The Birmingham age-herald., 1921-04-24

must not forget the fine admonition of another, who said, If you wish to go in for philanthropy, if you wish to be of any use in the world, do something for little children. If you ever yearn to be truly wise, study children. We can dress the sore, bandage the wound, imprison the criminal heal the sick and bury the dead but there is always chance that we can save the child pr. Barnardo is world-famous for the great orphanage which bears his. name. pr. Baker, who is now at the head of 1t. has put this provocative question to a number of we'll known English writers, ministers and public men and women: If you had control of 1000 children and allowed yourself to dream unlimited dreams mhampered by money, what would you do for them?' There is A growing vision in the answer of MT. Laurence Housman. the poet. as follows:
 1T would wish all my 1000 children to remain young even into old age; to be lovers of their fellow men, irrespective of race, creed, or color; to be conscien- tious objectors to war; to be patient and mpossessive in their love of animals; CO., operators and competitors; citizens of no state that exalts the will to power over the will to love.
 "T would have them regard the acqui- sftion of riches as seif-impoverishment- domination over others as self-enslave- ment, getting the better of others as self robbery. and communal joy as the great est of all richea
 'T would wish them to hold no creed that relied on signs, wonders and mir acles rather than on faith; feel observ- ance of natural laws as the true revela- tion of Gods ways to man; and would have them try in all things to be like the Father in heaven, Who 'maketh His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sendeth rain on the just and the un- just
 Any attempt to survey all the facts of the present situation with reference to childhood Mrs. Johnson said, the world over lays tremendous stress upon our present opportunity. No one can measure the effect of the great war upon the children of all lands. The mor- butchery is infinitesimal compared with the toll which the war has taken. There are terribly emaclated and starved little bodies among tho millions of children in Armenia, Central Europe and China. There are no words adequate to depict the awful situation there. America s children, on the other hand are prac- 1 tically untouched and unscatched. This means that upon the shoulders of these American children will fall in due time | the greater part of the burden of the tremendous problems and responsibilities arising from the war. If they fail the world will suffer immeasurably If they are not trained we arc responsible. They are the seed corn of tomorrow. Yet it is still tragically true that for every child under 12 years of age receiving religious instruction of any sort whatever, there
 is another child who has no such ir- struction in any form under the direction of any agency Spiritual illiteracy'' 's more than a fine phrase with which to conjure! It represents a plague as ter rible as typhus and as serious as star vation. Only when people are equally anxious about the soul welfare of chil- dren as compared with their interest in their physical welfares shall we have reached due sense of proportion and be able to meet our full obligation.
 Birmingham is wonderful Sunday school city" Mrs. Johnson said proudly Methods change in this line of work 1 minded, who would bring about her un- doing, are subdued and won to her SUD- port when she looks upon them and their