The Era-leader., 1919-01-02
PEOPLE WHO ARE LEFT
OUT OF The ROLL CALL
Population Of the United States
Asked to Stand Up and
Re Counted.
By GERALD STANLEY LEE.

by nH-S - Stf-E ||I'
] had d frienC once named Old Bill
Spear, Whc was the curator and found
er of the John Quincy adams Memorials
In Quincy Mass. He conceived the
idea of making the house into a me
mortal and, with his genius as COL
lector Of old furniture, 1flled it with
things TO see.
People came from everywhere, and,
at twenty-five cents apiece they went
about to see the things Bill had COL
lected and hesr Bill talk.
Bill felt very superior to most COL
leSors. "Just collectors Bill said,
collect anything"
Bill usually could size people up when
they came in the door. but when he
wasn't quite sure about people, and sus-'
pected he didn't want TO bother with
them very long. he used to take them up
to the attic to size them UP quick. He
would show them a bushel basketful OF
something they couldn't quite see. and
then he would wave his hand with a
flourish and say in an impressive tone
as they stopped to look closer. This Is
the Largest Collection of Burnt Matches
in the World"
Hundreds of collectors didn't break
smile, Bill said, and just looked awed.
Then Bill knew. Of course, that he
needn't bother to show them his best
things
Some of the people who are proposing
to 90 out into the streets Red Cross
Christmas Roll Call Week and gather up
everybody to join the Red Cross, seem
to think that the main thing there Is
to tell people about the Red Cross is
that II they pay dollar to belong they
will belong to the Largest Collection OF
People Who Have Paid One Dollar in the
World
felt a little superior to this at first
and began thinking how ! wouldn't do it.
But when ! began thinking what the
biggest Collection of People in the World
could do by just being the biggest and
by all wanting the same thing with q
different one dollar. it became impress
sive.
1t would even be impressive if forty
million people in America all wanted tho
same thing with the same Dollar!
All wanting the same thing would be q
nation praying-all the grown-up people
cf a nation with their little half con-
scious children round thenl-praying!
The dollar man joined with, would
not be a mere one dollar. The dollar
would be a receipt to every man in
America that 80, 800, 999 other men OF
women belonged to him. and that ho be-
longed to them in getting what he want.
ed for three million soldier boys and for
their children at home
Forty million people-all the grown-up
people in this country pick out three
million men and say to the three million
men they have picked out, You go and
die for us, you go and be saviors of the
| world and die on our crosses for us!"
| Then what do the forty million do?
| It would be be something II we would
| oil line up-the whole forty million of
us to man. with our little pallid insipid
speechless dollar bills in our hands from
/ Maine to California Christmas Week and
use our two dollar bills year as ballots,
stand up in line and be counted and
cable to the men across the eeas that
we vote one carfare once in two weeks
| to stand by them. to stand by the souls
and bodies of the children of the men
who have made a standing offer to die
on our crosses for US!
Who wants to be left out of this line
| by Christmas Eve?
| What man would want to be stood up
| IN a row Of those who are left out while
! oil Of the children of the world file by
and look at him, whi!e the little children
| OF nine hundred thousand dead men In
England file by and look at him, or the
children Of the soldiers Of France giving
their lives to protect the skyscrapers Of
| New York?
For that matter it need not take 90
many children. What man who let him.
self be left put would feel safe in his
own house with his own children climbing
up into his lap believing In him-safs
with his own baby pulling on his face.
| 3abbing his small trustful fists in his
| eyes-if he let himself be left out?
OF course, 1t seems a little like q
mockery to cable over to France Christ
mas Eve that we give one carfare once
IN two weeks to the children of the men
we picked out to die for US, but it would
! be start.
Nobody needs to think 1t would be q
big thing just to belong to the Red Cross,
but it is going to be big thing to bs
| left out.