Non·Members can obtaIn thIs publicatIon from the Hon. Secretary, post free 2/. per annum NOVEMBER, 1925. Cb~ montbly R~cOrd of Soutb Plac~ €tbjcal SOCj~ty, South Place, Moorgate, E.C.2 ebleet of the Soeloty• .. The Object of the Society is the cultivation of a rational religious sentiment, the study of ethical principles, and the promotion of human welfare, in harmony with advancing knowledge. " SUNDAY MORNING SERVICES. The following DISCOURSES will be delivered on Sunday morning s, Service beginning at ELEVEN O'CLOCK. October 25. - C. DELISLE BURNS. M.A. • D.Lit.-Mediaeval Art and Religion. 1. Organ Solo. Andant
on !londll.l'S, 1\"< 2(J to .It Mrs. B South ~laoe C!)rc'heetra. Conductor: RICHARD H. WALTHEW. ProctieeAi will 00 h"kl fron: T t The GCNJ:ltAT. COMM1'M'EE will IlH \t on Thllr~cln~·, ~ovctr.ber 5. Correspond net' dealing ..Ith matten for consideration should be forwolrded to F. M. OVRny, Hon. Sec., S6, Caterham Rand, wisham, S.E.1S, at the earliest P088ible moment. All mlltter. relating to finanee .hould b. addressed to the Treasurer. Seeretari"s of sub·committees are requested to note that nny matter which they ..ish to insert in the ?loNTnr.I RRCOJlD should be in the hnnds of Mr. F. W. RBAD not Inter than 16th at the month. All liternry Irntter ohould be forwarded to the Editor, Mr. O. J. POLLARD, .8 eorly in the month n. pos.ible. EDITORIAL. YOUNG PEOPU;.-YGung People's Group of the Ethical :\10vement, 14, Great George Street, " -estminster, S. 'Y.I (side door). Young men and women connected with the Ethical Movement and their friends are cordi ally invited to a Social and Re<:reatiye Evening at the above address on Monday, Xovember Q, at 7.30 p.m., to inaugurate the sessional activities of the Young People's Group. Music, ongs, tories, Games, Coffee, etc. FLECJ{,;R ('mDIE~rORATIo~.-M r. '''allis Mansford will speak on ·Wed. nesday, November Il, at 5 p.m., at the London Institution, Finsbury Circus, on " James Elro}' FJe<:ker: Scholar, Pcet, Dramatist." The chairman, will be Sir E. Denison Ross, K.B., CLE., Ph.D., Director of the School of Oriental tudies. In the course of the Address elections from 1he Poet's 'Work will be read by ?irs. Florence Everett and Dr. W. H. FJccker, M.A., the poet s father. "'e understand that members of South Place will be Welcome, and we are ~ure 1hat Mr. Man ford would greatly appreciate the support of members of our Society. F. j. GOULD, SEPTUAGENARIAN. It was a very happy gathering that assembled at South Place on Sunday evening, September 27th, to offer se\entieth birthday congratula tions to Mr. F. J. Gould. l,t is true It was some three months before that great milestone of a man's journey, but as Mr. Gould remarked in his ~peech South Place was always in advance of the times. Everyone was radiant, especially the elderly young man who was the focus of the meehng, b~ttonholed and smiling, and accessible 10 everybody. M r. C. J. Pollard presided. At the outset of his speech he regretted the absence of Mr. Siddle, who was lying seriously ill in a nursing-home in London. The meeting gave its unanimous assent that he should convey their sympathy ~o Mr. Siddle. After welcoming the members of the Ethical Societies, the Positivist Societies and the R.P.A. who were present, Mr. Pollard read congratulatory letters from Mr. William Ashton, of Southport; ~Ir. R. J. Minshall, of Sheffield; Prof. Patrick Geddes, Mr. C. E_ Hooper, and Mrs. Fletcber Smith, who were unable 10 attend. He then gave some personal reminiscences. He made Mr. Gould's acquaintance some forty years ago in Victoria Park. Mr. Pollard was organising for the N.S.S., and Mr. Gonld was launching the Independent Thought Society. Mr. Pollard was attracted by a quiet persuasive voice coming from a speaker of a very different type from that of the usual park orator. The manner was wistful rather than combativ~ and the speaker smiled as he spoke. They became fast friends and visited at each other's houses. Mr. Pollard went on to speak of a subsequent visi,t to Mr. Gould when leader of the Leicester Secular Society, on which occasion they discussed the Blatchford articles which were then appearing in a London paper, articles which they both deplored, but which were fully justified by the Great War which was 1hen brewing up. In that war, Mr. Pollard said, Mr. Gould lost his only sOn, Julian, and his bravery in sustaining that loss serves to remind us of the courage and steadiness he has -always shown in the face of trial and difficulty. :-1 iss E. M. White, Secretary of the "Gould Committee," followed with a brief but 1elling account of the immense activities of ~rr. Gould. She asked "\Vbat is a great life~" and replied with a quotation from Alfred de Yiglly : "A great life is an idea conceived in youth and realised in adulthood." She read two of the monthly bulletins selected at random, tbaot of Xovember, 1917, and that of May, 1925. They related the lectures and specimen lessons given and of books alld pamphlets written for those months, and formed an astonishing record of work for a man of