Palisadian., 1925-12-18
rs y n IS ~
"YoUTH'S ADVENTURE"

youths Adventure" (Appleton) IS
the name of a recently published book
by Alan A. Hunter, young Canadian
who was until the past summer, and
for two years previously, pastor of the
Union Church of Palisade. Youth S
Adventure" possesses certain points
of interest, the principle one being
that is we'll written, but radical, So
cialistic and dangerous to youth
which he seeks to exploit as the only
ones fit to direct the world of thought
and to deliver it from present day
evils. He discredits and throws into
discard all religious dogma, ridicules
discipline for the young, and plays
havoc generally with all the moral di-
rectness of any of the old theories of
religion. He holds up Jesus as a man
and example of the highest standards
to be followed, but nowhere envelops
him with Divine origin. His frequent
reference to the character and teach
ings of Jesus places him with Budha,
Confuscious, Mahomet, and other
H6duS Ol WOIlu IcllSiOun. IL 10 Ohiy
proper to say that Jesus is placed
above all others, and frequent refer
ences to him appear to be in sort of
apologetic effort or excuse for men,
tioning him at all-except where the
moral faith of Jesus is needed to be
exemplified in his teachings.
1t is on the Race Issue that Rev.
Hunter is at his best in his book.
He believes in race equality, socially
and otherwise. On the subject of mis-
cegenation~ or amalgamation Of the
races he qoutes various authorities on
intermarriage with negroes, Chinese
and others, and grows more intimate
in those chapters of his youths Ad-
venture" book than any other. He
says: ut may be that in thousand
years there will be a unicolored race,
the peoples of this planet having de-
cided that admixture of blood Is en-
riching. Meanwhile we do not know
whether intermarriage is good for
human species or bad. Perhaps
young Mr. Kip Rhinelander can tell
him. He deplores discrimination
against color, and while saying that
1--WE are not demanding amalgama
tion," but in justice, he adds, youth
is beginning to revolt" These state
ments all bear qualifications as he
once said in Palisade that his
statements in his pulpit that Chris
tianity Is a failure'-was made with
qualifications" but declining to say
what the qualifications were. There
stands his statement still in the rec
ords-and unexplained. Why is the
christian religion a failure, Rev. Alan
: Hunter, and without qualifications
Because in its practice men are insin
cere? Any fool knows that But what
Of the principle of Christs religion
Is that negligible. because you may
not believe in the Divine Conception
1t may be that Alan Hunter con
siders himself a leader. But in the
two years tutoring the religious mind
of Palisade he rose to no greater
heights than being a dissenter from
the tenets of the old faiths, asserted
himself an "unbeliever" and was far
from orthodox" in preaching the
/ Christian religion.
% This book stamps him as dis
senter and a would-be leader. Until
he can stand before people and preach
/ any doctrine with greater power than
he did in this community, he will fail
in his mission of saving world by
being pioneer in the socalled
"Youth Movement" or any other. He
appears to believe more in Germany
against whom he is supposed to have
served in a contending army on an
errand of mercy. Sensible people in
American are not now against the
Germans, and never were, 1t was
the Hohenzollern dynasty they helped
put out of commission.
Rev. Hunter seldom displayed in
Palisade the literary qualities as
shown in Youths Adventure" The
book is we'll expressed throughout.
But as a leader of youth into the
realms of higher purpose, better
achievement or nobler pursuits, he is
an arrant failure and especially
when he says youth may not be
Nul btut uldut " Obty VI Hubllll "
discipline. Our schools are all wrong,
and the Biblical injunction. children
obey your parents" is so much tommy
rot The net Of Rev. Hunters book
is that it is a protest against all hui
man religious record to date, and es-
specially in regard to religious beliefs
and scientific principle. Newton was
a renegade, because Einstein came
along with his theory of relatively.
1t is too bad that Alan Hunter, per-
haps, qualified to do better could not
produce a book within the pages of
which are expressed opinions that dis
place all old faiths in the moral status
Of both youth and man grown up. If
he had touched upon the insidious
serpent of free love, he would have