Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1910-05-17
THE ENDURING POWERS OF ON
CIVILIZATION.

One of the most interesting discuss
sions that learned men at times in
dulge in is that relative to the pres
ent civilization and it's powers of
endurance compared with those of the
ancient civilizations that in their day
were regarded as established forces,
but which, from multiplicity of
causes. decayed and were finally sub
merged and destroyed, leaving, in some
instances, only a few shattered ruins
to tell of their grandeur, and in others,
as in tie case of Greece, works of art
and literature. that are still the marvel
and the envy of cultured mankind.
The chief basis upon which men
today build their hopes of the per-
maneney of our present civilization
is that it is more and. more resting
on the great underlying principle Of
the Christian faith, brotherly love, that
the recognition of the duties of fra
,ernity grow stronger with every gem
Grafton, and that nations are being
slowly but surely welded together
through the unifying power Of the
Christian faith. No one can dispute
that religion of pure type, sucn as
( Christ anity is, can do more than all
other agencies to sustain civiliza-
ton. Intellect and its wonderful
fruits have no such restraining, up
lifting and soHdifying influence as
the creed taught by the Nazarene and
now pushing its way into every corner
of the globe.
Every teacher today recognizes the
need of a high religious spirit in a
people if it is to survive. Even Roose-
gelt, apostle Of the strenuous, lays
stress upon this. The things for
which he pleads are after all but the
outgrowth Of the personal application
TO tie individual life of the teachings
of Christ. In this connection the les
son he drew from his study of an.
eient Civilizations, in his recent ad-
dress on The Progress of Man," is
Of interest. Said he before the Uni
versity of Berlin.
Personally, l do not believe that ou1
civilization will fall. I think that on
5he whole we have grown better
and not worse. I think that on the
whole the future holds more for us
than even the great past has held
But assuredly the dreams of COLDER
glory in the future viii not come true
unless, high in heart and strong OF
hand, by our own mighty deeds We
make then come true We cannot af
ford to develop any one set of quail
ties, any one set of activities at The
cost Of seeing others equally necessary
atrophied. Neither the military eff
cheney of the Mongol, the extraordi
nary business ability of the Phoeni
clan, nor the subtle and polished in
tellect of the Greek availed to aver
destruction.
We, the men of today nd of The
: future, need many qualities if we art
to do our work We'll. We need first O
all and most important of all tn,
qualities which stand at the base o
individual family life, the Fundamental
and essential qualities-the homely
everyday, all-important virtues. If tn,
average man will not work, if he hal
not in him the viii and the power :,
be a good husband and father; if thu
4 average woman is not a good house
Z wife, a good mother of many health
, children, then the state will topDle
. will go down, no matter what may b.
It's brilliance Of artistic development
: or material achievement. But thes
e homely"quaIities are not enough. Their
Q must in addition be that power of or
! ganization, that power of working Il
common for a common end which In
German people have shown in sucl
4 signal fashion during the last half
Y century Moreover, the things of TIN
spirit are even more important thai
the things of the body We can vel
( do thOut the hard intolerance AM
d avid intellectual barrenness of wha
a was worst in the theological system
+ of the past, but there has never beer
! greater need of a high and fine reIig-
- ious spirit than at the present time
| 80 while we can laugh good humor
t eddy at some of the pretensions O
n modern philosophy in its varion
j. branches it would be worse than foil,
on our part to ignore our need q
I intellectual leadership.
e $500 $3.50
S 1t is no impossible dream to built
up a civilization in which morality
> ethical development and a true feelin,
Of brotherhood shall all alike he di
yorced from false sant'mentalftv an,
= from the rancorous and evil passion,
WhicE curiously enough SO often ac
company professions Of sentimental at
fachment to the rights of man. II
= which high material develonmen.
= in the things of the body shall hi
achieved without subordfnation Of tn,
tn ngs of the soul, in which there
snail be genuine desire for peac,
and justice without loss of those vir
! lie qualities without which no love y
: peace or justice shall avail anv race
N which the fullest DEVELOPMENT q
scientific research, the great distin.
> gushing feature Of our present civil.
: IzatIon shall yet not imply a belle
tn. intellect can ever take the nlact
OF eharacter-for, from the stand
point of the nation as of the individual
it is character that is the one vita
possession.