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CRITICS there are who still say that the
Presbyterian Church is slow and unpro
gressive, some even say that it is asleep and
needs to be waked up. This, some of the critics
are wont to say, is specially true of the South
ern Presbyterian Church. One who will read
l>r. Graham's article on another page will real
ize how far criticisms are from being true,
lie shows that our Church is the most pro
gressive, most wide-awake, most liberal and
accomplishes more than any other Church in
i his country. It is growing in numbers by a
larger per cent, than any other Church, and its
irifts per member are greater than any other
Church, and in both cases far in advance of
the average of the churches. This should be a
cause of thanksgiving to God, that lie is per
mitting us to do so much for Him, and yet it
should not be the cause of pride or vain glory.
This is a case in which we should not compare
ourselves with others, but we should compare
ourselves with ourselves. What each of us
ought to do is to ask himself the question,
"Am I doing for God all I can do ?" When we
make an honest investigation, we are compelled
to say that as a Church and as individuals, we
are doing far less than we ought to do. When
we think of the ability and the wealth that
God has given us, we must say, "We are un
profitable servants," but we cannot add, "we
have what it was our duty to do." The golf
player is more anxious to beat his own record
than to beat a fellow-player. May we each,
as individuals, determine that we will beat our
record ; and, if we do, the Church will beat the
record.
MAPS are often needed in connection with
addresses or programs on Foreign Mis
sion. Heretofore it has been hard to get good
maps of our Foreign Mission fields. The Exe
cutive Committee in Nashville is having pre
pared a set of maps, G by 8 feet in size, of our
fields in Mexico, Africa, Japan, China, Korea
and Brazil. Some of these are ready now and
others will be soon. The committee proposes
to rent these maps to those proposing to use
them for conferences and other meetings at $1
apiece or the set of six for $5.
COURT cases are increasing very rapidly in
this country, according to many reports
that have been given to the public. This, it
seems, is not due so much to any increase in
crime, but rather to matters growing out of
business relations. The New York Lawyers'
Association has recently issued a statement
showing the number of cases pending in the
courts of that city for several years. On Decem
l>er 31, 1917, there were 10,265 unsettled cases
on the dockets of these courts. In 1918 the
number increased to 10,744, in 1919 to 12,419,
in 1920 to 16,402, in 1921 to 20,687. Where
the responsibility lies for this condition in the
courts, we do not pretend to say, but we are
convinced that oftentimes the ends of justice
are defeated, and the litigants are put to much
unnecessary trouble and expense by the great
(lelay in settling cases before the courts. In
^rew York City an Arbitration Society has been
organized, which claim's to have the support
and approval of the courts, which proposes to
provide means for arbitration for all cases, ex
cept criminal and divorce cases, for all who are
billing to have their differences settled in this
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way. It is claimed thai
cases can be settled with a great saving of time
and money, and without leaving the hard feel
ings so often found after a legal battle in court.
The purposes of this organization are very
much to be commended, and it is to be hoped
that it will be so successful in its undertaking,
that it will be encouraged to carry out its plan
of establishing such organizations in all of the
cities of the country.
CHURCHES sometimes think they want to
get rid of their pastors. When this idea
gets started in a church it is likely to spread
very rapidly. The members, in order to justify
themselves for wanting a pastor to leave, will
begin talking about his real or his supjiosed
faults, deficiencies and failures. The result
will likely be that the pastor will leave, but it
will only be after the revelation of the senti
ments of his people has come to him unexpecet
edly and suddenly, and, when so much feeling
has been worked up in the congregation, that
there is probability of a serious outbreak in
which both pastor and people will suffer. We
recently heard a better plan suggested for get
ting rid of an undesirable pastor. Say all the
kind things about his good qualities that you
can, and there is no pastor that has not some
good qualities. When he preaches a sermon
look out for something in it that is helpful to
you or to some one else. Tell him and others
how it has helped. Go to your pastor and tell
him that you realize that he has a heavy load
of work to carry, and offer to help him in any
way that he will suggest. Tell him that you
are praying for him that God may bless his
work in the church. You will soon find that
he is preaching better sermons, doing better
pastoral work, and is a more agreeable man.
