The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1909-04-09

u1tH. IO MIN " az III ttf 10NN VI 40
ture holds communion with her visible
forms, she speaks various language
but it is not until we reach mature
years that we realize how subtly the
variousness of her language depends
upon individual Interpretation. To the
superstitious, and TO the scientific mind,
nature 8 voice in the thunder storm
brings an entirely different message. To
the one, the tones Of an angry god, heard
in terror, must be answered by the ring
ing of bells TO propitiate the spirit of
punishment; to the other, this evidence
out of ten, been looked for and the time
of it's coming measured with nice eaieu
lalion. So, too, any appreciation OF
nature s economy IS dependent upon the
understanding mind. We speak OF the
ruthlessness of nature, Of the destruct-
iveness of nature, of the warning forces
of nature, and often fail to see law
and order in what seems elemental
chaos. But coming into a knowledge
observing the fact that nothing is vast
ed, that the prodigality of the oak as
it strews the hillside, or the lake it
overhangs, with seemingly wasted pol
len thus furnishes nourishment to
horde of insects, or adds TO the forest
loan or the silt of the lake; that the
rivers flow into the sea whence rise the
clouds that let fall the rain; that de-
nuded forest and rain-ravaged hill ultI-
mately become star-dust of which new
worlds are made-coming into such
knowledge we may well cry out tit is
too wonderful for ME, / can not attain
unto it.. Let nature alone and man s
existence ON this little planet seems of
slight import in the building of worlds
upon worlds.
But we come in from under the dome
of the universe, IN under the roof that
man has built and face the fact that
man as a mental and moral force has
entered the cosmos and, to be himself,
must play his part with the titanic ele-
ments. Fire, earth and water become
part of his life scheme. Moral life
demands self-preseryation, preservation
of the race, and so long as he exists
Recent study and investigation have
shown us how nature. both by the inter
play of her elements and by the con-
slant demand upon her by man, is be-
ing depleted as respects her lasting
value TO the race. In answer to the
hue and cry raised concerning this dis
covery comes he word Conservation.
1t is indeed the word of the hour.
When the ship is found TO be leaking
all hands turn to, to find and stop the.
leak. When the excheauer is low econ
omy must be observed.
Now if conservation is to mean any
thing at all it must imply concerted ac
tion To have concerted action there
must be concerted thought, or that mag
ic power known as public opinion, But
public opinion does not spring from
the head of god in full armor as did
Athena, it is rather a giant that is
first Graded as a helpless infant-the
right idea in the minds of a few. Where
is this infant to be born but in the
homes of each and all of US, to be n0ur-
ished as we nourish our children and
to grow with them to full power? Final
" we come to the conviction that the
woman in the household, the mother of
the family. is to do or is to shirk
great duty in the development of pub
lie poinion. Moreover, did she but
realize it she holds in her hands won
derful possibilities as an actual con-
server of natural resources.
Let us turn our attention to the
duties and the opportunities of the
mother of family in this regard. See
her, by studying the drafts in the stove,
make each stick of fuel give its full
value of heat; break off the faded rose
and plant the stem; carefully guard the
eggs for a setting; prune or bud the
orange tree; shield one plant from wind
and another from overdoses of water,
another from drought; trim the tree
of too dense growth that the sun may
sweeten the pasture beneath it; gather
the fallen pods of the saman as fer
tilizer for flowers and the beans of the
algaroba as fodder for animals; as
carefully prevent water from rum
ming to waste as she would prevent
destructive fire. IF water, replenlshed
soil, and forests are natural resources,
of how much greater value, she reasons,
is the vital force of the sentient being.
kindness. she discovers, is the efficacy
of protecting animal life. Proper feed
ing and care of domestic animals bring
their reward in prolonged and effective
service.
But in all these directions the mother
of family is performing small task
when we consider her work as
guardian and promoter of health. Com
pared with the conservation OF river
and forest, the maintenance of pubic
health is of intellectually greater value.
This in substance has been the reiter-
ated statement of Theodore Roosevelt
echoed over the country by publlc
speaker and public press. To how great
degree the public health IS IN the
hands of the mothers Of families It IS
impossible TO say, but if there were
general intelligence and wisdom IN
dealing with daily and hourly. eondI-
tons of children from birth to adult
wears how vastly different would be
this world of ours. Let no woman be-
L 10