any age. Mr. Gould had written over fifty books, mostly for the young. He was a great moral teacher, yet he never taught morals. He gave 1he illustra tions in story and parable, and let the lesson teach itself. Miss \Vhite praised especially two of his books, "Commonsense Thoughts on the Life Beyond," a gem of En~lish literature, and 1be recently issued "History the Teacber," from which she cited the opening sentence, "The aim of education should be service of the family and commonwealth, expressed in material, intellectual and artistic industry, inspired by history, and perpetually responsive 10 the claims of the whole circle of humanity; and this duty of service applies to all members of the community without exception." In conclusion, Miss White cited a stanza by an anonymous author which, in her opinion, admirably de~cribed the hero of the evening' He worked for beauty, candour, liRht and 1ruth, And strove for freedom in its amplest measure. He sided with the lowly; and for youth He prayed the world to gi\'e its fairest treasure. :vIr. F. S. Marvin, of the Positivist Society, said there were three qualities which especially characterioed Mr. Gould. He was a rationalist without biHerness, a socialist without greed, and a man of devotion without limit. It was that unlimited devotion, that untiring fund of energy and work that most amazed those who knew Mr. Gould best. He began as it teacher, and showed early in life his rationalism by sacrificing his posi tion in the London School Board, and coming out into the world for the sake of conscience. Mr. Man'in gave in some detail an account of Mr_ 5 'Gould's work for rationalism by constant articles ID the Literary Guide and the SCCII [ar l "Sacred 10 the memory of Frederick James Gould, late writer in the Secular Review and occasional Freethought lecturer. He was yet in 1he bloom and vigour of Rationalism when he was untimely cut off while passing along the Thames Embankment by an attack of Cbristian Charity. Aged 32. ThIS simple epitaph not only furnishes a monument to the deceased, but is also a striking testimony to the enlightenment and tolerance of this progressive age. RESURGAM." 6 ~r. Could said he had recited this little incident because his friend Pollard, the Chairman, saw the printed epitaph, cnt it out, pasted it in a copy of Herbert Spencer's First Principles, and in conjunction with five others handed the book as a present 10 him. Mr. Could went on to speak of his debts to other!'; to Miss E. J. Troup, whose Hylllns at Modem F"ought was first u~ed, under his leadership, in the Leicester Secular Society; to Mr. \Ya,:ts, who in 1899 founded the Rationalist Press As ocia lion; to Miss Frepm:ll1, of the. outh London Ethical Society; and to Dr. Hayward, who had much enoouraged him in his educational pioneering. In conclusion, Mr. Could said th.at he owed his greatest debt to the Positivist Movement, from which he acquired that sense of the one-ness of humanity throughout the ages, of that wonderful genius, of the origin of which we knew nothing, which had carved i·ts way through infinite difficulties of slavery, poverty, ignorance and war, to the present stage of ci"i lisat 11, whIch, after all, was a mere beginning in the history of the race; that geniu; which was to he seen in the most lowly drudge, right up to such men as Homer, Dante and Shakespeare, and in men d all nations and creeds. It was a Roman Catholic, Pascal, who spoke those immortal words. "The whole succession of men through the ages should be ::onsidered as one man, ever Jiving and con tantly learning." 13efore and after the speeches the ScoJia Folk-Song Quartette, con sisting of the Mi ses Mary ('on:m-Dov]e, Edna Hoff, Cwynne.h Trotter, and Barbara Friendship, rendered c!elightful music. C. A. SMITH, [Mr. W. Siddle, in acknowledging the message sent ~o him from the above meeting, wrote to Mr. O\'ery: "I was so grateful for your letter this morning and am deeply touched by the message of sYfI!."lathy from the friends at 1he Reunion. How I should have loved to be there! It is only as one is cut off from Ethical Associations that one realises what it has meant to one. I can't tell you how, in my long exile in provincial sana toria, I have hungered and thirsted for the Ethical Fellowship. I feel more strongly than ever that while you must keep the intellectual work going vigorously, it is also imperative to keep the simple fellowship warm and alive. "-En.] JOHN ALDRED_ Some eighty to one hundred people met at Colders Creen Crematorium on Saturday, O~tober lO, to pay a tribu H We commemorate in this meeting the life of our frienc;. Topn Aldred. His death has deprived us of his thought and intere; t in our common 1ask, and these canno! btl replaced; but we cannot believe that he is altogether lo~t to us. The work of his mind and spirit survives io us; it is the same spirit which was at work while he was living. " \\Te remember that he was one f those who have strength to make III path through life for 1heD!selve~, without tl'~e assistance of influence or wealtl,. lIe often told me, and he must have t'lld otl-ers' of his friends, how difficult the first steps were in his effor' to free himself from material and intellectual circums:ances which he felt were narrow. At the end of his life he looked furward to being able to help 0thers of the younger genuation, who had to face the same difficulties as he had surmounted. The stern experience of early life perhaps ga,'e him the quiEt determind tion whIch his frIends knew. But his succe~s did not make him forget otbers \Vh.