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EDITORIAL PAGE The Atlanta Georgian THE HOME PAPER
THE ATLANTA GEORGIAN
Published by THR GEORGIAN COMPANY
At 20 East Alabama 8t. Atlanta, Ga
f ■ fr- r i n *. f»#*rnnd-class matter at postnfflct at Atlanta, under art of March 3. 1 “ •»
\UST'S Sl’NDAY AMERICAN and THE ATLANTA GEORGIAN will
* ■ subscribers anywhere In ti e United state- (’annd.i and Mexico,
r. »n ‘ fcr * f-0. three months for $1 7B, sli m<»nfhs f<»r J'! and one year
4 'rasa made as often II dl
• t.- * it* i cat I on
Walking on the Mountain lops
Across the Continent.
Would You Like That Sensation) Read a Good History of the
Literature of a Great People.
Caprrlght. 1»! 8, by Star Comgaar
Old Charlemagne went to see Emperor Hugo, said to be hand
somer than himself. When he got to Constantinople, he bragged
so much that he nearly lost his life.
The beautiful girl Aude said when she heard that Roland was
dead "May it not please God or his saints, or his angels that I
should live after Roland," and died promptly. You ought to know
such a girl.
Buffon, the great naturalist, wrote his principal work over
eleven times. Think of that, when you are discouraged 1 And
the same servant every day for sixty years, pulled him out of bed
at daybreak that he might work his fourteen hours a day.
Remember that Buff on was rich, and need not have worked.
Madame de Sevigne, the greatest writer of letters that ever
lived, was a widow at twenty-six and rich. Nearly everybody fell
in love with her, but she fell in love with nobody. And she died
rather unhappy.
George Sand, on the other hand, disturbs our ideas of moral 1
cosmic government, by the fact that she fell in love with nearly
everybody, quite regardless of consequences, lived to be old, and
died happy, known as ‘‘the good lady of Nohant.’’
The above and more is written to call your attention to a good
book that you ought to own, that you and your children ought to
read. If we had said at the beginning that it was a good book,
you might not have read the rest.
Now perhaps you will read.
The great thinkers and writers of a nation are the intellectual
mountain tops.
He who reads a book that reviews earnestly and capably the
men that have expressed and created thought through centuries
is like one walking on the mountain tops, stepping from peak to
peak, and at each step seeing new wonders of the world spread out
before him.
A reader has asked us to name the best history of French
literature. In complying we render a service to many readers who
will buy the book or read it in the libraries.
There is only ONE good history of French literature written in
English. It is the work of Annie Lemp Konta, published by
Appletons in New York Oity—and we advise you to get it and
read it.
To read a history of French literature—and Mrs. Konta‘s is by
far the best—is too follow the development of hiunan thought and
literary expression, from the childhood of men to the day in which
we live, a slightly older childhood.
The book that we recommend earnestly will inspire young men
with a desire to DO something and to BE something on their own
account.
In that book you see the babyhood of human thought. You
read of the early poems, written shortly after Caesar had forced
the Roman tongue upon the Gauls—creating a language that would
be like Greek to the modern Frenchman.
Your hear of the virtuous girl Eulalie, who refused to serve
the devil.
And you read of the childishly conceited Charlemagne. When
his wife hurt his feelings by saying that the Emperor Hugo was
more beautiful, he told the wife that if he found it was not so he
would kill her when he came back—and only forgave her finally
because he had so much pleasure on his travels.
You read in the famous Chanson de Roland, that every little
French boy must study, of the hero cutting the rock in two with
his sword.
You read in a "chanson de geste" still earlier of the Frankish
ruler, bragging that he would cut through a horse and a man in
armor with one blow; of Roland, his best fighter, promising to
overthrow the walls of Constantinople with a blast of his horn, and
tear out the beard of the Greek Emperor"; of another of the
Paladins, saying that he would turn the river from its course and
inundate the capital.
