The San Francisco call., 1899-09-17


ing to hear me at Rondebosch
church," and Mr.. Rhodes said, NO
sir l have got my own chapel. Inc
Bishop said, Where is it?" and he re-
piled, 1T Is UP the mountain" The
fact was, If he might take them into
his confidence, that he did not care 10
go to a particular church on one day IN
the year when he used his own chapel
at all other times. He found that up
that mountain one got thoughts-what
| they might term religious thoughts, be-
cause they were thoughts for the bet
terment of humanity, and he believed
that was the best description of relig-
ion-to work for the betterment Of hu-
man beings who surround us"
Going TO a, mountain to get thoughts
for the betterment of humanity Is good
exercise, but Mr.. Rhodes should have
remembered that Satan's plan Of
temptation has been known to include
taking one to the pinnacle of a noun
tain, showing him all the surrounding
country and Offering him the kingdom
If he would bow down. Is Mr.. Rhodes
quite certain that when from the top Of
his favorite mountain he looks over
into kruger's country, he has always
said with f1rmness: Get thee behind
me, Satan?
In these days when the discontented
are doing so much of the talking it is
pleasant to know there is one man of
a cheerful disposition and easily salts
fed who has sufficient rank in the
world to compel attention when he
yichn 70
good humor to say something comfort
ing when he has attention. That happy
parsonage is the Car of Russia, and
he has been pleased to notify the ma
tions that he is satisfied with the re-
suits of the Peace Conference. In their
note the Ministers who represented
him at the conference and who speak
for him say:
1T has been found necessary for the
conference to postpone definite set
tlement of the complicated question of
the suspension of ornaments until
fully elucidated by the different Gov
ernments. Nevertheless" they add,
the tightening of military burdens is
already admitted by unanimous reso-
luton to be urgently desirable for all
nations"
Language of that kind from such a
source is charming. The babblers of
the world have been complaining that
the conference accomplished nothing,
and Judging from their reports it would
be supposed a man who was pleased
with the results wouldn't be discon-
tented if he stuck a nail in his foot.
Now comes the man who called the
conference and he tells his people they
got their moneys worth. Surely it is
better to be Car and havea contented
mind than to be a critic and have
nothing but an inclination to be un-
happy; better to be satisfied with even
so windy thing as a unanimous
resolution" than not to be satisfied at
all.
lurid contemporary which pub
lfshed last Sunday full page account of
alleged bacchanalian revels and drunken
orgies at a resort where good folks
spend the summer and musical young
men sing sweet songs to the maiden
moon apoIogized later on by declaring
the publication was an 'fnadvertence'
AS the style Of the article was even
more highly colored than the many
IlUCb SeIdI VI d plSlu1c llidl lIluSll dleQ
it, the apology has been received with
hesitation If the paper had frankly
admitted that the whole "colored sup
plement" was mental alteration, the
explanation would have been sufficient
and satisfactory.
That Voltaire was right in defining
history as "a fable agreed upon" has
been proven anew by a fresh illustra-
tion of the difficulty of learning the ex>
act truth concerning even contempo-
rary events. The Society of Architect
ural Iron Manufacturers of New York
determined a short time ago to erect
a tablet commemorating the inventor
of what is known as skeleton con-
struction" now so frequently used In
the larger structures in our cities; but
when they set about the work they J
found half a dozen claimants for the
honor and the advocates of each cited
some particular building as the earliest
example of the construction which has
revolutionized architecture and made
the skyscraper possible. Such a dis
pute would appear to be easy of solu-
tion, but it isn't. The more the subject
is investigated the farther back can the
system be traced. 1t was used In Lis
bon after the great earthquake, ac-
cording to good authorities, and before
the controversy is over We shall prob
ably have some antiquarian inform us
it was used at the Tower of Babel
Meantime a pretty little side dispute
has cropped out. Chicago AYERS 1t is
tmpudence on the part of New York to
erect a tablet for such purpose and
vehemently claims the first skyscraper
as her own.
That spirit of the age which moves
men to join with one another and organ
ize clubs, unions, leagues, societies, as
sociations and combinations Of all sorts
has been potent in this country, but
even more potent in Great Britain. So
numerous and SO strong have the va
rious organizations become in that
kingdom the people who do not belong
to one or more of them are in danger
of being crowded off the island. Hence
there has arisen a burly British oppo-
sition to the spirit and as result there
has been started in Birmingham a new
oh ic