Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1903-06-25
COLBY.
Continued from page ~
ture will live only so long as it holds
out something beyond the superficial
attachments Of man."

attachments Of man."
Roger Frederick Brunei had a timely
and interesting subject on Wealth and
Culture" and discussed it in a fine
manner. His arguments were strong
and the tone of it all was good He
was given close attention throughout
Mr.. Brunefs article was a defense of
wealth and the pursuit of wealth as an
aid rather than a hindrahce to civili-
ZatiOn and culture I'm the United
States during the past century. A few
statistics were first given, showing the
wonderful increase of wealth in the
past so years. The speaker then went
on to show that in this same period in
which wealth had Increased the fast
est, the forces in our life that make
toward culture had also gained the
most in strength. He then called at
stention to the modern industrial sys-
tenn requiring enormous invested CAPT.
tai, a large part of which comes from
the products Of worthy men. The
large plants thus established not only
bring enormous profits to the in.
vestors, but through the economical
methods Of large scale production, can
afford to pay higher wages to their en-
nloyers. This last advantage, which
means the hetterment of the great mid
die class was shown to have a direct
influence on the improvement in social
conditions, since more must have
leisure time merely to support life in
order to take advantages of opportuni-
ties for education and the attainment
of culture. The fact often brought up
in criticism Of America, that 1t has as
yet produced no very valuable works
in art or literature was then noted but
was explained by the fact that the
American people have had vast coun-
try to settle and have at present hard-
1y made themselves at home in their
own land. ''3ut who will deny or
doubt" said the speaker. in closing,
that when we shall fairly have settled
down to enjoy our possessions, Ameri-
can fortunes, American enterprise,
American freedom of thought. and
American high ideals will bear fruit In
u CULTURE and q civilization that will
place us as we already are In the
realm of dollars and cents so also in
that of thought, In the front ranks
among the nations of the world"
lnere were put TWO speakers from
the women's division and Miss Grace
Eloise Warren was the first, taking
for her subject Emerson as Poet of
Nature" This was greatly enjoyed as
a careful and pleasing criticism OF the
we'll known New England writer. Miss
Warren said in part:
AS a prose writer Ralph Waldo
Emerson is no larger accorded the high
position that he held during hi; life
time and as Il poet he i not to DE
ranked with the greatest 10Th century
1nGlisb poets or even with cur own
Longfcllow Much Of his poetry is far
from being simple or scnSuouS OF pas
sionlte. Frequently he seems to have
quite forgotten that the end of poetry
is TO soath the cares and lift the
thoughts Of men. Often he has merely
put into verge thoughts that in ~"
sense can be called poetic. This
crittism does not apply, however, to
such of his poems as deal with nature.
AS Il poet of nature Wordsworth holds,
and probably always Will hold, supreme
place, but among the writer's OF tn"
new world Emerson has the best
claim to the title To both men nature
was the inspiration of tEcir best and
deepest thoughts. Although the num-
Der Of EmerSons Destructive nature
poems IL not large, yet it is very
evident that he delighted in the COM
partnership of the wild creatures Of the
earth and air that he was keenly alive
to the beauty of field and hill and per
Ccivcd the hand of the divine Creator
in the humblcst flower that grows.
Beauty, however, is not the only
W.
working of the physical world IS SYM
boic of the spiritual world. In it he
finds illustrations of the great princi-
pies of religion in the growth of the
plant or animal the souls stirring
after the Creator. In the grandcurs
OF MonadnoCk he finds inspiration to a
Erander life. In the mountain he sees
the type OF performances. Emerson has
followed out his own ideals FOR Il poet.
On the other hand when his poetry is
measured according to the high stand
ard set by the greatest 10Th century
poets it Is often found to be lacking in
the very elements of true poetry. A
great poet he was not. Yet out of the
mass of dull unintercsting rhyme there
appears IA short poem or Il few lines in
Il long one that fulfill all the require
ments for high poetic value
Sheppard Emery Butler defended in
dustrial combinations in an interesting
manner and with excellent force. He
showed careful study and thought
working out his subject with good
Judgment and arranging his argu-
ments with excellent effect, while his
subject and his manner of treating il
added interest. The following is an
abstract OF what he said:
In every age there have been conscr.
vatives who have been disposed to lool
askancc upon the schemes of the more
progressive. And well. too, for many
time In the history of the world the con
servNtive element has saved men from
destruction. But not always. Otter
the destruction from which men were t,
be saved has existed solely in the mind
of those who opposed the innovation
and the conservative element has ac
complished no more than to clog for
time the wheels OF progress. The truS
is the bugbear of the Goth century. OF
every hand We see it represented as