> had been and oth ers still to come who perhaps would be less fortunate. He had !iome'hing of the reserve, combined with the kindliness of the men of the Xorth of England, from whom he came. I' " But e\'en if the busines of life was hard and the daily tasks always absorbing, he valued most hi"hly the inteflectual freedom in which he found his friendships. The struggle, not for bread only but for a fuller life, led him away from the narrow or hodoxies into which he was born. He often told me of the intellectual relief he found in his di.covery of South Place and the revival of his spirit in that communi,ty. He never conceived our Association as a connict with others: nor did he, ] think, limit his new interests to purely intellpctual discussion. He believed that the word 'religion' could be used in a new sense; and in that sense I think we may say 1h.at he was a deeply reJigious man . He felt that we were at work in the establishment of a new and more humane enthu siasm which would carry on the best of the old inheritance in Christianity. But it is more impnrtant for us now not vainly to call to our memories what he has said, but to appreciate the work that be bimself did in tbe creation of that new spirit whicb all of us nape to see some day supreme. A m<:n may be always exp€cting 10 obtain some new impulse or vision from the arts, from poetry, from the hints of fuller life which we catch in the intercourse with men of goo_d will. Such a man is one of the makers of reli~ion. "l'erhap. the world is divided into tbe recei\-ers of religion and the makers of rp.ligi l"·n : and the makers are always suspected by those who need only what they have receh"ed. But the makers of religion are them seh'cs of many kinds. Some work, as it were, in the open and under observation: but their work is no more excellent than that of the others whose work is not obvious. The new building i!> not altogether the work . of the architects; for the hands of those who have laid the hidden founda tions have put strength into the fabric. John Aldred was one of tho~e foundation builders. The excellence of such work seems to be that it is shared. J am not speaking now only of the time and energy he spent upon the material fOl'Lunes of our Society. That material, obvious fact is, for all of us, only a symbol of the work of the spirit on which we are engaged_ If there is ever to 'be a new enthusiasm for men, a new insight into life and the world, which will be more satisfactory than the older orthodoxies, the thought and emotion of men like John Aldred will be found to be built into the fabric_ 'Ye build 'a palace buil t of Souls,' of souls splendid and shining_ " The near presence of death dwarfs many of the cares and hopes which fill our daily lives. We know so little of life that we can hardly suppose tha.t we know anything of death or birth. Free men need not pretend to themseh'es that they can see where there is no light: but neither need they lose heart or yield to fear when they see that the world in which they live has farther distances than their eyes can reach. "Thinkers have come to very di \'erse conclusions about death. One said: 'The life of a wise man is a perpetual awareness of death': but another and a greater thinker said: 'The free man thinks of nothing less than of death.' These seem 10 be contradictory; but they are not. Perhaps both are true. 'Ye must be aware of facts which we cannot understand: otherwise we resign our citizeaship ill a world which is vaster 1han our village. No form of blindness is less excusable than the blindness to Our own ignorance. On the other hand, we did not bring ourselves into being, we shall not choose the time of our departure. Some part of the real world is in our power: another part-perhaps the greater part-is not. This does not mean that we are slaves or victims of fate. It means -only tbat we cannot play all the parts in the piece. If our thought and -emotion is fully gi\'en 10 the part in which we' find ourselves, we are free -.and our own death is not our concern. " Of the death of our friends' we say ol1ly- Nothing is here for tears, nothing to wail Or knock the breast; no weakness, no contempt, Dispraise or blame; nothing but well and fair And what may quiet us . __ " And so the message of death seems to be not, as an ancient religion !! belieH'd, that we too must die: but that meantime we should live with al! our heart and all our thought. The peace that is in death is no more excellent than the quiet which a man may find in a life that is strenuous and serene." John