The Washington herald., 1908-07-05

Five hundred years hence" said the
philosopher-and paused to throw a peb-
bic into the sea.
/ "Yes?" said J. couragingly-thinking
that man who could look 500 years
aPead ought 10 have something interest
ing to say.
This mighty power Of the sea waves
said the philosopher in the Baltimore
American, will plow the field and scatter
the grain. light the parlor lamp and I'll
the saltwater swimming pond which VIII
/ be attached 10 every citizens house"
/ Ies2' said I, for more encouragement.
4 Five hundred years hence" Wnt on
this wise one. 1--WE shall be able 20 see IN
the dark-like the cats and the owls. We
shall have hneertips to feel with as SEN
sitive as a leopard's whiskers. We shall
be able TO see TO any distances. 10 speak
and hear from any distances. We shall DO
able TO record our thoughts in permanent
form as swiftly and easily as we think
them. And every one Of US will be able
10 fly"
with what result2' I inquired
That we shall seldom do anything Of
the sort. Mans great object Will be 10
discover the simplest possible mode OF
life, that mode from which he can draw
most happiness. We have not found In
the past that roller skates. for an ex-
ample. or railways, or telegraphs have
added anything 20 the progress Of hap
piness-rather the contrary; and so In
the future though a man can hy 20
Jericho II he wishes or make himself
invisible at Will. or argue in Baltimore
with a friend In Pekln. he VIII prefer IN
the ordinary way TO take q quiet coun-
try walk on his two legs. The great
triumphs Of science" said the philosO-
pher. derived from an understanding OF
nature. VIII be employed for the simpii-
fication of life.
No One I'm "a Hurry
There will be no railways so years
hence. There viii be no telegraph lines,
no motor cars. no draft horses. There
VIII be no things Of leather. things Of
WOOL fur coats. or feather adornments.
No coal viii be employed, or coal min
ers. coal scuttles, or coal gas There viii
win DE no gallows for hanging men. no
policemen. no prisons. Since meat or fish
never viii be eaten, there will be no
butchers or fish mongers Brutal in
stlncts wifi have been eliminated. with
the consequence that there viii be no
fox hunting. fishing or shooting; DO
blood sports. IN a word; and no one VIII
dream OF taking conscious animal life
for food or clothing"
What. then. shall we eat and what
wcar?"
Very little food VIII suffice US in those
days. We shall have fruits all the year
round; peaches viii be as plentiful in jan
uary as are blaczberres now in July:
and we shall live chiefly on fruit and
milk. Lobster salad. pate-de-fois-grss.
ortolan on tcast. devned crabs-they VIII
be regarded as we now regard the an
cient Emperor's dish Of nightiugaIes'
tongues. At the same time, It IS quite
likely that we shall go back 20 Rome
OF Athens f0r some ideas-such as cloth
ing. There VIII De no fashions, but me
simplest garments. allowing free access
Of sun and air. VIII Dee worn-no petit
coats no trousers
And this reminds me. When an
American meets a Greek 800 years hence
he win be able 20 speak 70 him a7
though he were a brother; al the people
who count in the world VIII De able 20
speak "a common language. Writing bv
the way. VIII be in q form Of phonetic
shorthand
An End TO All Wars.
"Of course. there VIII be no wars, or
rumors of wars"
The lion VIII lie down with the
lamb?'I hazarded.
Natures great law OF preyinr~ said
the philosopher. will remain una.tereG.
Five hundred years hence. as now. there
VIII be masters and servants leaders and
led, superiors and interiors alike among
nations and among individuals There
viii be- rich men and poor, wise men and
foolish, strong men and weak. So much
for equality.
AS 10 liberty. do you suppose that go
years hence q man VIII be free 10 smoke
or drink whisky. OF bet on horse race2r
II not said !, how shall we amuse
ourselves"
In the Old, old ways" said the philos-
opher. Not by going to musical come
dies or acting like p5aCOcSs. We shall
prefer 10 find CCntentment by digging IN
our gardens. or walking on the hills. or.
above ali. in philosophy.
An Era of Simplicity.
eve shall be lcisurely people 500
years hence; but not lazy, We shall not
allow the best hours of the day to go 10y
while we lie in bed. In summer we shan
be up and about by o'clock, as a mat
Ter Of course. and we shall 20 TO bed.
like the day birds when the sun sets. IN
winter we shall be content with shorter
days and longer periods of sleep. There
viii be no waste of daylight and SO
there will be less 10 employ artificial
light
Il say il viii be the era Of simplicity.
The result OF our simple ways and our
simple days wiz be that we shall live 10
great ages; 20 live 80 years viii be moth
ing unusual Accidents VIII be few and
Tar between; and doctors will Rave little
10 do. since nearly every one will be
healthy
Looking down from height on our
life OF to-day. how foolish it appearst
We work furiously. play furiously-for
what noble objects2 Climb 10 q noun
tain top. and behold a silk hat Think
lf what "A man suffers every morning
who would keep himself Clean-shaven.
Ponder on the labor Of letter writing
with pen and ink. Reflect on the bar
parity Of earrings. Then look back on
1ur life Of to-day from 800 years hence.
md tell me what you think of H."
But my thoughts were with The cuus.
;WOOping over the blue waves