The evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1907-1908, 1907-11-30
THE NEW BOOKS
'The France Of To-day an Interesting and informing
Book by Barrett WendelL--Hyra KelIy'S wards Of
Liberty" With a Sermon on Fighting by I.
Roosevelt Short Stories by TOlstOy-" Brun-
hides Paying Guest

tells It right out how he takes EN- und
gives 'en back.
Another very funny story and also a
most pathetic one is called "A Perjured
Santa Claus, and tells of 4 poor little boy
who thought Santa Claus had cheated him
by not giving him the things he wanted
for his mother, and who promptly took the
matter to the nearest police court and en-
tered a formal and successful complaint
against the patron saint of Christmas.
Though Miss Kelly holds the brighter
side of the picture cheerfully uppermost,
there Is always the tragic background of
ignorance and poverty. The pitiful con-
ditions described in THE Slaughter Of the
Innocents' are appalling witness to what
the workers who try to get these people
of the slums to help themselves are con-
fronted with.
Every one of the stories is good, and to
the truth of this there is attestation by
no less a critic than Theodore Roosevelt.
Mr.. Roosevelt wrote Miss Kelly a typical
little Roosevelt sermon, as follows:
Oyster Bay. N. Y, July rs, 1905.
My Dear Miss Kelly-Mrs. Roosevelt
and and most of the children know your
of East Side school children almost by
heart, and | really hin you must let me
write and thank You for them. While l
to the Houston Street Public School. and
was immensely Interested and Impressed
by what saw there. | thought there
the work they were doing among their
scholars (who were so largely of Russian
jewish parentage, like the children you
write or was very much like that your
Nov, Il word of preaching, not to Miss
Kelly, but to Miss Bailey, The scrape into
which Miss Bailey got by following, too
closely Messrs. Froebel and Peztalozzi
(and these eminent men, like most other
human beings. diluted their good work
with bad work. was because of not seeing
and. therefore, not telling the plain. whole
some truth. To try to teach her pupils
that there should never be any appeal to
force, when they lived under conditions
%Rlen m meant E diversion E MsIe n to the the Primitive n rdve
tinnally exercised ability of the father of
Patrick Brennan to cop with the Uncle
Abys, amounted merely TO the effort to
for one moment when they got outside of
the schoolroom, and | think 1t is an
abomination to teach people ideals that
standing as they ought to that it is only
false ideals which do not work. they in
SUCH cases generally jump to the conclu-
sion that no ideals at all will work. Teach
them that the wrong is not In fighting, but
in fighting for a wrong cause or without
full and adequate cause. and you teach
them what is true and right and what you
can act up to. But teach them that all
fighting Is wrong. that the wars of Wash
ington and Napoleon are of the same
stamp; that Lincoln and Attila are OH the
same ethical level. and the result is either
vicious or nil. II Miss Bailey's STEADY
the doctor, would not knock down a man
who had insulted her l would have a
mighty Door opinion of him; but If he
were brutal to the weak or a bully OF n
tyrant, would have an even worse
opinion of him..
There! / suppose l have been preaching
again, when ! only meant to write a word
OF thanks and appreciation. Sincerely
yours. THEODORE ROOSEVELT."