Norwich bulletin., 1922-12-02
THE MAN WHO TALKS

enc way, and one way only? For turning off work we have too many one-Way- street people. They are not necessarily too narrow for a double corrseway but they have been looking along one course | for so many years that they cannot see any other. Two women were once heard conversing. The one was telling the i other how handy heC husband was about i the house. But" inquired the other, | with some nisgiving, does he do things your way" Now this second woman was stick1er for the niceties. To her 1t : was less important how well they were done than how they were done. She was g one-street woman, and perhaps she couldn't help it. Once upon a time there was q man living, not more than a thou- sand miles away from Norwich, who fig ured out an example for his son and oo- tained the right answer. by established principles. The teacher turned it down. not because it was incorrect or illogical, but because it was not "our way'' of pro cedure. She was a one-way- street teacher and was not lacking for company.
 What is the secret of Clemenceau's tre- mendous popularity in this country? It certainly cannot be on account of his nickname, "Tae Tiger" for that well known animal at the best, can only enjoy
 
 lute fearlessness of his temperament his almost savage ferocity in attacking what he conceives to be political wrong, ap-
 peal strongly to all those who love the heroic. The grand old war-scarTed Neter- an of many a diplomatic battle who would sooner march through living flame than surrender one iota. of his conception of justice has the sort of stuff in him that the rank ana fife of humanity. -admice. | But his real claim to popular recognition ] lies not i'll the fierce energy of his tenn perament, but for the real things he has 1 done for the salvation of France, and his 1 insistence that never again must there be
 such a srring at the throat of Paris. The 1 Old Man is saying things that require i courage. and whether We accept all he : says or not, we cannot help putting him I by the side of Theodore Roosevelt because
 he is a man-every inch of him.
 We hsve arrived at another dangerous period-another period of thin ice when i it is necessary to revive the old age-long 1 caution. Must it require this year, as it i does almost every year, the sacrifice of 4 one or more precious young lives before ! others will sit up and take notice" that ' the thing to do is not to fool with thin
 ice. skating or otherwise? This reckless ness with ones life is good illustration of the fact that we do not learn from the experience of past years. This caution I may not be needed twice for the same ;i generation. but little fellows will be test I ing ice this year who have no realization J of last years advice. Whether we are old or young we are apt to ignore danger signals that only remotely corcern us !, Let a man die of delirium tremens and for while there is spasm of reetitude
 in hat JfJ7it hut ten, and others go the same way. We [ forget the danger signal
 was once en route to Block Island
 when, midway from Watch Hill, the : steering gear. without a moments warn ing gave out. For nearly an hour wt . were aianlessly floating. Suppose tht 7 damage had been beyond repair-what l then? In all probability there would &:avt i been no loss of life, as it was in. the day
 time and over much-traveled Tc t1lway
 There might have been little damage doni
 to the boat, but one thing is sure, tha a boat would not have f1oated into the saf, s harbor of Block Island nor back to Watcl Hill. It would without aid have followed f the line of the least resistance and fount : the breakers the rocks. Along tn, ' pathway of l.-e, as on the track os tn sea, in two ways the -ers of floating
 
 st the individual loses either the power 0 e the disposition of elf-determination. N 2 mans business is so firmly fixed that 1 . will run itself; neither. is a mans life s il secure that he can afford to float ] floating business CT 3, floating life un
 checked sooner or later gets into tn
 breakers or on to the rocks.
 The main value of ThonksgivinE lie in having the thankful 1. grounded i e the right motives. Tn assings of lff c that come to us from external source n must, at Least. make us thoughtful. NoE e thankulness Is thoughtfulness put int O action. One can hardly fail to be thank e full who is thoughtful, and if he is nc e thankful it indicates a condition Of men
 tai stupidity. It is quite possible for U
 to assume the attitude of an intellectus - aristocrat and feel that our superiorit
 has claim upon the blessings of life an e that food, raiment shelter comfort an e the other blessings of life are to be take n for granted, 'If God has put us into thi l. world without giving any voice in tn Is matter, He is morally bound to take car Is of us in decent fashion," is rather tn
 mental attitude of the proud Pharise
 than the Denitent sinner In such a col and grebellious atmosphere a warm an ' thankful spirit cannot flourish. It know " not the spirit of Thanksgiving. The spirit of Thanksgiving is not to I I9 confined to the individual unit It is nt IS merely thankful spirit that one mernb, r. of the family ought to have for each ig the others. That is. a part of it. but | a no means the whole of it. As far as u ,e subject is concerned, the individual un " is the basis of the working of the thanl ,+ ful spirit. It is the heart of the ind NTsI II ' te vfdual, to God chiefly but also to g IS others from whom benefits have been d vel rived Because of our common hums S. frailty there is a disposition to magni I1 the ills ofJlife and to minimize it's bles B. fngs. There are some things in life ot big that we cannot see tflern-not to a +ci preciate them. There are likesome son o5 blessings so constant and so vital that V
 fail to rate them at their true wort
 Sunlight. air. food, colthing, En1 hon
 life are among them.
 We onght always, here in America, 10! be thankful for nationak blessings The he has never been a year since the Pilgri
 Fathers landed in 1920 when there we
 not abundant. reasons, for .thanksgivir l, In their dire stress and poverty they sa ts good reasons for creating Thanksgivi eS day, and during the intervening thr se' hundred years the reasons have accum
 lated why we as nation should bC er- down in grateful adoration of the boun es.E full hand that has so generously met c in every want It has been much harder
 some years than others to be grateful
 1861 dewout men thanked God for mi goodness. but it was with treulpii ,r4 voices. glistening tears and aching heaE hs. From 1914 to, 1918. when most. of 1 ''- world was torn by the awful cruelties
 war if uoa uo aa Sv ff1in- f0 ffSpK q