Evening star., 1897-03-06

this line, when l was listening to the lee
ture l have spoken of,g4and as l sat there
that afternoon. among SO many others who
like myself. were hungry for the words of
the speaker and yet We're suffering SO in
the body while our minds and hearts were
fed, thought. oh! what a glorious thing
Out of the depths of Despair.
it would be for poor hot, tired, discouraged,
struggling humanity toy have some spot On
earth where our bodies, might be refreshed
and our souls revived at the same time
some cool, green spot, where one could rest
in midsummer and hear words like those
We are receiving Under such discomfort to-
day. In this connection 1 thought instantly
of Green Acre, quaint inn near my own
home at Eliot, Maine which had acquired
an air of singular repose from having been
a favorite retreat of Whittier and his
friends. To convert this place and its
beautiful surroundings into Gods acre
tor the living became Instantly almost a
passion with me- but the dream did not
then seem In any way possible for me to
iealize, except by means of money, and 1
looked to my father to supply me this
My father was an inventor Moses Car
rish Farmer. He had our house at Eliot
lighted by electricity and he had an cleo
= triE car IN operation ,1s, IN his laboratory when
and his family with him had suffered
everything through his devotion to his
IDEAS and at last his inventions had been
Drought Where ne was to realize fortune
from them l thus had every reason to ex-
pect it would be simple enough to carry
out my dream when 1t came to me- but
the same week my father died, his for
tune unreaiized. and there was no promise
in life for me that my dream was ever
to be fulfilled / went that year with
Mrs Ole Bull to Norway and spent a year
there with her, apart from the world Dur
ing TINS time l was unconsciously learn
ing how to live independent of the world
and how to do independent of the worlds
means of doing. / returned to this coun-
try the year of the worlds fair. and one
day as l stood In the midst of the exhibit
of my fathers inventions there looking
at portrait of him mounting guard over
the unfrutful sum of his life's great un-
dertaking, l thought again yearningly of
the dream had had and of how happy
he would have been could he have lived to
help me realize it. Standing thus and
dreaming. the words My grace shall be suffi-
cient unto you; power is perfected through
weakness came into my mind with such
distinc tness and force as to seem like a
spoken message. and at the same time
there came into my heart the determine
ton to shape my dream in earthly stuff
to do it; simply that to do it.
Much Talk, but No Money.
when I came to consider how, l had the
vague expectation that if l interested
friends with wealth in it, they would pro-
vide the necessary money and so | began
talking to my friends. but somehow. talk
ed anything and everything l wanted but
money. The consequence was the spring of
"a found me with a current of interest in
my enterprise moving so strong as to carry
me on its wave. but no money provided o.
promised to assist me- / had no money of
my own, but / had faith in the right direc-
ton of my impulse, and / believed so i'm
piicitly that l went to work in faith: start
ed the Green Acre school on faith. and it
has been succeeding faith ever since |
have never lacked for money yet l ask
money of no one; everything at Green Acre
the best thought of the world in science
philosophy. literature. religion, music and
arts to be had free as air by any one who
wants 1t, and it seems 20 me, after three
years test am warranted in believing it
is literally true that ii seek first the
Kingdom of heaven. all things necessary
will be added to us. l am l have
found the philosophers stone. and it is on
this. as a corner stone that Green Acre
has been built" e
Like every paradise Green Acre neces-
Sarily is barred against certain elements
Critics and iconoclasts may not enter there.
throughout the SUMMER eminent scholars
lecture on a universal range of topics but
only such men and women are permitted
| to speak there haVa sufficient breadth of
! thought to perceive that all honest effort
whatever It's direDtion. whatever its FORM
| is obedent to the same law; and Is a
manifestation of one, same spirit. Thus all
minds work in harmony. and the gods of
the HfndoO. Jew and Christian. of all sects
OF the rich and of'the poor are served in
jubilee of peace. L have named some of
the well-known men who lecture at Green
Acre. Among a large number OF others are
Swami ViraghaDdi, j. u. Cola of Bombay
Rabbi Flescher. Rabbi SCHNEIDER. VIM r.
| Alger. the transcendentalist; Arthur w
| Dow of Pratt Institute, Prof John FiSke
Prof Jos. LIE Conte. Prof. e. A. Cope of
| the University of Pennsylvania, E. S.
Morse. the naturalist: Or. Lewis G. James,
| president of the Brooklyn Ethical Associa-
| ton. Prof. Lester F. Ward of the Smith
| sonian, Frank D. Sanborn of the old Con-
| cord School of Philosophy. Charles Malloy.
upon whom Emerson's mantle has fallen:
| Mrs. Ole Bull. Mrs. Ellen A. Richardson
| Miss Helen Campbell. Edwin Elwell. the
| sculptor; Miss Frances Alberta Dougherty
| the Catholic writer; Miss Sadie America.
| secretary of the National Association of
| Jewish Women.
Some of the Takers.
Last summer Edward Elwell gave talks
| on art his classes assembling in the pine
groves, and last summer. also. a school of
| music. of which Miss Farmer had long
| been dreaming. was realized-a school that
| studies music according to the principle of
| concentration. and which incidental to it's
| work opens and closes all the regular lee
| lures with music. Another dream Miss
! Farmer has had from the beginning of
| her undertaking was also realized last
| summer. 1t was the establishment at
| Green Acre of the Monsolvat school cf
| comparative religions. with DIR. James at
| the head The aim of this Is to inform
| would-be missionaries of the truth con-
| tained in all religions. that whoever may
| go to carry the benefits of Christian civil
ization to any unfortunate people. may
| Know where their gods stand in the d-
| vine economy. and instead of doing vio-
| lence to their faith and destroying their
| altars. build them up higher. to enshrine
| the God of gods. This school has con-
| tinued in session during the winter at the
| he me Of Mrs. Ole Bull at Cambridge.
| Recently the represe ntative liberal think
| ers OF America met in congress In
| dianapolis-Dr. Thomas, Heber Newton.
Jenkin Lloyd Jones. Paul Carus. etc.-and
| made liberal provision to promote the aim
of the Green Acre school. either by estab-
fishing similar school in the west. or by
| joining forces with Miss Farmer at Green
| Acre. Their course was left to Miss Far
mer to determine. and she decided that
they should join her at Green Acre the
coming summer and the year following
project school in the west.
When Miss Farmer finished telling me
the story of how her dream has come
true. l was filled with wonder touched
fear with envy. not so much because OF
what she has accomplished, as that a wo-
| man should have the courage for the un-