Webster City freeman. [volume] (Webster City, Hamilton County, Iowa) 1884-1946, 1915-10-26
TAC0RE, GREAT
indian POET
An Illuminating Lecture by Rev. H.
L. Haywood at the Universalist
Church Sunday
Night.
FINE MUSIC WAS A FEATURE
Large Audience Present-A Dis
/, course of Absorbing Interest
to Many.

The main auditorium of the Uni
versaIist church was filed Sunday
night with an attentive audience
gathered tc hear the lecture by Rev.
H. L. Haywood upon Rabindranath
Tagore, the man to whom about two
years ago was awarded the Nobel
prize. The lecture was an illumin-
alton upon the life and works of this
comparatively recently known In
dian dramatist-author. Such
lecture has been for some time de-
sired by those who have read even
briefly the translations of Tagore's
poetry or writings and these persons
were not disappointed in the master
ly and eloquent discourse upon this
gentle man of India.
The Universalist choir composed
of Mrs. G. T. McCauliff, Miss Meta
Mickleson, E. S. Boudinot, and By
ard Dodge, with Mrs. w. H. Cook ac-
companist, furnished very fine mu-
steal program preceding the lect-
lure.
Unfortunately as yet, there are
none of the writings of Rabindran-
ath Tagore in the Kendall Young
library, except such as may be found
In the periodicals., and Rev. Hay
wood spoke of the extreme difficulty
which attends the Interpretation OF
books from one race to another.
Manners, customs, modes of express
sion, all vary so widely from each
other that we seem worlds removed
from those who are in reality our
brothers. That Tagore is brother
of ours is unquestioned. The Aryans
centuries ago, one of the great prim-
eval stock, left their home in the
valley of the Euphrates and migrat-
ed north into Europe. We are the
descendants of those who sought the
dark forests of Italy, Germany and
France. Still another branch Of the
Aryan stock went east into India
where the climatic conditions were
such that the hard struggle for exis-
tence that characterized their Euro
mean brothers was not necessary, but
instead they took their living from
the open hand of nature.
The influence of the broad out OF
doors shaped the forest philosophy
Of India, breeding a race OF wonder
full thinkers, deep sustained thought
being indeed probably the most
widely spread characteristic of In
dia. Out of this race of thinkers
sprang Rabindranath Tagore from
family of Tagores that had for cen
turies produced men Of moment.
The habit of thought is one cas-
ily acquired by the Indian. who does
not have to toll for a living. To be
sure, their heroes are not men OF
practical achievement, such as are
the heroes our nation chooses
Theirs are the thinkers. Thell
heroes begin with Buddha, who l:
the father of religion numbering
three hundred and fifty millions o
followers. On down the line 1t II
Tagore who stands out as the pres
ent hero of India. When one read:
his poems, he hears back OF them th'
indistinct murmurs of an anclen
race, the silent prayers of myria'
worshipping souls.
Rabindranath's forebears IN
clude statesmen, lawyers of great re
pute, artists, musicians, historians
philosophers, theologians and agrl
culturists on a vast scale. HIS o",
grandfather was one Of the most IN
fuential patriots and social reform
ers in the nations history. Ill
father was lovingly named by tn
people, "The great sage" and is oe
scribed as being an intellectual gl
ant.
India may be said to be god III
toxicated nation. Nowhere else q
men walk with such a keen sense G
| the reality of the unseen as In III
dia. Tagore was born in Bengali i
5 the northeast part Of India, in Ca
cutta, in 1861. As boy he was a