The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1900-06-18
HOW CITIES MAY BE GREAT.
REV. w. E. PARsON GAVE LESSONS
IN MUNICIPAL ECONOMY.

neutrality-suspicious. of the MAX
cation for Breaking Down the
Barriers of the Republic Is the
Claim of the Intention to Extend
the Sphere of Human WeIfare-Dr.
Parson Leaves To-day for New
berry, s. G.
Rev W. E. Pars n, D. D, pastor of the
Church of the Reformation in Washing
ton, preached yesterday morning at the
Lutheran Church of the Ascension. DIR.
Parson is a man of great erudition, and
his church is one of the most prominent
in Washington. Among his parishicners
is Hon. W. G. Brantley, member of Con-
gress from the Eleventh Georgia district.
DR.. Parson is man of great personal
charm, and his wide travels enable him
to talk interestingly of many lands. For
several years he was professor in the
University of Japan at Toxic filing tie
chair of glish. His stay among frieneds
in Savannah has been greatly enjoyed
He leaves to-day for Newberry, S. c.
where he will preach the baccalaureate
sermon.
The text for the sermon was drawn
from Revelations, PHO: He carried me
away in the spirit to a great and high
mountain and showed me that great city,
the holy Jerusalem, descending out Of
heaven from God"
There is much in the book of REVEAL
lions that reaches on into the ideal" Dr.
Parson declared. 1T describes what
ought to be, what some time will be,
which is SO far removed from what is
that we some ines imagine it a together
fanciful. But il is announced, on tie very
face of the terms used, that we are deal
ing with state not yet actualized. "IIe
carried me away in the spirit, and showed
me-" That describes a revelation. This is
the meaning of the holy term, the city
of Cod
The thing that stands out most prom
inently in such a description of an ideal
time, an ideal place, a perfect city is
that 1t so far outrunS all experience thai
men grow skapdcal, and say You show
us impossibilties. 1t is an iridescent
dream. Religion is full of unreahties.'
Now. I want to set forth the proposition
thai it is necessary to have the id al in
order to reach any actual result that will
be worth anything. More than that-this
ideal may seem the impossible, and the
unattainable, yet have great value, be-
cause of its influence upon the course of
everyday life.
The perfect city is a para BILE Here is
an idea that has taken hold of the mind
outside the religious use OF it. The happy
land lies somewhere. We can at least
think what it ought TO be like. The world
begins its story with Eden Paradise,
though it may be sunk with the lost AT
lantis, not to be found again in this
ar 4 1@ff Ill
literature, and has been reproduced often
in imagination. Plato's Republic More's
Utopia. Millions Paradise Regained,
Bellamys Looking Backward Bulwer's
Coming Race, and other similar writings
presuppose some ideal s ate to which the
coming race may attain. The very fac
that it has never been realiz d makes it
the more truly an object of ambition and
endeavor that we may demonstrate the
possibility of some time reaching the full
filment of our dream. The Christian mil
lennium is in line with this idea.
The making of an ideal city is a great
problem With many writer's the begin
nings of civilization are C incident with
the rise of The cities As, in dealing with
the human soul, some of the most fiji 7ult
questions arise t. late for the best tn at
ment Of them. After the city is founded
and its streets laid GU, without any fixed
plan, and the population has grown TO
perfect conditions, then a great deal of
mistake must be corrected. Not many
cities have the advantage of being
laid out by chart 100 years he
fore the real city begins. Some one has
said that for the true / fe OF a child You
must lock to influences that were at WORK
two or three hundred ears before it was
horn. There is much stress laid in these
days on heredity, but not too much
Moses put it into the commandments by
divine direction that We must
look to sce the results of evil
unto the third and fourth gen
Grations and we know row trat the
causes lie back beyond the third and
fourth generations preceding. Sturgeon
blamed his govt on his g, great grand
father. And if physical characteristics
run thrlush many 1eaeraDons, why
should it be deemed slraaSs that evil
should strike its roots back through IN
known yoars-even TO the very b ginning
of things? The doctrine of inherit evil
is a ctrlne of modern science.
THE remedy we must apply to the cur
ing of human ills is much like the Prob
lem of bringing the life of city to the
best material conditions 1t is che after
recovery from earlier errors. But we say
that what was not perfect at the tart
can be Iecia med and brought up to
Wholesome condition. No cns wants to
teach chat we are fallen beyond recovery.
The doctrine of tCtll q p aVity has been
made 10 carry too much secure gepent.
sometimes. Havana had four centuries Of
NTH. The city was a Veritable plague spot
Foul poos were IN the stre-is; the mar
Ike S were off nsive; the huzZards were the
scavengers; bad odors, bad sauitaion bad
government made il 50 foul that the
yellow fever has prevailed without in
terrupticn for 165 years. We lay too mu h
on Providence, and call that mys erous
which is an open working ont of cause
and effect. Yet Havana can be reclaimed
The yellow fever is prey entab disease,
and will be stamped ou- \ good Board
of Health is a means Of srace. 1t will
lake time, and the sacrifice Of life; but
IL is a certain possibility. Col War.ng,
who went down to inspect The sanitary
conditions in Havana, lost his life as a
result, himself dying with the yellow
fever. He saved others, himself he could
not save That is the law of salvau n
col. Waring said he could stamp out
the yellcw fever by the improvem nts he
suggested which would cost probab
S10,000,C00. But one epidemic introdu ca
into the United States from Havana
has cost the Mississippi valley $4,000 600
apart from the loss Of life, which in 1878
amounting to IA, 0O0 lives This Is the great
problem of civilization to redeem the
earth. It is the white mans BURDEN the
reward for bearing it Is to be found in the
regenerated earth.
1--WE see that the worst city can be
Ivan baa sYtFvr fats foo tsnrl