Then you see Charlemagne and the rest of them much
! tightened. when the Emperor Hugo, who had a spy listening, tells
hem to make good their bragging or remain prisoners.
They have brought Christian relics with them luckily. They
pray very hard to the saints represented by the relics. And every
thing turns out happily.
The walls of the city begin to fall, the river begins to run in,
and Emperor Hugo sends them back with rich presents. He has
had enough of them.
From this childish beginning of literature you review the
gradual development of the mind of a great people, its philosophers,
poets, naturalists, statesmen, down to the rather thin literary
pickings of the present day.
An intelligent man should know the history of thought and
of literature in France, for that French thought has been the
mother of thought throughout the world for the last ten centuries.
The love of freedom expressed by Thomas Jefferson when he
wrote the Declaration of Independence was THE RESULT OF
HIS READING FRENCH AUTHORS
Our cutting adrift from England, was the result of the work
of French encyclopedists in the eighteenth century, just as much
es the French Revolution was the result of the teachings of those
men.
In her admirable history of the literature of a great people,
Mrs Konta takes her readers from the beginning to the end, from
the forgotten minstrels who sang the early songs of France to the
‘ forty immortals," who sit in the French Academy to-day and who
will be FORGOTTEN SOON,
Tula book Is A REAL HISTORY,
“Outside Looking In”
Cmr»yrtctit, 1*13, ?n**rnataanal N*w* Serrle*.
Amazing Doings in China
By REV. C. F. AKED, LL. D.
—
C HINA continues to surprise
us. News has just been
received that the Govern
ment of a great province in the
interior of China has asked an
American missionary society to
take entire charge of the public
school system of a large section
of the country'. Shansi is the
name of the province. It was
here that so many American mis
sionaries were murdered during
the Boxer rising in 1900. Within
the last few weeks the provincial
government has made this amaz
ing request of the representatives
of the American Hoard of For
eign Missions. The Government
offers to furnish the schoolhouses
arid to equip them. The Gov
ernment guarantees a certain
yearly cash subsidy. It guaran
tees. as well, full religious liberty.
The Bible and the Christian re
ligion may be taught in the
schools.
Such a story seems incredible.
It goes far out beyond our dreams.
But it is perfectly true. The in
formation comes direct from the
authorities of the missionary
1 ird concerned.
• • •
The “Memoir® of Id Hung
Chang” have recently been pub-
1: led. They have the interest
of an absorbing drama. The
glamour of romance is over them.
Two men in history would have
delighted In them. Shakespeare
ami Robert Browning. The play
of character, the development of
a great mind, its emergence into
imperial conditions, and its in
fluence in world business would
fc&Vt* delighted the soul of either
of these two supreme students of
human nature.
The editor of these ^nemoirs is
an American newspaper man who
was privileged to interview the
Chinese statesman and convey to
the world his sense of obligation
to the American people. He prints
as Introduction to the memoirs a
sketch of Li Hung Chang con
tributed by another pen.
With pardonable hero-worship
this writer speaks of Li Hung
Chang as “not only the greatest
man the Chinese race has pro
duced in modern times, but, in a
combination of qualities, the most
unique personality of the past
century among all the nations of
the world.”
And he proceeds to explain this
extraordinary eulogy.
Li Hung Chang was soldier,
scholar, statesman and diplomat
—and in each capacity one of the
world's masters. “He was distin
guished as a man of letters; as a
soldier In important campaigns
he rendered valuable services to
his country; as a statesman for
80 years he maintained a recog
nized pre-eminence over his coun
trymen In the oldest and most
populous nation of the earth;
and as a diplomat his achieve
ments entitle him to a front rank
in the international relations of
all history.”
• » •
The volume is a sold mine of
information and of interest. There
are hundreds of paragraphs one
would love to quote. The editor
says truly that among them all
nothing is more entertaining than
the great man’s views concerning
Ciir.st.sus and Christiana*.