Aldred used to tell his wife 1hat he owed a deb1 of gratitude to his grandfather, J. H. Crowther, from whom he believed he inherited a <:ertam firmness and decision of character, wh'ch had served him wel! in battling against the trials and difficulties of life. J. H. Crowther was an engIneer and a remarkabl~ man. He carried out many engineering feats, among others that of building bridges across the valleys of. Derbysh~re . JOhn Aldred, his grandson, also achieved notable successes lD spannmg 11 is tances, although of a different kind. He came to London in his teens, without influence and with his way to make unaided. His early struggles were severe, but he surmounted them very successfully and carved out a good position for himself. He also came to London with religious belie~s which were widely apart from those he ultimately adopted. Here agalD he overcame, by his own initiative and courage, the difficulties of the pilgrimage from orthodoxy to heterodoxy. He joined Soull;> Place in.. 1896 and our ::iociety gained 1he help of a man of valuable buslDess expenence and strong character, who gave himself heart and soul to the welfare of the Society from that time until his death. Two years after becoming a member he was appointed Financial Secretary, 10 help Mr. Cro\\der, thl: Treasurer, who was then in failing health. His friend Mr. Harold Seyler was appointed Registrar at the same time. He held the post of Financial Secretary until '901, and then acted as Treasurer pro tern. until '90 4 He was first elected to the Committee in 1900 and became a Trustee in 1907. lIe took a very important and most useful part in the sale of the South Place site, also in the purchase of the site at Red Lion Square, and his business ability and knowledge have been of the greatest service to the ociety in preparing ~he way for the new South Place. It is a very sad blow that he did not- live to see the new hO.me for the Society. He gave so much thought and affectionate devotion to the re-building scheme and his hopes were so high for the future life of the Society that it seems -especially unkind of fate to hme robbed h'm of the satisfaction that would lnv.: b~.:n s) iClstiv du:! to him wh ; n his Jab)urs w~r" crowllt:d with suc-:ess. The writer of this notice has only had the privilege of knowing John Aldred for a few years, but though it is a comparatively short period the impression made upon him is very deep. He was an exceptional man, not in any extraordinary manner, but simply as an individual. He was qu;et in his appeal, but carried more weight than the demonstrative; he was gentler but more determined 1·han most; he was 'ery sensitive, not only in his tastes, but in his spiritual perceptions; he was most fastidious in poin1s of honour, not only in private life but in business usage; he was a generous supporter of causes he approved and an optimistic enthusiast for the future of those causes; and also he was blessed with a keen sense of humour that never deserted him. He was a great 10"er of antiques of any kind {lId furniture, old book bindings-and a lover of Italy and the old Italiall painters. He had a good collectjon of books and nearly every edition of Omar Khayyam. The possessor of these quaWies is an exceptional man. John Aldred did possess them, and all who have enjoyed bis friendship are better men and women for having known him. From a very large number of letters Mrs. Aldred has received we are allowed to quote from two: "John Aldred was a man of singular charm, with a practical outlook on life tempered by an inward feeling of quiet and unobtrusive philosophy. Such a man leaves the world poorer by his departure." "More than mo~t people, John Aldred appreciated so many joys of this life and 100k delight in sharing such joys with others. I cherish the hope that somehow all that was so good and cheerful lives on." "-e would also like to give an . extract from a let~er received by Mr. Overy from Miss Rawlings: "I feel that his passing is a serious loss 10 myself personally' and to the Society at large and his fellow workers it is a terrible b'ow. I am sure you will all miss his counsel and help sorely in this critical time and my deep sympathy goes out to you. It is all 'so unexpected and tragic." We mourn for our loss, but feel joy that the world is enriched by characters like John Aldred. He would, we think, wish us to remember him with pleasurable thoughts, and this we can 90, although our sense of loss is so keen that we cannot but grieve. "'e must, however, speak of him with hearts cheered by the good part he played in life, even if we have tears in our eyes. Mrs. Aldred tells us that he oiten expressed the wish that the following quotation from old Omar, whom he loved so much, should be his epitaph :_ And when, oh Saki, you shall pass Among the Guests Star·scatter'd on the Grass, And in thy joyous Errand r&ch the spot Where I made one-turn down an empty Glass! . C .. J. POLLARD. THE DECAY OF POSITIVISM. It is announced that the Positivist Review (latterly Humanity), which has been carried