The Colorado statesman., 1924-06-21
Guards the Future

|
Continuing, Doctor Burton said, in
part:
AT times he must oppose what ap-
| pears to some as an unqualified good
because he recognizes its temporary
benefits and sees in the distant future
that 1t must work an evil to society
Through all such experiences he walks
! with the spirit of human understand
ing. He knows that time Will heal
the hurt. His sense of time explains
the thoroughness of his work and his
intolerance for superficiality He must
have the facts as first hand and will
not base decisions on a partial knowl-
| edge of the situation. He will not be
hurried. He avoids extremes and loves
| proportion. Life does not consist of
detached unrelated events. 1t is a
unity welded together by the alchemy
of time. He knows how to wait and
not be tired by waiting. When he
acts you know he will not be impetu-
Gus, because he takes time to think to
the soul of things Democracy, in her
careless laundering confidence, Is in
dire need Of such leadership.
HAS he a sense Of humor? EN-
| phatically yes. 1t is not the type that
wastes time in recounting incidents
Of ever increasing triteness. There is
an alertness about his mind and a
nimblenes of his spirit which are very
attractive. These qualities do not ex-
press themselves in just the ordinary
forms. At times you might imagine he
had not even heard what was being
said. Then he drops a remark which
makes you realize that he has taken
several steps In advance and has put
his finger on the real point He is not
given to hilarity. His humor is dry
and delightful and its expression as a
rule Is just as sententious as his more
serious utterances.
Beneath the characteristics we
have mentioned lies something which
one naturally hesitates to drag out
into the light. There are some things
too sacred for public parade. even
though man belongs to the people.
When you find a man, however with
qualities such as we have sketched,
you inevitably ask for the secret.
moral fiber, this bitter self control.
this sense of the value of things, this
instructive understanding of work,
this quiet patience with the ages?
"It is his sense of the spiritual. No
one can read his speeches without
realizing that to him religion is essen
tial to life. | am speaking in the
broadest and most comprehensive
terms. 1 am not discussing theology
but religion. There are at least few
fundamental spiritual realities which
are the common possession of men.
He firmly believes religion to be neces-
sary to the ideals Of America.
HE asserts that most of all there
is need of religion. From that source
alone came freedom. Nothing else
touches the soul Of man. Nothing else
justifies faith in the people Tolera-
ton in religion is among our most
notable achievements in this country.
The vital realities Of religion alone
can satisfy the deepest needs of the
human spirit. 1t is reassuring to know
that this man believes In a personal
power greater than man; In emergen-
cies, with Washington and Lincoln,
he will know that the issue lies in
another hand.
Here, then, Is the man. He follows
right and truth to their logical conclu-
sions.' He gathered it all up in an ad-
dress he delivered year ago at a col
lege commencement. He said, We do
not need more national development, we
need more spiritual development. We
do not need more intellectual power,
we need more moral power. Wo de not
need more knowledge, we need more
character. We do not need more gov
ernment, we need more culture. We
do not need more law, we need more
religion. We do not need more of the
things that are seen, we need more of
the things that are unseen
"What America must learn is pre-
cisely what this man is saying so
clearly and forcefully. It has ring
to 1t which will permeate the world.
He has been successful In politics, be-
cause he has been simply and unan-
swerably honest. The hardest thing
in the world to defeat is sheer charic-
ter. Some American politicians still
have a great lesson to learn. The first