REV. C. F. AKED, D.D.
First of all, while still a young
man of 26. having taken his M. A.
degree and at the moment study
ing for his T.I.D.. he conceives
that it would be "a noble and
glorious career, highly pleasing
to the sacred gods and his ances
tors,'’ to expose the teachings of
the "foreign devils” and refute
their "sacrilegious utterances.” He
is satisfied that the foreign devils
come to the country for no good
jiurpuia. He believes Uuu every
one of the black-robed individ
uals is “the paid agent of some
foreign Power,” only present in
the country to spy upon its Gov
ernment!
OMhe teachings of the “foreign
devils” he can not speak in terms
of contempt sufficiently contemp
tuous. He understands that it is
a part of their teaching that
“the Heavenly Father allowed His
Son to come to earth to die for
wicked people.” To him this is
palpably absurd. He could under
stand it if it were said that He
died for good people. But ”if
• the gods are good and want men
to be good, will they allow mem
bers of their families to be killed
like criminals for the sake of
criminals?” And he is satisfied
that “the crazy fad" will die out!
• • •
We read on. Twenty-one years
later he has become a great gen
eral and a great statesman. His
mind has been growing ail the
time. His eyes have opened to a
thousand facts. In 1870 he writes:
“It can not be said, even by my
worst foes, that I have been a
bosom friend to the foreigner,
either the man that comes to
force his trade upon us or the fel
low who would cram his religion
down our throats. . . . Yet, in
spite of all our dislikes, if we truly
have the best interests of China at
heart, we will no longer oppose
the coming of the foreigner,
whether he be trader, missionary
or tourist.”
He is ready for toleration:
"When last I saw Tseng.-kofan we
spent several hours in full discus
sion of this great problem. . . .
Tseug-kotaa, ilk* KU'kv& tu*
changed his views exceedingly in
the past five or six years, and
is no longer a hater of the Chris
tians. He told me that it was his
intention some of these days to
memorialize the Throne to issue
an edict of complete toleration for
all foreigners of whatever profes
sion or occupation, and I told him
that I would gladly join in Such a
memorial if he would so desire.”
His latest recorded views were
written in 1886. Whether he ever
went beyond the position reached
at that time there is no evidence
to show. But the ground then ta
ken is simply marvelous. He con
cludes that there is no reason for
hating i hristians. Devoted as he
is, in mind and spirit, by senti
ment and by reason, to the teach
ings of Confucius, he is now ready
■o place Jesus Christ on the same
exalted level as that of China'*
hero-sage. He affirms that in
America or Eurnne he would be
a follower of Jesus, as in China
he follows Confucius. He says
that even in China there are thou
sands, perhaps millions,
countrymen who would
better for Christianity. He de
clares that he must never again
be thought of as unfriendly to the
people of the West, whether they
come to China as merchants or
missionaries, or whether they do
not come at ali. And, finally, that
It is time China—China from the
south to the north—recognizes
that some Christians are better
than some Taoists and some fol
lowers of Buddha!
The missionaries who poured
Ineir blood out for China and for
*Survit did not die ia vaiig
of
his
be the
THE GOOD
FIGHT
By MALCOLM DOUGLAS.
TV/TINE be the brave, the good fight
And if I know defeat
Still let me not bow down to It
Failure is only sweet
When one, unconquered, breattm
his last
In all the battle’s heat
TV/TtNE be the brave, the good fight
1V1 And if I victor be
Let all my laurels bear the crown
Of sweet humility;
Over my brother’s mangled form
May they not come to me!
The Milk Situation
in Atlanta
Editor The Georgian:
The recent Investigation of At
lanta’s milk supply and the re
port of the State Chemist and
Bacteriologist on their findings
should cause every mother in At
lanta to take her babe closer to
her breast with anxiety and ap
prehension and bemoan the fact
that she must continue to feed
this same milk to her loved ones
Atlanta alone spends thousands
of dollars every year for the con
trol and eradication of tubercu
losis, and at the same time tol
erates a condition in her milk
supply that is fundamentally ths
cause of 10 per cent of the deaths
kmong infants from this disease.
