The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-08-08
work that has been accomplished i behalf of the rural schools.
Beauty Hints

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 l have been rather amused recently, and saddened as well, by the sight of number of young people who are disconsolate because they are not beautiful. It is amusing, of course, to see undue emphasis placed upon such a superficial and fleeting thing as personal beauty; but it is sad, as well, for it is serious to these young people, and indeed some of the rose of life's morning is stolen away from them if they are not comedy.
 Nor have l any criticism whatever for the person who wishes to be beau tiful. There may be many foolish and sinful elements in this desire, but the thing itself is fundamental and given of God. It is the love of order, of wholeness, of unity, of symmetry. It IS the delight in richness and delicacy of color, in grace of form and outline, Tn music and fragrance. It may be said that the man or woman, young or old, who is not cherishing the dream of being beautiful is living poorly and pitiably. Ones estimate of beauty may have changed, may be changing, but the dream ought still to be living in the soul.
 What shall we do, who are ugly and desire to be beautiful? l. Keep clean. Who shall estimate the importance of clean body and clean clothes in this matter of looking ones best? Or of being one's best, for that matter?
 2. Keep healthy. Some people are irresistible with only the pure con- tagion of abounding health Muddy complexions, dull eyes, sleepiness of mind and soul are the children of un- healthy bodies and the trump card of ugliness. The most fascinating thing on this earth is youth. Health and enthusiasm make it so, and they can be retained until the end.
 3. Keep busy. Nothing is ugly that is doing the job. We spend most of our money, we concoct most of our meanness, we breathe most of our sighs, when we are idle. Being busy may not cure our ugliness, but it will make us forget it.
 4. Cultivate your mind. The mind will somewhat have it's way with the body. The lustre of the one will steal through the other. There is moreover the principle of the greater obscuring the less- An effulgent or finely disci- plined mind has the tendency to trans fuse and glorify it's body, or to hide 1t from sight. The stars disappear when the sun rises.
 5. Cultivate your soul. It is inn possible for your body to remain deeply and permanently beautiful if your soul harbors vulgarity, sensuali- ty, irritability, cowardice, dishonesty. selfishness. It is likewise impossible for your body to remain ugly, if there be behind and within it, sweetness. gentleness, honesty, courage and deli cacy of soul. If not altogether in this life, then in the other the soul will mantle itself with a body wholly con- genial.
 And if greater mind shall obscure a lesser body, fine soul shall obscure both mind and body The soul is the self. It is the soul we know. It is the soul we love. The soul is master, the others are servants. It is the ultimate and abiding seat of real beauty.
 We cannot all have great bodies or great minds, but God will give every one of us virgin soul. And each soul has in it the possibility of every variety and height of loveliness.
 HENRY NJ. EDMONDs.