The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, October 4, 1903, Page 5

NN AGAN | THE DA F the dominating influences that govern our age none is more conspicuous than the tendency to great agglomera- tions based upon an affinity of race, language or creed. The Pan-Slavonic movement, which is sp nowerful in East- ern politics; the Pan-Germanic movement, which seeks to gather the Teutortic nations under one rule; the move- ment which made United Italy and which, under the name of Italia irredenta, aspires to still further absorptions, are conspicuous instances, and there is little doubt that the two first, at Jeast, are destined to play a considerable part in the future. There was a time when it seemed not beyond the limits of possibfiity that the whole English-speaking race might be comprised in a single empire, but the blun- ders—not wholly on one side—oi the public men of tie eignteenth century de- stroyed the prospect, and no one now seriously believes that England and the United States are ever destined to form part of one commonwezlth. At the same time the old jealousies and animosities which once divided them have ngland wholly disappearcd and in the United States greatly di- ed, and the idea has been steadily growing that in foreign politics the rst aim of an English statesman should be to estabiish close and ly relations with the United States, and that one of the most impor- tant aims of domestic policy should be to draw as close as possibie the con- nection between the mother country and her colonies. The ojd notion that long prevailed under the influence of the Manchester school that the s were little better th an embarrassment, a danger and an expense to be held for a short time under tutelage and then completely senarated f 1e mother country, finds now but few supporters. The' pride in the and greatness of the emoire. and in the manifest destiny of the Ena- speaking nations that are arising beyond the ocean, has steadilv in- eased, and at no former period of Fnglish history has the moral tie bind- ng us to our colonies been as powerful as at present The Constitution of the United States re- are England and the United States are separate bodies, and in many spects they move upon different planes. Their forms of government essentially different. England possesses in the fullest sense of the word a mentary government, though #here are some signs that the almost te omnipotence of the British House of Commons is on the decline e Cabinet, though its power in the state is evidently increasing. is last resort the creature of the House of Commons, which can at anv t overthrow it. The practical power of the House of Lords on aues- s in which public opinion 1s seriously interested amounts to little more than a brief suspensory veto which terminates when the popular verdict has decisively pronounced, and a pow ducing in the interest of mi- es some modifications or attenn of the measures which the ma- ) y of the Commons has carried: w the power of the crown is still less and is chiefly ir In the American constitution, on the other Congress can or ct wit limits of a written ched over and co led by a great legal tribunal, and the powers of the President and of t te largelv exceed those of the British sovereign and House of Lords. land is also by her position in the world an emi- nently free trade couw , and so large a predominance of her trade is with foreign countries that it seems scarcely possible that her fiscal policy can changed, while America js strongly protectionist. Prob- fact in affectine the future relations of the two coun- divergence of racial elements,, for the vast flow of Euro- constitution * THE SUNDAY CALL. pean emigration to America is constantly reducing the proportion of the Anglo-Saxon and even of the Teutonic race i the American population. Yet with all this there remains a far oreater community of thought and feeling between England and the United States than between England and anv foreign European country. The English common law lies at the foundation of the American legal system. The two nations have the same language. the same dominant race, and in a measure the same history and the same tradi- tional sympathies and characteristics, They have grown up under the in- fluence of a common literature and a substantially identical creed. At the very time when politicians were doing most to alienate)the two great Ene- lish-speaking communities Wesley and Whitefield were laying the basis of a far deeper and more intense spiritual communion between them, and their moral type is substantially the same. They read the same books, admire chiefly the same qualities. judge by the same standards, cultivate the same ideals. With some manifest limita- tions, both intellectual and moral. hoth communities are very eminently en- USE OF ENC@NTIVES IN s—3 ERY early in life the child learns that certain actions are followed by pleastnt sensations, while others are not. Al- most intuitively he strives to secure the one and to avoid the other. Soon the desire for the pleasant sensations becomes so strong that it acts as an incentive to action. r the incentives which appeal w in power and rise in do so vitally af- hould be given bv ren. ed times easier to lead thgn to drive. Too few parents ortance of this truth. A still smaller number understand e proper use ight incentives. In the past too much time and energy have been was in unsuccessful attempts to drive children into right ways, and too little thought given to plans of leading them, by pleasant expe- riences and anticipations, to prefer the correct paths. All who have studied children closely will agree that, if started right, most of them can be led eas- ily all the time; that all can be led most of the time, and that few, if any, need be driven much of the time. Why, then, should a child be constantly driven if he can more easily be lei most of the time? How important, then, that we learn to lead when it is possible to do so, ad drive only when we must. The Desire for Comfort. Beginning with the lowest in the scale, the desire for comfort is one of the very earliest of incentives. As before stated, while yet a babe in the mother’s arms the child discovers that some acts are followed by personal comfort and others by umpleasant sensations. The one great desire is to se- cure the pleasant and avoid what is unpleasant. This natural desire largely determines the conduct of individuals all through life. If the child’s treatment is uniform these associations, being made quently, leave their impress, and the child becomes aware of 2 law of fre- con- ! CHIL SECOND TALK TO PARENTS By