The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1942-01-01
I llrl1ing Over An
Old Leaf
By Phillip A. Gladheim

There were fires Of grief and fear that
aye q few forgotten ashes;
There were sparks of recognition
that are rot forgotten yet"
They say that a specialized kind OF
savant is capable of predicting the
future by looking intently towards the
center of ball Of glass. We call such
a person a crystalgazer.
1t would seem that America would
profit immesureably if it could de
velop another kind Of savant-one
who could adumbrate the path life
has taken in America since the turn of
the century. Perhaps he needs the
patience to inspect the composite
headlines from the press roll Of each
year-then add all these composites
together and from these tell simply
whether we still know which way we
are tending or whether we have lost
our way.
AT present one mans guess is as
plausible as the other Even the less
intelligent find it easy to arrive 81
conclusions, negative or positive.
Apart from survey of press re,
ports Of all the goings on here in
America it might be more accurate to
examine ones own reactions to life
during the past forty years. Again one
meets with the personal equation.
During these forty years many peo-
pie have not altered their place, mode
or belief in living; others have rubbed
up against life with innumerable haz-
ards to inherited aptitudes. This is
because they have lived trailer-cat
existence. With these life has been
a Kaleidoscope of change; with the
former a stereoptican view with the
same old slides.
What has happened to our churches,
schools and homes, even in small
towns? Churches and schools have
become larger. School attendance has
increased, therefore reason for adj
ding to equipment, but the attendance
at church has been decreasing, but
the Church has a solid hope in the
future
As to our homes: We have appar-
entity more Of them, but less children.
The houses have become smaller for
two reasons-less children and less
company.
We make most of our social con
facts in the various organizations,
church and community.
AS to our morals: The central doc
trine now is you are not guilty until
you get caught" On the uncaught,
undetected side Of our life, anything
can happen and does happen, even il
we believe only in part the lurid and
sensational reports of the press, de-
scribing daily the tragedies Of inf
deity, stealing and murder.
Think of the new inventions Ameri-
ca has made in ways to evade the laws
of God and man. The front page of our
press is fundamentally an open con-
fession that the supposedly most en-
lightened section of the human race
/ Of today can't successfully observe
a few simple, eternal laws created
$500 years ago. In other words we are
living at least 5000 B. c. morally
although scientifically, intellectually
we are living in 1912 A. D. How car
we reconcile the widening gap be-
tween the evolution of our outward
progress and the "devilution" of our
inner life?
Our material, cultural and social re-
sources have increased, but we are
now in the phase Of worldwide frat
ricide because we are morally bank
rupt Nothing less than worldwide
spiritual movement that will bring US
an up-to-date ethic will avert the COM
plete annihilation of our civilized or
ders.
Life in 1912, anyway you look at it.
is much more hazardous and uncertain
than in 1900. The past cannot be re-
called. If it were in our power to move
the worlds life upstream to 1900 and
relive these decades, we would not
care for the repeat.
Tomorrow lures us on as a traveller
in the desert wastes. In spite of the
days when he have seen mirages, he
knows that somewhere ahead is a real
city of celestial PROJECTIONS built tri.
umphatly out of all the grand fail.
ures OF receding ages.
1t would seem then that within ones
own heart whether he discern the
faint, dim path Of glory thru the muck
of the past and see it ever widening
and more radiant as it stretches out
towards the great tomorrows, encom
passing more of stricken humanity
until the compassion of God is cock
tensive with the ultimate desires o.
human happiness and freedom-sucl
vision of life is safe and filled with
warm assurance.
An old proverb for this New Yea,
is: with God, go over the sea; with
, out Him, not over the Threshold"
= Brazilian police battled with organ