The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1906-12-03

Sc is happiness. 1t is the summum
! bonum. 1t is what makes heaven: II
| is the state produced by pleasure. Pain
! is natural evil, and to be avoided, and
vet it is often a relative good, as it
| enables us to appreciate pleasure, and
| to know good and evil.
All our lives we have been taught
| the duty of goodness, and we have been
told "Be good and you will be
happy"
duty of happiness; it has not been
said: "Be happy and you will be
good. Yet there is the duty of hap
| piness as well as the duty of good
ness.
Indeed, moral goodness is good for
| nothing in itself-is not a good per Sc,
| but only good for anything when and
because it promotes happiness.
Men should aim, not to be good, but
rather to do good. The be-goods be-
lieve, or pretend to believe, dogmas,
| creeds and doctrines, and receive them
as a sort of charm or fetish to secure
eternal happiness for themselves. Too
| often society and church membership
| is subjectively an insurance policy
against fire in the next world.
On the other hand, the do-goods aim
at happiness both for themselves and
for others. They do good and promote
| happiness, fire or no fire.
| This is benevolence, or love, OF
charity-call it what you will. 1t is
simply, the willing of-the- good.
| This is often lost sight of by those
who would save themselves by being
good. The be-goods are selfish. The
| do-goods are the true followers of Him
who went about doing good, and taught
| that God is Love.
| The Society of Elks is but one of
| many organizations of man based upon
| some great truth, but it is the only
| one | know of whose one basic and
| only aim is happiness: Not future hap
| piness, but now, and the always now
| is always the eternity.
Thirty -eight years ago, had man
said: II am an Elk and talked of
| Elkology, Elkdom, of the Herd, and of
Antlers, and of B. P. o. E., he would
| have been considered insane and con
| fined in a madhouse. Now, over a
| quarter million of our sanest and best
men are saying * am an Elk and
use the terms Elkdom, Elkology, Herd
| Antlers, etc.
What has brought this apout2 Not
deep philosophy or mystic rites; not
| the plans or foresight of the founders
| of this order; not beliefs. or faiths, OF
| knowledge; not the moral goodness OF
| the men who were first to call them
| selves Elks; not wealth or high sta
| ton; not aid from the state or nation
| or from any association or combination
| of them; not any or all of these things
| but simply because the idea of the
order is based upon doing good, and
| the order is composed of do-goods as
| distinguished from be-goods.
A few men, mostly actors and artists
| united to aid each other To do each
| other good, and to make each other
| happy. They had no great ambition
no great knowledge or foresight They
| simply had mutual happiness in view.
| They called themselves 1.-THE Jolly
| Corks''
But happiness was secured, and then
| they decided to form a more permanent
society with more appropriate name.
They chose the name of a strong, innO-
cent, harmless, fleet footed, noble
| minded animal, and called themselves
Elks
The Elks have made no great pro-
fessions, but have simply had happiness
in view, and their motto is Do good. -
They are dO-goods. They do not claim
to be be-goods.
Elkology deals with charity, fidelity,
justice, loyalty, brotherly love, and ali
for happiness, not for goodness. Their
unprecedented increase has been due to
the fact that happiness has been their
ultimate aim, and to be brought about.
not by being good, but by doing good.
They did not profess to be good.
They did not profess to act for the
glory of God. They protested nothing
godly, or righteous, or sacred. They
did not claim to make men holy or to
save their souls. They simply banded
themselves together to promote hap
piness, to do good. and pleasure or
happiness was the good they aimed at,
and, as we said before. it is the only
good per Sc.
The Society of Elks in this respect
stands alone among the multitude Of
associations. churches. societies and
orders. 1t is the one Abou Ben Adhem
of them all.
The Benevolent Protective Order of
Elks has claimed no holiness Yet Nv
simply doing good it has been, in every
cline, where floats the stars, and stripes,
written down as BEST People on
Earth. -
It's simplicity, modestv and history is
der the title: "Abou Ben Adhem and
the Angel. -
Abou Ben Adhem (may his tribe in
crease!)
Awoke one night from a deep dream of
peace
And saw. within the moonlight in his
room,
Making it rich, and like lily in bloom,
An angel writing in a book of gold:
EYcnnlincr IL Do A