In one or two cases by local boards, and In only two cases out of the ninety was he elected by popular voto. Thus not only Is Atlanta's method of appointment by council one not Inva riably satisfactory, but It is one found desirable by only six out of the ninety leading cities In the United States. But It would scarcely be wise to elect members of the board of education by an unrestricted popular vote. The plan adopted by many cities, that of limit ing the voters for this board to prop erty owners, would be far better, as It Is this class of our citizens who bear the burdens of maintaining the schools, and who are best educated and beat uallfied to elect those who are to irect the city's education. Nor would emy. Couriers are seen hurrying throughout the realut.^ The !a*t montf?*tias come and a civil war is raging. The Jews are victo rious. 7,808 of their enemies are slam. The curtain falls. . Now, In this story what do we find? First, Into a corrupt Eastern court, with Its cruelty and crime, its Intrigue and Its Oriental splendor, its pomp and power. Is Introduced a tittle Jewish girl, without Influence, without wealth, without anything save beauty and a trust In God. Second, w e find circumstances aris ing that not only Involve her, but her race, in the gravest danger through the machinations of one man who seems to gather up In hls breast all the hatred of centuries of hls entire line against her people, the Jews. A plot Is perpetrated which threatens to overthrow her and her nation. She Is asked to act, to parry hls thrust, but It she falls It will mean immediate death for her; If she succeeds, no one knows how she Is to do It, 'and yet none but herself can undertake It, nnd so we beheld her, nothing but a girl, alone In this cruel court, at this criti cal hour; standing against Haman, the subtle, the rich, the powerful, the greatest force In the kingdom, as she meets hint In a duel to the death. Third, after three days of waiting upon God, she passe* Into the forbid den precincts of the king's court. Like David of old. going.forth to battle for hls race with Goliath, so went this little girl, to fight her people's battle with the grand vixler, Haman the cruel. What had she with which to meet him? How Was she girded for the conflict? She had nothing—nothing Bavo her beauty—but this, the only thing she had, she yielded up to God and said: "O God, Thou didst give It me. let me now usa It for Thee. I have not power, I have not following. I have not wisdom. I have nothing but beauty, beauty that will fade In a feu- years, In flvo or six at most, and then will be gone forever: but while I have It let me use It for Thee," and thus, like David with hls little pebble and hls sling, she advanced face to face to meet the foe In God's strength. She went trembling but trusting, and uy God's power that sanctified her beam, she won, her race was saved, her en * my overthrown, she .Immortalized and a lesson taught to the world. ’ What la the lesson? The leraon u this; When we offer what tve have to.God, no matter how little it may he- when we give God a chance to use and to act through us; when we arl*« courageously to meet the emerger-cv trusting In God, no matter what th* odds may be against us, and no mutter how weak we may.be in ourselves how unable we are to cope with cir cumstahces, God will give us the vlrl tqry. for God Is not weak and Q„d and one soul who trusts Him make majority. My dear friends, I want to ask ara you willing to give God a chance aa Esther did, to put at Hls disposal what you may have? Are you willing to risk everything for Him as she did, that you may act for Him as may be need- ed? Unless you dare thoa to do nnd know the thrill of spiritual adventure you will never know the Joy of spirit.’ ual attainment. And now a closing word to women My sisters, to you to whom God hath given the power of a winsome p er . zonality, of a physical attractlvenen and beauty, let . me say that there li scarce any other power on earth that can sway man more mightily than ttn* or cafi be more used either for bis un- doing or hls uplifting. There Is no more harm done In this old world of ours than by prostituted beauty, and there Is no more good done In till* old world of ours, thank God. than through the' influence of sanctified beauty. My dear friends, as this lit- tie woman. Esther of old, became the power behind the throne that moved the hand that moved the world, so that she was able to deliver her race from a curse that had been upon It, so may you, who at this hour o( crisis In our great state’s history have no voice In legislative halls or no vote by which you can deliver your homes Irma the terrible curso of drink, that hai brought such grief to your hearts, vet you may, by a sanctified Influence and a courageous stand, fix and determine those who shall determine and fix the' laws that shali deliver us, and may God grant that you may so do. UNCLE REMUS AS A POE7; NEW ISSUE OF MAGAZINE i the August Issue of "Uncle Remus'B Magazine" appear* a lyric called "A Remembrance." It bears no signature, the only mark of Identifica tion of the author being the date line, 'Atlanta, 1871.” It Is as follows: I. Soft, low and sweat, yet clear and strong, Rose the rich volume of your song. While on the languid August air That swept your face and stirred your hair. Invoked as by some magic spell Wild gusts of music rose and fell. In the vague hollows of the night The calm stars swung steadfastly bright; A bird belated In the gloom Flew nestward with bedraggled plume; A star shook loose her fiery train And swept across the sapphire' plain; Then all was still—except the strong Rich dltone of your sweet song. n. I stood entranced; my soul was bound; Melodious thralls enwrapt rod round. I lived again the wild uncouth Dear devious days of my lost youth; But floods ot song swept In and drowned The old-time singers sorrow-crowned; I saw once more the friends of old. And heard their voices manifold; The waste wan years slipped slowly by With many a change of sea and sky. With many a change of form and hue—■ And left me happy there with you. It bo unwise to do as a great many cltle* are doing, particularly In the West, and