Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1915-06-01
ROBERTS OPENS
SUMMER SCHOOL
IN ABLE SPEECH
Chief Element in Culture Is
Subject of Address DeliN-
cred in Santa Fe by PreSl-
dent of Normal University
,.r,ei.. o,.,.rea 70 no-r,ro Iouns..i

tsrsci.L oispsrea 70 MORNING JOURNAL
Santa Fe, May al Scholarly.
| forceful. inspiring was the address OF
| DR. Frank II. II. Roberts, president
of the Normal university at the OPEN
ing OF the summer school and county
institute in the Scottish Rite cathe-
dral THE Chief Element in Gull
ture" was his topic and 1t was as
great a sermon as was ever heard IN
| Santa Fe. THE divinity in man,
was emphasized as that chief element
and the religious life that Is tied 10
! God with golden chain of prayer, as
the chief power of culture.
| DR.. Roberts was introduced by
! President II. +. Asplund of the SUM
mcr school as one of New Mexico s
leading educators, TO whom the nm
provement I'm the educational system,
the enthusiasm for better schools, IL
largely due because Of his kindlng
The fires OF enthusiasm with his mes
sage OF good cheer and uplift, as ne
goes about over the state among the
teachers"
Rev. J. NJ. Sinner of st. Johns
/ Methodist Episcopal church, pro-
nounced the invocation and also the
benediction, not the dry. pro-torma
petition TO the Throne Of Grace, but
a fervid, living petition for guidance
and a blessing
Music l. Notable.
The music under the direction or
Mrs Lackey was noteworthy From
the voluntary on the pipe organ, SUI
perbly played by Mrs. George II. Van
Stone, to the solo by Mrs Laekey, i
was apparent that music and good
music, will be one of the chief at
fractions of the summer In Santa re.
The summer school chorus, with its
rendition of Lift Up We Gates, was
superb. In attack, In harmony, IN
expression and volume 1t left nothing
to be criticized.
After President Asplund had made
the announcements and had explain
ed the nature of the summer school
and the institute, DR.. Roberts spoke
| for an hour and held the breathless
attention of the audience which was
much larger than had been anticipat-
ed. He said that 1t is much easier to
tell what culture is not than what IL
is. He denied that there is culture
In the classics In themselves. CUT
ture is not an extraneous matter, II
Is subjective, a soul quality, the re-
active power of itself upon the en-
vironment. There may be as much
culture in making a good pie than
there is in reading an ode of Horace.
Not that there is culture in the clas-
sizes as a mere abstract proposition
but that the man who knows his Latin
we'll can read his English more ef-
fectively than if he did not know IT,
The classics give a better understand
ing of our own language and OF the
worlds soul. Thus with travel. IL
depends how we travel whether
travel contributes to our culture.
Thus IN literature. 1t depends Wheth-
er we read it so that It reacts upon
our soul ana our soul reacts upon H.
Thus in art Culture Is the ABILITY OF
G man to do his work well, effectively,
to live in harmony with the hlghest
moral concepts of his time and to re-
act upon his environment according
to his concepts. The speaker then
compared culture to the geometrical
conception of a straight line, that IS
q point ever moving onward, and man
to the curve constantly approaches
that straight line but never touches it.
Development of Man
Il say it revercntly," the speaker
said, ut is greater to be man than
it Is to be God IL the current theo-
logical conception Of God is true. Man
is constantly growing, developing
drawing closer and closer to God,
though never reaching his sublimity
The most marvellous thing in life of
man is growth, his getting closer to
the real heart of the universe. The
speaker then explained that his con-
ception Of God, however, is different
He believes that God, too, is moving
onward. Dr. Roberts told of an art
list in Denver, the most exquisite eX-
presson of soul culture, man who
would not pluck a flower because to
pluck it would mar its beauty and de-
prive those that followed of the ex-
quisite pleasure it gave him. his
soul was right toward the beauty of
the world, and so is that of the man
who walks through art galleries, who
reads poetry, who enjoys the beauty
of the world with the same spirit. The
man is most cultured whose interests
are most diversified.
Or. Roberts then compared Edgar
Allen Poe and Henry Wadsworth
Longfellow, the former is man who
had flashes OF supreme genius but be-
cause of his sodden life missed his
great opportunity. but the latter liv- |
ing the life beautiful, the life of Gull |
ture. There is no culture worth |
while in your soul unless God Is
there. The chiefest element in all !
culture is the divinity of man. Back
of all culture is the man himself cub |
ture is within the grasp of every one |
but he who would be cultured in old |
age must begin in childhood Cnl- |
ture is to react upon life so as to
make life more worth while to the in
.dividual, to his environment and to
his state. The more diversified
mans interest are the more cultured |
he may be. The ehiefest power in
culture is the religious power the
power that with the golden chain OF
prayer ties us to the Throne Of GOO |
Speaking of Santa Re, he said; |
Santa I'e Is to be congratulated IL
is not only political capital. but II |
is also the cultural capital of a large |
section Of the nation Here interests
are so diversified and the people re-
act upon these interests in the prop |
er way, hence culture is a marked |
product OF the city. But few centers
of population in America have any
greater or as great advantages. j
have found more of cultural value In |
New Mexico than in the big center OF
Denver. Ii Is not true that man
must go to a great metropolis for
culture for Santa Re has the very ele-
ments of it,