Wm. J. Shearer, A. M. Pd.D. duct outside of itself., This is the will of the parent or other person in au- thority. Very soon the child Jearns that it pays to avoid all acts which result in pain or discomfort. So well is this lesson learned that few bad hab- its would be formed if unpleasant results uniformly f{ollowed improper acts. The fear of some kind of punishment is a powerful incentive to right conduct. Though one of the very lowest, yet it is an incentive of which most parents must make use frequently at first. While it should not be used when it is possible to reach the desired end by any higher, the fact remains that with far too large a proportion of children and adults it is the fear of the consequences that generally pre- vents the improper action. Rewards and Prizes. The natural desire for some objective recognition of right conduct al- ways acts as a powerful incentive with most children. €onsidered simply as such, regardless of their intrinsic value, they may easily be replaced by in- centives of a higher kind. The great danger of prizes is found in the fact that unless great care is taken the child-will be led to act merely for the love of the prize. In this, as in everything else, the child is a creature of the present, and iy powerfully influenced by tire expectation of some little re- ward soon, rather than by the hope of some great reward in the distant fu- ture. ke Quite early the young child learns, unconsciously, from the tone of the mother’s voice, and from her smile or frown, that certain acts are an- proved, while others are not. This incentive to proper conduct increases with the age of the child. So powerful does it become; if carefully used, that scarcely any other incentive of punishment will be needed. ~Would that parents would grasp the truth of this statement! How dearly do the - LN SITAING ALLANVCL BY 2he Rt [FON- W L4 LECHY dowed with the political sense, with the old Roman gift of governing men Enfil'and has shown it in the suoreme achievement of her Indian empire, in the skill and power with which in more modern times she regenerated Egypt; in the success of her colonial enterprises;. in the success of her arliamentary government. America has shown it not less conspicuously in the skill with which her Anglo-Saxon people have dominated and assimi- lated the vast heterogeneous elements which European emigration has oured upon her shores, and built up out of these discordant and often re- ractory ingredients one of the greatest powers upon earth. In both coun- tries, too, this governing power rests mainly upon the same characteristics —good sense—the spirit of compromise—a strong and persevering yet tem- perate energy—a deep reverence for individual liberty, for religious libertv and for freedom of discussion. a rare power of distinguishing the practical and the feasible from showy speculation and rhetorical artifice and hastvy generalizations, Many clouds hang over the futare destinies of the human race, but it is at least a safe prediction that the part which will be played by the Eng- lish speaking world must steadily grow. It comprises the most rapidly in- creasing, the most progressive, the most happily situated nations of the earth, and if their power and influence are not wasted in internal quarrels. their type of civilization must one day be completely dominant. They have hitherto escaped the militarism that is so prevalent on the Continent. Their civilization: i3 essentially commercial and pacific, and though it has its marked defects it is not too much to say that in no other form has true lib- erty been better understood and a larger and fuller scope been given to human develbpment and individual energy. Closer Diplomatic Relations. The revelation during the South African war of the intense dislike of England that prevails in the nations of the Continent has powerfully tended to draw English sympathies to kinsmen beyond the sea, and the succession of American representatives in London of very remarkable ability and popularity has done much to consolidate the two countries. In the problems that are arising in the East, the policy of the “open adopted on both sides of the Atlantic, has formed a new and powerful bond of commerclal and political interest, and the cordial co-operation of the two nations is an essential condition of success. At the same time the Irish party in America, which had for many years been the most active agency in producing and inflaming an anti-English feeling, and which long obtained a very disproportionate influence both in municipal government and the press, is manifestly declining, both in influence and numbers. It does not appear to me probable that the relations of the two nations will take the form of any general or permanent alliance. On both sides of the water the feeling in favor of reserving full liberty of action is very strong, and each country has large classes of interests with which the other is almost unconcerned. English opinion now cordially acquiesces in the Monroe doctrine, which places the greater number of American questions entirely within the sphere of influence of the United States, while America is happily free from all obligation to meddle with purely European compli- cations. Limited alliances aiming at special objects, such as a freedom of commerce in the East, may very probably arise, but on the whole the unity of the English-speaking races is likely to depend much more on the increas- ing power of common sympathies, common principles and common inter- ests Both countries are essentially democratic, and the broad basis of popular sentiment must be the foundation of their friendship. D TRAINING They are not only made happy by which comes little ones prize the parents’ approval! the praise received, but also because of the added pleasure from the consciousness of having given their parents pleasure. The commendation of a stranger is very pleasant to a child; that of a friend or companion still sweeter; but the smile of approval, the sympathetic “Well done,” “You are a dear boy,” “That is a good girl,” or similar ex- pressions of a loved parent, is the sweetest fruit of a child’s earnest efforts. Parents, is it not true that few of us have made use of this incentive as often as we should? It is not yet too late to prove the power of this method. From this desire for the approval of the parent there will gradually arise a desire for the approbation of one’s own conscience; then of all whose opinion is valued, and finally that of the Supreme Being. Confidence of Parents. If the child can be made to feel that the frequent approval of the lov- ing parent has resulted in securing the