The Washington herald., 1910-06-06
G. Y. j. CLASS TOLD
MAPS STUNT LIFE
DR.. Roland C. Smith breaches
Baccalaureate.
SCENES IN OLD ST. JOHNS
Including Goods, who Are
20 Receive Diplomas To-day at Be-
InacO. Headed by President Need
ham for Last Time in Procession.
Advised on Need of Imagination.

Headed by the faculty in bright-hued
academic robes the graduates Of George
washington University. including twelve
co-eds. wearing caps and gowns marched
in stately procession up H street to
81. Johns Episcopal Church yesterday
afternoon to hear the baecalaureate ser
mon.
The service was the opening of COM
mencement week, and tomorrow morn
ing the young men and women who lis
tened TO the sermon Of good advice by
Rev. Roland Cotton Smith yesterday VIII
receive their sheepskins.
Nearly fourscore graduates OF the
academic college and the schools or law
and medicine marched to St. johns. The
procession, led by President Needham
| for the first time. formed in the university
| building Fifteenth and streets IL
moved slowly through a dTizzlng RAM
two squares TO the old Episcopal church.
The sidewalks were lined with spectators
After a service OF prayer. with inspiring
anthems by St Johns boy choir, Dr.
Smith preached a common-sense sermon
! that will live long In the memories or
those who heard IT,
Taking for his text that passage OF
| the Psalms which begins, Compass the
world; they that dwell therein" Dr.
Smith declared the greatest evil Of mod
ern education is the use of maps.
Give Wrong Conception.
He said fat maps give a wrong eoncep-
ton OF the world He blamed the de-
cadence OF the art OF dreaming and I'M
agitation upon the habit OF teaching
children to see the world spread fat be-
| fore them with a heaven above and a
! hell beneath II this same knowledge
Of geography, he declared. were taught
with globes, men and women would ap-
preciate the poetry Of curves and the
beauty Of round world enveloped In Its
! own heaven.
The use of maps" he asserted. SIS in
! part responsible for the evils OF section
alism and provincialism. The daily use
of maps by children encourages the pref
udices we are already prone 20 have.
They take away the poetry: they kill
the imagination, and prevent that con-
| ception of the infinite which comes so
readily with the realization Of a round
world. swinging in its orbit
"Selfshness and prejudice grow out OF
/ the map idea-believe you are the center
OF the great round world instead of the
center Of your little fiat State OF coun-
try. Then you will not know class pref
udice and seetIonalism will be stranger
10 you.
Young men and women learn that the
stars are beautiful before you try to find
out what they are made Of. You have
now rounded out one of the circles OF
your life. and the great arc of the future
lies before you.
"Create Thine Own World"
poetry. immaginatlon-whie Is the frs,
step toward creation-and the stuff that
dreams are made OF. Then you can be
the creator OF your own material world.
and you will know happiness.
IF you have the globe sense of rounded
beauty you will build this world beauti-
full. You should be able to spell synthesis
before you learn TO spell analysis Live
first in a world OF poetry Give rein 10
your imagination. Thus will mere ma
terialism be stamped out and your creation
will be beautiful"
DR.. Smith said the age is splendidiy
scientific but too coldly analytical He
declared we are prone to dIssect when we
should build. The materialistiC attitude
of the latter day world ne asserted, Is
due to the f1at-map idea that narrows
each mans world down TO his particular
|. corner OF II.
The principal fault he had TO find with
modern education Is the tendency 10 dis
regard the warmer arts that stimulate
the imagination. in favor of the colder
science OF analysis. Theology, he de-
clared, is an enhancing study TO every
. man or woman who has the broader globe
idea, and whose mind has not been stunt
ed by the narrow conceptions of fat-maE
geography.
At the conclusion of the service. the
1 procession formed again and marched
back to the university st. Johns Church
was filled to it's capacity.
The commencement exercises will bt
held at the Belasco Theater at 1913
o'clock this morning. II will be followed
by meeting of the trustees at l o'clock
The remainder OF the week has been di
vided into programme Of social and for
NAL events.