Evening star., 1914-05-31

told young men that, though the world
be only facts and science. we at least
have ourselves left. The phrase was the
cult Of the ego.' by which Barres is still
known in America and England. He did
not go quite as far as Neitzche. but, of
course, it resulted in whole set of
young men. impertinent to their elders.
detached from politics and the struggle
for life and standing on their own
bases" Can you blame them? They
found facts and science" unsaisfying.
Barres regrets all this.
He went into politics. Elected to par
Lament at the age of twenty-seven, he
served four years. lost his election and
stayed out during thirteen year. This
was the period when he got the regional
bug, to his lasting honor.
The name of the book has stuck-"Les
Deracines.' The uprooted ones are
those young men who give up the ad
vantages Of their home region. old
friends and connections. folks who knew
their fathers, and all their rooted social
relations-to plunge into the great city.
They are lost in the miscellaneous
crowd.
These books go to the heart of things.
Another is THE Call of the Soldier
which every young man must hear if he
is faithful to the land which bore him.
1t is Ike Fight for your mother. if
you love herr
among politicians. was called Their
Faces" It was the strongest possible
satire on the uselessness of mere poll
ticians in any country.
Barres is a scholar and has written
books of travel, like Chateaubriand, in
countries which scholars love. His
Journey to Sparta is one long medita-
ton on the ruined cities, temples, fount
tains of the Spartan state, but 1t is also
a meditation on how great state, IA
nous for its virtues may be ruined if its
citizens relax their personal virtues.
So now. ne is sure to write modern
itinerary" to Jerusalem, because, al
though Barres is not a declared religious
man. one of his teachings is that people
must respect the religion of their IA
thers. as well as the laws and social
traditions which have made their IA
theirs great
1t is the essence of his last book, THE
Great Pity of the Churches of France"
Those richly historical edifces-the least
of which 80 charms the American tour
ist-are crumbling. or risk deterioration
and even destruction by French vandals,
by reason of political policy which
does not concern u.s. Barres wrote the
Lament. And now, the good men of
all parties are hurrying to preserve even
the humblest edifice built previous to
1900.
but ruined it by uttering single word
Accroupis, Accroupis de Vendome! You
see, Vendome has a grand old solitary
church tower of the midle ages lace
work in stone, like the Tour ST. Jacques
of Paris. An American city would give
half million for such relic The anti
religious municipal council of Vendome
turned 1t into a lavabo "Ah." said
Barres. that is your idea of the divine
architecture of your fathers, is it?
Squatters of Vendome,' The word has
made Vendome so odious that families
move away and real estate values have
fallen
He Is a man of art. In Eel Greco-the
Secret of Toledo he studied the petri
fed old city from the point of view of
the Greek master who there embodied the
Spain of the sixteenth century. Nothing
has changed. And Barres says he has OBJ
served. among its humblest citizens 1.-The
play of the highest and most peaceful
spiritual faculties These states of SOUL
he admits. seem incompatible with grand
civilfzarion-for example. the perfected
efficiency of the theatrical press agent:
yet many successful and unhappy men
and women who don't suspect it" would
surely gain by breathing the air of
Toledo"
And Zuloaga has painted Barres from
across the Tagus. looking on Toledo.
Barres, dark, black-coated. hawk-faced,
critical of modern 'standardizing'
which takes the perfume and the favor
out Of everything.
Barres comes back continually to re-
gional perfume. st. Louis ought not try
to b like New York or New Orleans like
Chicago Each region has dts charm, its
merits. Barres could go into the littlest
LA 49, Ne, r. W..