on uninterruptedly for thirty three years, is to ceasl" publication at the end of the y ar. The discontinuance of the monthly organ of the SOCiety is only a strikil\g symptom of the decay of Positiyism which has been obvious for a considerable time, a decay which has been accelerated since 19'4 by the up.heaval of the war, and the death of many of its oldest and most prominent adherents. In the future the advocacy of the cause will be confined to a restricted platform effort, which will be maintained by ,the diminishing remnant of a fanner enthusiastic and re. latively flourishing organisation. The spectacle of this dccay provokes more than an ordinary .entiment of emotion over a lost cause. Positivism has enlisted the devotion and energy of quite a large number of men of exceptional distinction of mind and character, in fact, it would be impossible to find a movement so numerically small in ",.hich the weight of moral elevation was so impressi,'e. The output of hterature has been large, and cc.nstitutes a sn:a1I library whilst the public activities of some of the leading Positi\'ists have embraced a large variety of human interests. To say these things is only to suggest a very small area in which Posi~ivist influence has been exerciEed. Its influence over minds which have been partially captured has probably been still more extensive. Names like those of Harriet Martineau, George Henry Lewes, and John Stuart Mill seem to belong to a rather distant generatlOn, but George Eliot, Charles Booth, and John ~Iorley are notable types of the late \'lctorian age in literature, social science, and politics, and of all three it can definitely be stated that they were almost persuaded to be Posi1ivists, and no one who reads their books can seize the full significance of them without recognising their debt to its inspiration. That veteran apostle, Frederic Harrison, who far outli\ed the norm.al Span of human life in undiminis.hed mental vigour, seemed in his later years to present the aspect of a prophet addressing a world in ruins. The public whom he addressed in the columns of the TImes probably agreed with him, but the men whom he had in mind belonged to a past age, and were all dead; their successors did not know him, and in Gallio mood cared for none of the things he pressed upon them. The men of his own faith, too, had turned into paths which seemed to be other than those the wisdom of the past had marked out. In his two Yaledictory addresses he felt himself arrayed not only against the forces at work in the outside World, but al~ against some process w.hich was nullifying his life's work for Positivism. Had he been wrong? Had they all been wrong? Judg. ing by the normal human test which they were all bound to recognise there had evidently been some failure, but his bewildered intelligence afforded him no conclusive answer to the crowd of perplexin({ Which assailed it. probl~m~ Tn the recent issues of Humanitv there are contributions by Professor Patric]c Geddes and Mr. Malcolm Quin w.hich seek to account for the failure of Positi\·ism. "The Positivist Societies set out as fi,hers of men," says the former, "and they have not succeeded. But when we do not catch the fish, there is no use blaming them; it is for the fishers 10 look .... for their own tackle, and their own ways of using it." This is very true • t/J but the Professor appears to think that the fish were mainly to be caught with academic bait, a conclusion that hardly coincides with practical expuience. He does, however, throw light on a prominent aspect of Positi"ism when in criticising the attitude of Laffitte he says, "I oould not but feel his attitude more scholarly than scientific; i.e., his.torical, critical, in short, retrospecti ve--rather than activ'e.ly progressive." No view of human affairs, which fails to attribu"e to the past an overwhelming influence on the present and the future of humanity has any pretension to even elementary value, but anyone who has been in the habit of attending Positivist meetings regularly will have had the impression of making frequent pilgrimages amongst the tombs. It is possible for the past to become an obsession and a blight, and the advccacy of Positivism has some times tended in this direction. lIIr. Malcolm Quin's contribution is of special value in that it is based on a long and strenuous apostolate, the story of which has been told by him in one of the most interesting of autobiographies-Memoirs of (1; P,?Sitivist. Here it may be noted that his apostolate derives from Dr. Con greve and the Church of Humanity, and not from the group associated with Frederic Harrison which originated at Newton Hall and is most promi nently identified with Positivism at South Place. He points out 1hat Positivism is in no sense a complete and coherent doctrine, and that Comte's' thought was constantly changing and developing; he died before he had accomplished his work. More important still, he r€calls that Congre,'e told him that all Positivists were in a state of varying disagreement with Comte, but a