Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1911-06-24
WIN PRIZES.
Humanity to Animals" Sub
ject OF Pupils Contest.
GIVEN BY HUMANE SOCIETY
Susie C. Whelan First and Giles
Russell Taggart Second.
Other Winners.

Humanity to animals was the theme
that inspired essays written by several
hundred pupils of the white and colored
public schools who competed IN the re-
cent contest for SEQ in prize money Of
fered by the Humane Society OF Wash
ington.
The prizes were distributed Wednesday
Of last week. The awards were made by
a special committee. nominated by the
Humane Society. which found such great
merit in the literary efforts Of the con-
testants that the decision was made with
considerable difficulty.
The contest was open to white pupils OF
the seventh and eighth grades and to
colored pupils of the seventh and eighth
grades and of the first year at high
school Successful contestant were:
A prize of SD to Susie C. Whelan.
Bradley School
A prize of SO to Giles Russell Taggart,
jr., Force School.
A prize of s. to Virginia w. Sargent
Carberry School.
A prize of s. to Dorothy Hoyle, Harri-
son School.
to the essays OF Hester Luvila Carter.
lexington School; Mildred De Hart,
Thomson School: Ellsworth Nash, Lang
don School. and Josephine Mitchell. Lang
don School.
In the coored schools:
A prize of S. to Irving Mutt. NJ Street
High School
A prize of s. to Virginia Scott, NJ.
Street High School.
A prize of S. to T. NJ. Raymond, NJ
street High School,
A prize of So to Horace NJ. Gambrell,
Slater School.
The prize-winning essay. written by
Susie c. Whelan, is follows:
Humanity to Animals.
Cruelty is an inherent characteristic
of barbarc nations, while humane i'm
pulses are inseparable from a people
advancing to higher ideals Of civilization.
The recital of the bloody combats that
took place between man and beast in
ancient times. when people in all walks
| OF life were exposed to ferocious beasts,
| would easily enable us to measure the
vast gulf that intervenes between mod
ern and ancient codes of humanity
| The laws of humanity and the penalty
| for their violation are ndelibly stamped
| on every human heart They who begin
| by experiencing pleasure rather than
pain at the sight of an animal suffering
| frequently end by becoming Indifferent
to or participators in administering hu-
| man suffering. Cruelty in any shape or
| form is degrading and asious well.
To turn deaf ear to the appeals of an
inferior creature. or to steel the con-
| science against Its cries of distress. We
must sacrifice one of the greatest virtues
of human nature-the virtue Of mercy.
| 1t is said that Robert Louis Stevenson
could not hear the melOdious notes of the
| feathered forest inhabitants without
shedding tears. What a contrast between
| this humane man and he who steals
upon them and relentlessly slaughters
| in the name of sport" or to obtain their
plumage for the adornment of ladies'
hats or the thoughtless person who will
mistreat a poor harmless cat il he steals
a pigeon. chicken or bird in order to
| appease his hunger, and sometimes with
out any cause.
Example of Faithful Dog.
When Ouida the noted authoress. died
they found her penniless and in the most
abject poverty. But there was also
| found half starved and disconsolate with
grief, but steadfast TO the last her faith
| full dog, keeping a lone vigil over its
| lifeless friend. Greater devotion than
this is rarely shown. The courage of the
dog Is markedly shown in times of peril.
No foe is too powerful nor danger too
great to daunt him when one who has
dbefriended him ever SO little lies in dan
ger. There can be no doubt as to the re-
sponsfbility of humanity to inferior crea-
| lures. natural lntelHSence SHOulu CoII-
pei US to show them the utmost compass
sion
The tribes that roam across the Ara
bian desert esteem their horses highly
that they record their direct descent
| upon tablets of ivory. No greater insult
could be extended to an Arab than to
act unkindly toward his horse. We are
justly proud of the superior standards es-
tablished by western civilization, yet we
do not compare with the simple Arab
| in froa fyca nf ha
| Whether amid scenes of pleasure. toll
| or danger, the horse has been the insepa-
| rable companion of man. Yet we are
not fully conscious of our neglect and
| unkind treatment of this faithful friend
of ours. If not from humane considera-
ton, the knowledge of the assistance
rendered us by him in our daily labor
| should lead US to study the feelings OF
| the horse. He who overtaXes his strength
by heavy hauls. feeds him scantily.
| drives him when sick or tired and readily
applies the whip to his back is both In
| human and cowardly. 1t is the duty of
the many societies now being estab-
| lished for the prevention of cruelty to
animals to enact and enforce severe PEN
alties against such cruelties
Essay Wins Second Prize.
The essay of Master Giles Russell Tag
| CERT, jr., which Won for him the second
prize, follows:
II would not number among my list OF
friends, though gifted with fine manners
and good sense, a man who had needlessly
set foot upon a rm."-Cowper.
On a hot afternoon in June. a skinny
horse, with CLASSY eyes and tongue hang
ing out. was YEARLY pulling a heavily
loaded cart past the Force School.
The wheels of the cart Wobbled and
creaked, and the poor horse could hardly
move the load. The negro driver, how
ever swore at the horse to go faster, and
then when the horse didn't mind. pulled
an iron bar out OF the load on his wagon.
and walking out on the shafts, struck
the horse over the head and eyes with 1t.
look out the window just then. and see
ing the cruel deed, rushed down the steps
three at time. shouting to the negro,
Stop The negro paid no heed to the
boy, however. and struck the now stag
gering horse another more vicious blow.
so that the horse went down on Its knees:
The boy belonged to the Band OF
Mercy, organized among the school chill
dren of Washington to prevent and pun
ish cruelty to animals, and he knew what
to do. He ran as fast as he could to
policeman, who was about square away.
The result was that the negro driver was
arrested and sent to the Workhouse foT
three months The horse was beyond
cure and was taken to the pound ana
mercifully killed.
Cruel indeed il was to club horse over
the head and eyes with an iron bar. and
yet every day sees even worse treatment
Of animals Notice few OF the worst
cases that actually happened in wash
ington in 1909 and 1910: