Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1926-08-29


rear of the church grounds. The high.
grassy front slopes to side road that
opens into the real country. True,
there is a. row of six brown frame
houses that the women-who are al
ways picking out homes that belong
| to other people-concluded could be
made real picturesque, if only they
could find four other women to go
in with them-and d nearby house
stood under a pleasant group of trees.
| Otherwise, the place was truly rural
with wild honeysuckle running riot
over the downward slope of the earth
ramparts and there We're many
straggly trees and butterflies--mostly
yellow.
The property belonged to an old
citizen, Mr.. Cox, who died only a
| short time ago, and who directed his
heirs to sell it to the Government for
a small price. And, as Congress has
had it's attention nudged to the advan-
| tage of a national park. it may be
1t may be-that we won't have to
travel to reach a public domain. We
will have one Of our own.
| Just now it is a peaceful place,
| with its view cut off by church and
rectory, and with only big boulder
to tell what happened here one July
day, GO years ago-a thing only re-
membered at its right worth by those
who represent the ever-thinning blue
line that is the Ora nd Army of today
But, somehow. as your minds eye
takes in the coming together of men,
blue and gray-with that tall, gaunt
figure looking on, you wonder--you
wonder. if they who killed each other
| because of the difference in their uni
forms are now marching together in
that scriptural army of the Lord
There must be an army of the Lord,
because it is so written And as an
army needs recruiting even in heaven,
| it may account for wars on earth. No
| body knows. The one fact that stands
| Is that we are going to have ma
tional home park-provided Congress
allows
j n I'TEE your trip to the battlefield
at Brightwood and another to
| the war relics under glass at the Ma
| tional Museum, it may occur to YOU
when twilight thinking time comes
arOund-tO question dear Bulwer's as
sertion that 1.-The pen Is mightier
than the sword" The men who fell
in the Districts own conflict, and
those others who once wore the faded
|
scorched and tattered flags that the
| Government has shrined. seem to
| bear witness against it.
| 1t is true that the pen has written
the worlds history, but the sword
| made the history.
The pen is the most powerful fac
! tor of civilization, but sword is the
oldest thing in the world. 1t famed
at the gates of Paradise. and when
| the seraph who welded that fiery
weapon made outlanders of Adam and
Eve, he declared the worlds first
war. And the world has been warning
| ever since. The sword cuts a wide
| swath through the Old Testament and
| flashes a keen blade through the less
militant pages of the New. Paganism
swore it's most inviolate oaths on a
sword blade, and it's formed hilt
| has been held before the dying eyes of
crusaders on the field. In days of old
when knights were bold, swords were
the boon companions of valor; each
with it's battle-won name-and though
| 1t came by blood-chrism, it shows the
humanness Of a sword that the pen
has never possessed, since the pen has
come down nameless through the
| ages-unless one might call it cat
because of it's liability to scratch.
| A sword is sanitary. 1t sweeps
clean. A pen, hidden behind a vicious
anonymity, deals character mutilation
with every stroke of its poison-barbed
nib. A sword leaves it's slain on the
field of honor. A pen can drive it's
, victim through the muck. a mans
body, sword-pierced. may rise in eter-
nal glory. but there is no promised
| resurrection for a martyred name.
Stay your benefactor, and-somehow
though your sins be as scarlet they
shall be white as snow. 1t is so writ
ten. But In all the days He walked
the earth, no man heard Him speak
forgiveness to the slanderer. And the
slanderer's choice weapon is the pen.
Also. again@but what's the use,
seeing that the shell and machine gun
have supplanted the sword, and who
wouldn't prefer a type machine to
pen?
THE Memo Blanks are in Wash
ington society. The family Is
seriously rich and when not actively
engaged in spending money at home
ma and pa and junior go to Europe
and buy souvenirs.
One of their finds on a recent
trip is a gold-embroidered vestment
which Mrs. Blank tells about-like
this:
Il picked it up in Barcelona. You
see the fringe is furnished and the
brocade frayed. but the pearls are
genuine and the threads of real gold.
1t was the gift of some royal devotee
to the cathedral there. and when it
was no longer fit for the splendid cere-
monials of its altar, was inherited by
some poorer church. 1 fancy that the
little brown man who sold it to me
stole it from the church-and you
know there is nothing that an Ameri.
can will not buy. According to nv
vendor. miracle goes with the vest
ment, for which had to pay extra:
1T seems the robe was once worn
, by sanity young grandee, who gave
up world-greatness and even his life,
for the story of his faith--plague
or some sort-you know a story
goes with everything you buy in
Spain"
Mrs. Memo Blanks narrative is al
ways a success. for while she has an
eye for histrionic effect, there is
never lacking a thread of reverence:
merely thread, but as genuine in
It's way as the wire that strings the
pearls together. Her word picture of
nuns embroidering the vestment in a
ann clolster long ago, exchanged for
nlllocks in the convent garden, and of
the rapt young saint before an in
cense-perfumed altar, gives to her
voice an artistic tremor that really
dignif1es 1t into recital,
And a good recital good recital
is really a most Interesting thing.
Probably for the reason that 1t Is SO
rare.
X :.
He was stranger. and he wore a
badge. AS he boarded a car he
asked the conductor if it would take
MIN to Blank NJ. E. Church The con.
ductor told him it would.