Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1913-10-15
"PERFECT HAPPlNESSv
Pursued by Little Colony of "Har.
monists."


Paris number of people are "contin
ning the teaching and studies of Ray
mond Duncan and calling themselve.
Harmonists." They are making {
touching attempt to return to the sim
i pie life as the Greeks understood it
Through the glades of their sacred
grove they move in sandals, tunie, oil
II linen mantle, in the early morning
towards a bold summit, whence they
may descry the plain of the Great
H City. There, hand in hand a living
frieze, they stand and gaze awhile
Presently they begin their morning
II exercises, arms raised towards heaven
| or gracefully curved as though te
| throw ball, discus, or javelin. Then
a draught Of sparkling water from an
| amphora. and home to breakfast"
| | should strongly advise these en-
thusiasts to remain some way off from
| Paris. Paris is a place with rather
omnibus associations for people who
play that game. More than hundred
years ago there were some wealthy
and idle people who played at being
| shepherds and shepherdesses. and liv-
| ing the simple life, some way off Paris.
| But the inquisitive Parisians came
and paid them visit at Versailles.
But while | do not think things of
| this sert would satisfy the modern
French, / also entertain strong doubts
as to whether they would, as is sug-
gested, satisfy the ancient Greeks. /
do not think the Greek confined him
self to sparkling water when he drank
from his amphora. And if, among the
Greeks, pack of grown-up people
were obliged regularly to stand hand
in hand, a living frieze and gaze
awhile can only say that it was UNI
lucky for them if Arstophanes came
along.
The Harmonist from whom appar-
emily the newspapers information
comes, proceeds to describe the spirit
and atmosphere of the institution
I'VE are not a colony or organized So
ciety We have no chief or profess
sor." Were not the Greeks an organ
lied society? Were they not, indeed
the founders and builders of all or
ganized society in the modern sense
Did the Greeks disapprove1 of colo
MES? Did the Greeks have no profess
sors? Did they not rather suffer from
an excessive number of those. little
creatures? The Harmonist adds: In
addition to this, we gain freedom ana
independence, for by weaving our
clothing and making our sandals We
do without tailors land shoemakers.
We secure perfect physical and moral
health, our bodies are beautiful, our
organism learns to support cold ana
ax.fnn t1xr bsltl
When my patience is tried with TINS
kind of thing. / feel inclined to sug-
gest that one conceivable way, per-
haps, Of returning to the simple Ire
as the Greeks understood 1t would be
to learn a little Greek. ! did not know
there was anybody alive III educated
Europe who knew less Greek than
do. But even | know enough To see
through all that kind of thing. Did
the old Greeks say they were per-
fectly happy" For so have the gods
spun our destiny to us unhappy NOR
tails that we might live in sorrow, but
they themselves are without trouble,
"Of all the creatures that creep upon
the earth, man is the most full OF
sorrows" "For truly in my heart and
soul I know that Troy shall fall" y
have borne what no man hath ever
borne''-those are the scraps of great
Greek sentiment that stick in the
memory of man who has forgotten
the little Greek he ever knew.
But these peseurs remember the
Creek they never knew. 1t Is creek
nobody ever knew-least of all the
Greeks themselves. And where these
people got it from is Greek to me,
But the business is much bigger thah
any mere historical parallels, now
ever comic may be their contrast be-
tween great things and small. for
the truth is that the attitude OF THESE
people, with their living frleze, is
Incoming a living nuisance In our
modern life They are at some DIS
lance from Paris (Which is, perhaps,
WHY our drearier journalists still call
\ the Cav City), but they are in the
core and centre of London. And their
offensive happiness Is el1ght upon
all gaiety. You cannot be gay seri-
ously. The soul in all true leVlty Is
humility: q certain admission that we
are not all perfectly healthy IN soul
or beautiful in body. In short. il you
and I were to hold each others hano
and become a living frieze, the
frieze (shal we sayO would be III
phidias's early bad manner.
No man has ever laughed at any
thing till he has laughed at himsei.
| The great Greeks did undoubtedly set
up an ideal of the perfect balance pc
tween soul and body. What IS rum
about the new Hellenist is that ne
never seems to know thei difference
between the setting up an ideal anu
setting up as a person VINO mas az
! tanned it. Achilles said OF the gods
| .vThey themselves are without trou-
HE" He was the last person Ill ,he
world to say it Of the Heroes pc
cause he was a Hero himself. Socfa-
ties df a dim memory guides me righo
offered up some prayer that the ou'e'
and the inner man might be at one
| put no one knew better than Socratee
| that his outer man was, IN pom, V,
fact. as fully as a chimpanzee. Aiiu
| no one. If l may say so, was ii,'i .
mcidly satisfied than Socrates ''t"'
his inner man was highly superb
| snecimen. The pagan theory was
that man was unhappy because ne
| generally could not attain TINS huinf'"