The Goodland republic. [volume] (Goodland, Kan.) 1891-1907, 1905-09-01
What Is the Matter
With Society?

reasonable pleasures
Take first Of all, the duties. re-
member speaking once TO a young
wife VINO was lunching with me about
the tyranny Of the card case When
invite people to come to live in Ease
London the chief attraction which I
put before their eyes is that they es-
cape the tyranny Of the card case
She said-and felt that II was per
fectly true-''WeIl, bishop, ! feel this:
Ny husband goes down to the city ev-
cry day, ard I think it part Of MY
positive duty that I should Keep UP
his acquaintance and retain his
friendships for him He is hard at
work and I owe this duty 20 kim It
does seem to me, confess, ii tOilsOme
| business-that card .asa-going
l round day after day, as SO many have
TO do. especially, perhaps, i young
married woman. T INST be often a
real toll, and yet haze felt that 1t is
q social duty which many have 10
/ discharge. Or again, wcen some
girl, who has, perhaps, Just come
out" finds that her mother has ar
ranged certain things for her in so
cfety, I should say that it is positively
wrong for her to derange all her
mothers plans. There are social du-
| ties and also there are social pleas
l together and enjoy ourselves?
am not going to talk much about
/ bridge, but my firm belief is that #
I is far better for girls and young mar
ried women not to play for money. I
have known Of a number Of girls in
! country houses and in society who
/ have been put in most uncomfortable
| positions by losing money over bridge.
/ Therefore, I am quite clear that from
/ every point Of view it is best not to
/ play for money. have spoken about
| the subject to some Of the best known
1 nostesses in London. and find that
/ the best Of them, who have cOnsidera-
/ ton for the younger people, always
| arrange at their various parties to
/ have two or three tables at which the
l play is not for money, and am per-
| sectly certain that many young men
| who would be far too shy to claim it
/ for themselves would only be too
| thankful if they themselves could be
| saved from losing the money which
/ they can i'll afford to lose.
It is not that a game Of cards for
/ the love Of the thing is wrong. It is
not that going to the theater is wrong
/ in itself, if the play is a good one It
/ is not that any amusement in itself is
! wrong as a recreation, but it is the
| recurrence OF these things over and
| over again, hour after hour, absorb
ing all the energies; recreation thus
| takes the place Of real work, and time
| that was meant for educating the
mind and spirit goes in mere amuse-
nent- That is really where the fault
lies, and such a life produces a rest
/ sessness Of spirit. That is what I find
s the mischief more than any one
| definite sin. There is a kind Of rest
| ,essneSs in society.
Now, the law Of proportion is a
/ beautiful law Of God. All Gods works
are beautifully ordered because the
! law Of proportion governs them all.
Look over your lives and see whether
they have the law Of proportion in
them How much time is spent over
/ this or that to which you are devot-
.ng, and have devoted in the past,
several hours day? How much
time and thought is spent over dress
L am one OF those who believe that it
s absolutely wrong TO imagine that
there is any virtue in being dOwdy,
md would go 50 far as to say that
{ is almost a duty for every woman
n every rank Of life to try to make
the best Of her dress with her means
But still ask whether the amount OF
time and thought that is spent over
dress is not out Of all proportion to
the Importance of the matter. Think
how you have gone on with your eJu-
cation, which began. perhaps, at some
good school. and think how much
will depend in the future on your
value and interest, if you marry the
companion Of your life. Perhaps YOU
may marry and find that all your in
tellectuaI life has been running to
seed, and all the powers that yOI
night have deVc-, ID have c,'.-ie II
nothing. Surely It IS time to 10 ~ 81
The proportion Il things
Have amUsements by all means At
you age, OF course, you must have
amusement and recreation in your
life; but do have your life laid out
with prayer to start with, and with
some reading in the morning, some
Dit OF time laid aside to visit any one
IF your acquaintance who is sick or
II, or some one who is a little dull.
Have all that laid out in the day, 50
that at the end Of the day at your
evening prayers you may look back
and see that that law Of proportion
has governed the day which God has
given you.
The reason why am so keen about
the law OF service IS that il IS service
for the Master that makes one real
re what religion is. do not rem
emDer myself realizing at all what
religion meant until 1 was in the
midst OF 1000 poor people in my first
CuraCy- I found myself suddenly
looked upon as a sort OF earthly pro-
whence, and it was a surprise to me
that they should look to me for sym
pathy and help.
Do get out Of perpetuaIiy saying,
I wonder what people think Of me-"
or How shall enjoy myself2'' It is
then that you viii begin to under
stand what life Is 1 am certain that
il IS not when We are fretting against
the wharf Of our miserable selves and
asking what people think about US
and how we shall get on, but il is
when We cut the ropes which bind Us
ourselves and we 90 out into the
ocean with the wind Of the spirit
over Us and the waters OF humanity
under US that we know the true JOY
Of man or woman, boy or girl There
fore, we 90 not get TO know true JOY
without the law OF service
I do not imagine for a moment that
young girls can 80 into the east end
OF London by themselves at night ,
Some one said to me the other day
You DO not mean to say that you
think my two young daughters can 90 |
and spend their time in Bethnal !