confidence of the parent, he will prize nothing better than the retention of that confidence. No pain will sink deeper into his soul than the temporary loss of this parental confi- dence. Influenced by other incentives and various considerations, the child will gradually form habits of action. These habits of action will tend to repeat themselyes. For this reason they will result in a strong though unconscious incentive to right conduct. Slowly there develops the idea that certain things should be done because they are right, and others avoided for the reason that they are wrong. While this idea is very weak at first, yet generally by the time the child enters school it has become apparent. While at this time the child’s principal law of conduct must still be the will of the parent or other one in authority, it should not be forgotten that embryonic conscience is striving feebly to see the light of duty. g The pleading of an enlightened conscience is the highest incentive to which any one can respond. This requires not merely that 4he child see what is right, but also demands a determination to do right because it is right. This means the culture of the will, that most important of all ob- jects of culture. ) AN \ HAS RAISED A STORM SRS AN AN EASTERN DIVINE’S STARTLING PLAN WHICH MONG the various problems with which the church of to- day has to deal there is none which concerns her more vitally than that of the saloon. She has come to regard the saloon and its accessories as her most formidable an- tagonist. She sees in it a menace to the moral and spi itual welfare of the rising generation. Being chiefly con- cerned herself with this phase of man’s life, she, therefore, views with jealousy and fear the growing influence of this foe, while, on the other hand, she beholds with sorrow and sadness the ap- parent loss of her own influence. A visit to most of our city churches on Sunday will reveal a congrega- tion composed chiefly of women, with a few gray-haired men, while the young men are notably absent. At the same time drinking resorts, clubs, bil- liard halls and kindred institutions will be doing a flourishing business. In the rura] districts, where churches are about the only attraction, the situatio~ | is different. The reason for this is not because men no longer recognize the worth of the church, nor because the church has lost its power or has served its purpose and is now in decay. The church je «till what it has ever been, the world's supreme instrument of good. | +h the same life and power as of old, and its mission is still unfulfille. No, the reason for the church’s failure to attract men is not because of any innate or essential weakness, but because she has failed to employ adequate means. She has relied too much 6on her essential power and has not sufficiently utilized human agency. She has gone on pursuing anti- quated and obsolete methods, while the saloon and allied powers have called to their aid every means at their command. The result is that opposing forces have augmented their attractive influence to such a degree that young men have been drawn away from the church and no longer come into contact with her essential power. The modern saloon is a palace of superficial splendor, employing all the most alluring arts in the interest of its cause. Within are to be found recrea- tion, divergence, excitement, amusement, refreshments, freedom, welcome, so- cial good fellowship and all those things which enable man to forget the more serious affairs of life and to indultu in a restful sort of pleasure that is sooth- ing, refreshing and invigorating after the intense strain of business. Un- fortunately, in addition to these healthful, and not undesirable, attractions, when indulged in temperately, there are other influences of an immoral and degrading character. Here. it seems to me, lies the chief danger of the sa- Joon. Eliminate the filth and immorality and substitute moral purity, and much of 'the danger will be averted. The time has come when we must lay aside sickly sentiment and irra- tional theories and take a practical view of the question. The saloon is here, a fixed institution, in our political and social life, to which it clings like a leech. It supplies certain elements which seem to be necessary in man’s life. There is a kind of “nervosity” characteristic of our age which makes a certain measure of excitement and diversion necessary in human life, In primitive times, when life was crude and physical force prevailed, men were content to sit down and rest after physical exhaustion. To-day brain force is the chief factor in human activity, and when the brain is weary the active mind secks rest in change of employment. The saloon of- fers the means of the mental rest which man seeks. And when I speak of the saloon I speak of it in the broad, general senise, as the center of various allied institutions, such as clubrooms, billiard halls, etc., which are included within its scope. Now, what is the remedy? The evil influence of the saloon, its antagon- m, spiritually, to the church, are facts generally conceded, but how to cure e evil is the question. We have tried prohibition, but prohibition does not prohibit. Substitution is now being tried. While this is a step in the right direc- tion, it is not adequate to meey the needs of the case. There still remains a remedy wikich as yet has not been employed in any very general sense, and that is church control. Let the church take charge of the saloon, purify and refine it, eliminating everything of an immoral na- ture and utilize it for its own profit. It has already done this with respect to billiards and pool and certain games formerly monopolized by the saloon, and it has been found beneficial. Why may the church not be benefited by control of the saloon? Thus she might establish a business department which in time would meet all ‘her running expenses. The time has come when she can no longer pose as a merely spiritual institution, but must reach out and lay her hands, so to speak, on all forms of human activity, business, social and spiritual. She must disarm her enemy, capture his guns, strip them of the insignia ?f crime, stamp them with a holier badge and employ them in her own de- ense. It is less difficult to make men see the folly of intemperance than to per- suade them to the necessity of total abstinence. Surrounded by right in- fluence, they will learn to use these things as they are intended, for the ad- vancement of their higher welfare. Besides, they will be in touch with the church and her spirit, and will gradually become molded in her ways of thought and life. C. W. SPICER.