Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1914-03-21
He OWNS A CITY.
Council Bluffs Nonpariel.l

lSOuHCll GSOup&TkcsJ
Omaha has a citizen who takes q
peculiar but nevertheless q very sane
view Of life. When he walks on the
sidewalk he frequently remarks: Ties.
these Omaha people put down these
nne smooth cement walks for mo.
They are running street cars TO all
parts OF the city for me. II I want to
call up 4 friend in any part Of the
city ! use q telephone system that has
peen installed for my use Hundreds Of
ehurches are open for my special ac-
commodation. The streets are ali nice
lily paved 30 that I scarcely need got
my shoe soles wet, even In the most
inclement weather. The 7. NJ. C. A.
10 run for my benefit. Merchants MI
their windows with displays Of beauti-
ful goods just to please me. Yes, this
city OF mine u . great place. Il is
Just simply wonderful. OF course, other
people have deeds for most of this
property. but this only obligates them
to clean the snow OF the walks and
otherwise care for it. And they all do
these things Just for my satisfaction"
There Is great lesson in this mans
observations. There are men in Coun-
Gil Bluffs who have seen the city grow
from the original few log houses that
made up the village of Kanesville.
They came thru the mud. the cedar and
granite block paving periods and on
into the present era of smooth brick
paving. They have seen all the stages
Of sidewalks from cow path to cement.
They have seen the introduction Of
railway, telegraph, telephone and wire
less methods Of communication. The
past half century has been an era Of
rapid development.
But today by far the greater number
OF our people take all these things for
granted. In the pursuit Of the latest
fad in dress. in the search for the lat
est red back thriller in literature, in
the desire to own an auto and run it
sixty miles per hour, In striving to ac-
cumulate more money than our neigh
Dor in the effort to outshine some
rival in social ctrciea we forget that
the cement walks. the paved streets,
the show windows. the flowers, the
trees, the parks. the sunshine. the rain
and thousand other attributes Of ma
ture and modern civilization are all
ours simply for the effort necessary to
get the right point of view.
The best things in life are those
which cost little. Complete bibles can
be bought for one eighth the cost Of
the latest novel. A copy of Les Mis-
CRADLES can be bought for quarter.
If you do not have the price you can
get them free at the public library.
You do not need to own tree to en-
JOY its beauty. Pretty soon there Will
appear on Oakland avenue gorgeous
bed of tulips. Later these VIII be
replaced with geranoums. All summer
long these flowers will be admired by
the hundreds who pass them daily but
who have no proprietary interest In
them in legal or lawful sense And
yet they belong to the community.
The whole community is richer because
John Woodward plants and cares for
these flowers. John does the work. the
whole city gets the benefit. Everyone
should grow flowers.
The greatest asset in this world 10
power Of appreciation. The thing that
we should most strive is sane point
Of view. All the things which sur
round JUS. even sorrow and suffering,
are designed to benefit ana bless us.
II they are not doing SO 1t Is because
we have not attained the point OF view
reached by our Omaha friend.