The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1915-01-21
FLAT WHEELS AND
PERSONAL TRAITS
Drawn in Forceful and Enter
tanning Way by Rev. George II.
Spencer Before Woman's Club.

A regular meeting of the Brattleboro
Noman's club was held yesterday after
noon in the Congregational chapel. The
lecture for the day was by Rev. George
H. Spencer of Boston and had the mysti
fyng title, Flat Wheels. Many OF the
large audience knew much about one kind
OF fat wheels. but whether ii was Mr..
Spencer's Kind they didn't know. 1t
was interesting to find that they were ex--
actly the same, for fiat wheels are appar
entity alike everywhere, though from diff
ferent causes and in differing degrees.
Mr.. Spencer first explained why he
chose his title At one time he lived on
one OF the Improbable inter-urban lines
Of the Boston elevated railway. Because
Of the small patronage the railway COM
pany considered il a good place To run
all the diapidated OF the whole sy9-
tenn The speaker said the resultant
bangs as the damaged wheels went over
the rails were maddening, then grew in
| Jerestine, as he learned to distinguish
| each car by it, foot steps.
This began his interest IN the question
/ lie studied fiat wheels and the reasons
| for their being so. Many were due to q
| flaw in material They never had "a
chance. must inevitably have gone wrong
Others met with accidents, both slight
I
the former frequently led to the latter
y set OF wheel- used as an Illustration
was run in the repair shops One Of
these wheels was brought in after running
- miles. ne other Travelled over :;000O
miles before wearing out. Both left the
factory IN apparently the same condition
! The damage these flat wheels may cause
10 Others was illustrated by the state
ment that an engine developing such a
Iwhccl was obliged to run 60 miles Is the
next station. In covering this distance
II rails were broken. Two trains fol
lowing were deraied and three lives we're
lost.
From these and other items Mr Spen-
Ger drew the analoGies between fiat
wheels and people. lie spoke of the way
men and women get over their way in
life with bang. who cause ANNOYANCE
discomfort and sometimes great disaster
to those who travel with them All these
Ipoint- were made clear by humorou.
! anecdotes al people he had known
Particularly MIR. spencer impressed tn,
: fact that these faults were often a flaw il
the making. for which the person wa,
7 noJ in the least responsible Like til,
: car wheel which ran only - miles. the,
Isvere bound to 90 wrong
Mr. Spcncer's philosophy X certainl,
cheering for lie says that when one ear
know the reasons for the acts and spceche
which seem 30 wrong or unnecessary en,
: only wonders that the person succeeds il
7 being as decent a. lie is
! klso Mr.. Spencer says that in all hi
years Of observation he has never foun,
Z real hypocrite Several times II
I thought he had, hut each time there cam
G now light on the subject. which made hin
. see IL from a different angle OF vision. am
I then the whole was changed This Is we
2 worth keeping in mind for hypocrisy
one Of the faults most people attribute /
4 Others, Mr. Spencer SAYS
!, y most dangerous among The fla
wheels he classed those who pride then
!, selves IN speaking their minds frankly
q These are the people who bump over IN
II feelings OF others and break rails
There were many more clear sketchC
6 OF tvEes Of people each one impressin
y Ia point Mr.. Spencer wished to make Fl
{ evidently succeeded, for there were m&n
expressions Of interest and pleasure uro
4 the lecture.