grant suffrage In this* re spect to property owning women. Wom en arc far more Interested In public schools than men; they are taxed to support them and should have a tnx- e*|-er’s right to direct. The old preju dice against women’s entering public affairs Is falling away In regard to this particular field sooner than tw other. In twenty-seven out of the fifty states and also In two territories women have this right of voting for school officers. Nor need we wonder that over half our states have learned to trust th* Judg ment of their women citizens In regard to their schools, for at present women are forming 72 per cent of the teaching force In the public schools of the United States; there are over 300 who are di recting the whole public school system of counties, and two states, Colorado and Idaho, have women state superin tendents of education. To sum up, the present system of the people selecting the council, the council's electing the board of educa tion, and the board's electing the su perintendent seem to the writer by no means Ideal. We do not wish to bring the superintendent necessarily Into politics to secure or keep the po- sltlon by which he earns hls livelihood, but we might do well to elect directly the members of the board, whose office has little or no direct pecuniary re ward. If It be a mistake to take certain officers Into politics. It is an even great er mistake to remove the appointing power several degress from the people whose will must ultimately be allowed to prevail In any city or state that Is truly democratic. Now behind the publication of that poem lies an Interesting little story. The verses are by Joel Chandler Har ris—though the thousands ot admlrera of the creator of Uncle Remus and .Mr. Billy Sanders, and Sister Jane will find It difficult to realize, that he ever played tho role of poet—and were written In Atlanta thirty-six years ago, when he waa Just getting started In newspaper work. "A Remembrance” waa found a year or so ago by one who Is now a sub editor of the magazine, and was saved because he liked It. And the lines were used in the August Issue of the maga zine, without a signature. An attempt was made by the sub-editor to prevent Mr. Harris' knowing that they were to appear. When he found It out, ho entered vigorous objection, but finally yielded when It was agreed that hls name should not be used. Though he-now seldom writes any verse, and never publishes any, save hls Uncle Remus songs, the Sago ot Snap-bean Farm In hls youthful days won hls first literary note aa a pnet. All of hls verse was printed In news papers of the day and practically none of It has been saved, though In such of it that has been preserved in scrap books a true lyric gift Is seen. The August Issue of the magazine le a great Improvement typographically over Its two predecessors, and It will compare favorably-With the beet mag azines of the East. Its contents aro vjuied, yet the whole Issue has a distinct personality. It to different from all of the other*. The editor Is represented by an edi torial on "The Philosophy of Failure." "The Story of the Doodang," which li ns funny a story as Uncle Remus ever told; a dissertation by Mr, Hilly San ders on stale's rights, and the third Installment of tho delightful serial, “The Bishop, the Boogerman and tho Right of Way." Mrs. Thaddeug Horton contributes a notable article on "Madame Le Vert and Her Friends,” In which are repro duced fnc-slmlle letters to that won derful Georgia woman from Washing ton Irving, Millard Fillmore, Longfel low, Edwin Booth and Edward Everett. The fiction Is light and Just ot the sort that is most pleasant these hot summer days. The short stories by the Raroness von Hutton. William Hamilton Osborne and Melville F. ler- guson are notably good. Don Marquis' scintillating editorials and the departments serve to round out a splendid number. The Illustrations are by Charlotte Harding, R. H. Palenske, James M. Preston, J. M. Conde and Maud Thurs ton. ONE HUNDRED ATTEND MISSIONARY MEETING. Special to The Georgian. Douglasvllle, Ga., July 20.—The an nual district meeting of the Woman'* Foreign Missionary Society of Roma district Is In session here. Over one hundred delegates arc here. The meetings will continue until Sunday night. Mrs. R. O. Pitts, of Cedar- town, Is the presiding officer. .Many prominent church workers of me Methodist church are present *» much good will be derived from tne meeting. The Georgian Announces the Organization of the Atlanta Branch of The Nature Club of -America for Boys and Girls as Well as the Grown-Ups of Atlanta. DO YOU KNOW why the tails of mice and rats are "Bald?” DO YOU KNOW the relation between Butterflies and the "Show ers of Blood" that have occurred at intervals through agei? DO YOU KNOW what small Bird has the ability to stand and run and dance on water? DO YOU KNOW what bird it is that incarcerates the female while she is setting her eggs, and how it is done? DO YOU KNOW that Jack Frost has. a "trumpeter?” DO YOU KNOW what kind of deer signal to each other by flash ing a whito flag? DO YOU KNOW that the flesh of the skunk is savory and good to eat? DO YOU KNOW what the "Kissing Bug” really is? DO YOU KNOW why an Ant's head may often be seen walking by itself without a body? DO YOU KNOW that Bread Mold is Mushroom growth? DO YOU KNOW that the flies we see "frozen" on the windows in cold weather have really been suffocated by Mushrooms? A MEMBERSHIP in the Atlanta branch of the Nature Club of America will add to the resources of your life—will make every walk in the field or woods an excursion into a land of unexhausted Treasure—will make the returning seasons fill you with expectations and delight—will make every rod of ground like the page of a book in which new and strange things may be read—will develop all that is pure and good-—in the boys and girls—leading them to higher morals by bringing them in closer touch with the beauties and wonders of Nature. For full particulars as to The Atlanta Branch of the Nature Olub of America, tear out coupon below and mail to the Georgian, Department A. Send full particulars of The At lanta Branch of the Nature Club of America to cr