Periodical agitations of our
milk supply will never give to the
people of Atlanta the milk that
they should have, and conditions
ten years hence will be identically
the same as to-day unless the
fundamentals of dairy economy
are observed.
What Inducement has the dairy
man to produce the right kind of
milk? You can not talk sanita
tion at the expense of the pock-
etbook. We all know that the best
milk brings the largest returns,
but only when accompanied by
technical knowledge of the dairy
business. Sanitation means ex
pense. The greater the sanitation
the greater the expense, hence
more of the technical knowledge
of dairying Is necessary to war
rant the expense.
Our dairymen are much-abused
men, and they air their abuse
freely among themselves at their
meetings. There is not a man put
ting milk into Atlanta who Is
doing more than making a bare
living.
The people of Atlanta put too
much reliance in city ordinances
to bring about reform. I do not
believe that 5 per cent of the
dairymen about Atlanta willfully
and maliciously intend to produce
and sell unclean milk, but they
do so as a matter of economy,
although false economy it may be
They are gotng to avoid the milk
ordinance as much a* possible
when it affects their bread and
butter, or else go on the fence
for a time, being ready to fall on
the wrong side as soon as an agi
tation blows over.
The trouble is not with the dai
rymen, nor does the solution of
our milk condition lie in agitation,
and our milk committee is only
trying to lead the horse by the
tail by this means of reform.
These milk agitations cause a
great deal of hardship and avail
nothing.
The milk inspector is as wel
come on the farm as weeds are
in a well-attended garden! In
the dairy sections of the North.
East ahd West the inspector is a
welcome guest, and the farmer is
a wiser and better dairyman aft
er the inspector’s departure, be
cause the inspector is a practi
cally and technically trained man
who can take off his coat and go
to it if need be. The inspectors
do not go to the farm with
"blood in their eyes,” and fling
laws in the face of the farmer.
With the inspector the law is ap
parently incidental, but the farm
er is made to feel its importance
in a diplomatic way. The fanner
is shown the good of the law and
the purpose of its enactment. The
government and other large cities
are careful about the selection of
these inspectors. Why shouldn t
Atlanta be likewise?
The dairymen are full of hatred
for the local inspectors, and they
have good reason. They are us
ually men of a very uninteresting
character; know nothing about
practical dairy operations. What
kind of results can you expect
from men of this kind?
Why is there not a creamery
in Atlanta? There is not a city
or town above the Mason ana
Dixon fine with one-tenth the
population of Atlanta but what
has a creamery where good,
wholesome dairy products are
made. Why is there not a pound
of butter made in Atlanta? Last
year 832,000,000 went out of tr.s
nine States of the South for but
ter, 88,000,000 of which went from
Georgia. Why couldn’t this mon
ey have been kept here? Why 1>
it that the best milk produces
about Atlanta never reaches tho
Atlanta market, except possibly in
the hotels for the traveling pub
lie? This is the milk Atlanta
needs for the retail trade, but sbs
will never get it.
There are hundreds of young
dairymen turned out of our
rlcultural colleges every’
who would be glad to get n»s r
this market. They come hers
look around, shake their ne*A
and go to locate North, East o
l^est—anywhere but in tn0
but in
South. Why is this so?
Don’t you know that by snu.j
ting out these young dalryme
you are shutting out the only nop
that the South has for catching
up with the other section* of tn
country—shutting out the on*
solid foundation on which nation _
a] and community prosperity
built? Don’t you know that A
lanta dairy conditions are keep -
Ing thousands of people a ' v8 ,^
who would otherwise be glad -
settle here? „ _
L. M. NICHOLS
No. 32 Houston street, Atlanta