You will also find that other people are talking
about him as a strong and growing inan. Soon
some other church will call him ? and then you
will not want him to go. This plan is worth
trying in every congregation.
PESSIMISTS say that the world is growing
worse and the prospects are that it will
continue to grow more so. There is one fact
that will show that this is not true, though
there are many others that will show it equally
as well. When we see thousands of men and
women and young people all over the land at
tending conferences, conventions and summer
schools just for the purpose of studying the
word of God and the work of the Church, and
when we see that this number is increasing
rapidly each year, we realize that there is a
strong and growing force of righteousness that
is at work in the world, which will more than
offset the growth of the forces of evil.
JONAH was swallowed by a whale, many
people say ; and then comes along the scient
ist, who says that Jonah could not have been
swallowed by a whale, because a whale's mouth
and throat are not large enough to allow it to
swallow a man. The Bible does not mention
a whale in this connection, but speaks of "a
great fish." The scientists have said that there
is no other fish large enough to swallow a man.
Mention has been made in this paper before of
a fish caught on the coast of Florida, that meets
all the requirements of the Jonah story. The
Philadelphia Presbyterian gives this interest
ing account of it: "Early last year we pub
lished an article by W. H. H. Peters, on the
great fish which had been captured near Miami,
Florida. The article elicited much interest,
l>oth in America and Great Britain. Some in
teresting and imjK>rtant questions were asked.
Among the others, the exact date and place of
its capture and the ? present location. Mr.
Peters has given much time to securing this
information. Mr. Guy W. Livingstone, secre
tary of the Miami Chamber of Commerce, gives
the following information. The following are
some interesting figures given by Mr. Peters
in his former article: 'The net veigfit of the
fish when caught was 30,000 pounds. Its liver
weighed 1,700 pounds. Its length from tip to
tip was and is now 45 feet; circumference, 23
feet 0 inches; diameter, 8 feet 3 inches. Hence,
there was plenty of room inside for a large man
to stand upright. Its mouth is 50 inches wide
and 43 inches deep. Its tongue 40 inches long.'
It is reported that it retpiired fifteen barrels of
formaldehyde and other chemicals to preserve
it. Also, when the fish was cut open, after
being on the dock three days, it is affirmed that
it was found to contain hundreds of pounds of
fish in great varieties, including an octupus,
and all were alive. Air. Livingstone says, 'The
big fish to which you have reference was caught
near Miami in the year 1912, by Captain
Charles Thompson, after a fight lasting thirty
nine hours. Five harpoons and one hundred
bullets were required to subdue the monster
fish, which has been pronounced by the Smith
sonian Institute of Washington to be a whale
shark, scientifically known as "Rhinodon
typhis," and is the second of its kind that has
l>een captured on our east coast, although the
same species is often seen along the west coast
of North America, this one being the largest.
Its weight was 30,000 pounds, length 45 feet,
and the liver alone weighed 1,700 pounds. It
was placed on exhibition first in Miami and
then taken for a tour of the country. About
three years ago a special barge was built, more
on the style of the Mississippi stern wheeler,
and this barge was taken up the Mississippi
River, also the Missouri and Ohio Rivers, and
everywhere that there was sufficient water for
it to navigate. We do not know where it is at
the present time.' "
BOOTLEGGERS are losing caste, r?ay3 a
daily paper. It seems strange to same
people that Ijootleggers have ever had a caste
that was worth recognizing by honest men, and
it is hard to see how a man could occupy a
lower position in the social scale than that occu
pied by the bootlegger, who makes it his busi
ness to violate law, and who is usually thor
oughly dishonest in all of his dealings. Rut
what the newspaper meant was that there is a
growing sentiment among people generally that
the ltootlegger is a man to be condemned and
his business is one to be despised. This is a
very hopeful sign. We have always lieen very
sure that this state of feeling would come
among all right-thinking men and women. We
do not believe that there is any large propor
tion of people in this country who will long up
hold any class of law breakers. The officers of
the law are doing excellent work in stamping
out this defiance of law, but a strong public
sentiment supporting them will enable them to
work far more effectively.