Show howe abouav moth and the flame new york men question of truth 0 1133 bell syndicate service by ED HOWE awill ANYONE who reads what I 1 write will have to stand a good deal of repetition so I 1 ask indulgence foi or saying baying that old maxims havi have significance as representing the best wisdom there Is another virtue in maxims Is they are always well and simply written A very old one tells of the disposition of a moth to hover around a candle and get its wings singed there was once brice a man named henry holt who had high intellectual equipment and as much education as the best universities and long association with the best people could supply he was waa a book publisher with such rare critical taste that his firm was outstanding ile he owned and edited a quarterly magazine so excellent I 1 have preserved nearly every issue its as an example of perhaps the best average writing ever displayed in a magaz magazine lne ile he wrote a good many of the articles himself and ranked as one of the best american writers but in every issue of unpopular review there was an article usually by mr air holt himself about spiritualism this hovering about a dangerous flame finally resulted in the failure of the best printed and best edited magazine in our long list and bad scars on the reputation of the brilliant edl tor lu in the use of ink pen type here was a master comparable to napoleon bonaparte in the use of guns powder soldiers but henry holt could no more keep from hovering around the same flame of his most dangerous candle than napoleon bonaparte could keep away from moscow in the early winter ot 1812 A long time ago a new york man called on me and requested that I 1 introduce him to william jennings bryan A few minutes after the men met the new yorker said something that infuriated mr bryan and he be displayed a rage I 1 did not know was in him the encounter took place in the bryan homo home in miami fla before I 1 was out of bed next morning mr bryan telephoned and apologized for so comple completely complete tel lj losing his temper his explanation was that all new york men infuriated him they so generally believed lieveld themselves superior to others because of their residence in the bis big town I 1 understand that the depression has greatly chastened chasteney chast ened new yorkers travelers inform me they now display considerable respect for men from other sections I 1 once published a war story on the authority of a common soldier of 1862 at the time I 1 wrote the former private had become a bank president and an exceptionally intelligent and reliable man the general in command denied the authenticity of the incident outlined by the private who in his defense said he witnessed it with his own eyes heard with his own ears the conversation reported and in person participated in the charge described bed was not the evidence of this witness worthy of consideration in describing a famous ancient battle a leader reported that a river left its bed and charged uphill up hill bill after a regiment of retreating soldiers had a hundred reliable common men participating to in the same action declared no such marvel occurred I 1 believe the testimony of the majority should have been considered with that of the leader who wrote a book spartans spartano Spar tans practiced health effi efficiency clency that they might become good soldiers history tells some terrible cases ot of butchery practiced by them the pennsylvania dutch practice good fabits that they may become good citizens and thus avoid war poverty drunkenness idleness and other of the extravagances of civilization in the upper middle class in the united states there are millions of 0 men I 1 admire more than any spartan in cultivating good habits the spartans spartano Spar tans made too much of bravery as exhibited in fighting the pennsylvania dutch and other citizens successful above the faverave fa are not fanatical about any one thing but try for a reasonable average la in all good habits a 0 0 do you recall how the american people were forced to advance the money loaned to foreigners during the world war and which the foreigners now impudently refuse to pay backi back in hundreds of communities the news newa papers printed dally lists of those citizens who were slow in producing mon money ey to be loaned abroad the american who refused to make a loan to his bis foreign brother was everywhere denounced by the rabble and publicly insulted |