tradition appears to have been set up early that only the agreement should be emphasised, which tradition, it may be observed, still has considerable force. He thinks now that this state of affairs was not rrood either for him or Comte, and no candid critic will fail 10 assent to this. conclusion. A man's teaching must tand on its OWl' ments, and other men must be left to judge whether it is of value; they will accept, reject, or select, but will not tolerate a selection made by discipl ~ s who are con cerned to offer what they think is good for them. The basic conception of Positivism i. the substitution of Humanity for God, and Mr. Quin points out at length wh.at many persons must ha':e rcached by a simple process not far removed from the instinctive, that the. modern mind cannot effect this chan~e. Sorr:e distinguished persons haye failed to unders"and wJJat the word Humanity really means. It is a highly abstract or poetical conception, and it m"ly be doubted whether many Positivists woulp agree if they were called upon to make an analytical and logical definition after the manner of the Quicunque Vult. If it is related ',to the law of the three tages, it would seem to have more connection with the secontl Or metaphysical stage than with the later positive develop me.nt. Amongst Positivists there has been profound di~agrcement about t11e emotional attitude to be observed 10wards the conceotion, and such attempts as have been made to clothe it in ritualist garb have not been impressive. Comte claimed that he was the founder of a new religion, and in connection with his assertion that the real founder of Christianity was the apostle Paul, M. Charles de Rouvre rather unkindly suggests that he was concerned to abate the pretensions of a competitor. His claim has been accepted by Positivists, but they have not regarded the life and character of 1heir founder as an important element. Indeed Positivism appears to have had the strongest numerical support before the Ealient facts of Comte's life were known, He died in 18S7, but it was not until the end of 1884 that his Testament was published, along with his letters to Clotilde de. Vaux, and other documents, revealing the innermClst secrets of his life. No Engl ish translation appeared until 1910, and tbis emanated, not from the London Society, blllt from a small group of whole-hearted disciples at Liverpool Ten years later Mr. F. J. Gould published a brief life of Comte, making the outlines of his career accessible to the general reader for the first time. Comte was a grea1 thinker, but he was emnhatically not a great man. and if it were possible 10 fouod a new religion, at least for the English speaking race, the founder would not only have to be a great teacher, but a great moral person. Students of the history of religion now know that religions are not: 11 made or founGed. :\'either Jesus nor Paul founded Chlistianity; it grew in a world which for us is largely shrouded in darkness. Two generafions ago English thinkers were much impressed by the com'iction that a new religion was urgently needed. He would be a rash man who would now affirm that the popular consciousness lends any countenance to such a con viction, unless, indeed, it may be assumed to have its embodiment in the sarcastic Cred.? of Thomas Carlyle : (I) The u.niverse, so far as sane conjec'ure can go, is an immeasur able swine's-trough, consisting of solid and liquid, and of other contrasts. and kinds especially consisting of attainable and unattainable, the latter in immensely greater quantities for most pigs. (2) Moral evil is unattainability of pigs-wash; moral good, attaina bility of ditto. But this gospel of the swine-trough is not new, and all that need be said here is that men have never been able to liYe by it. A. S. TO)JS CORRESPONDENCE Rnponsibility t OT the opinions expressed under this heading rests solely with the wrNers APPEAL FOR FU)I"DS FOR L.C.C. SCHOOL CHILDRE)I"'S PARTY. To the Editor ot THE MONTHLY Rr:CORD. DE.\R SIR,-The ocial ommittee, who ha\'e taken o,'er the work of the :\lembers' Committee and thus have the care of the L.C.C. school children's party, make an appeal for funds to carry on this interesting work. Last year 240 girls and boys from local schools were invited to tea and entertainment ,find were gi\'en a present on leaving. If funds allow us we hope to increase the number of our guests this Christmas time. An early response to this appeal will help us greatly. Subscript;ons will be receiTed in the Library, or may be sent to the Hon. Treasurer of the Social Committee, F . A. Il.\wKINS, 13, Thurlow Park Road, S.E.2I.- Yours 1ruly, FLOREXCE M. HA\\'KINS. oeR e)l"DA Y DISCOT RSE . To the Editor oj THE MONTIlLY RECORD. DEAR SIR,-Enquiry is ften made for lectures which have been given at outh Place. l\Iay I call attention to the fact that the Book Table now has the Lecture hy Dr. Holl ander on Won:1', a lso a volume by i\Ir. J. M, Hoberl son-Spoken Essays containing lectures which have been gi\en from our platform.-Yours faithfully, E. SNELJ.lNG. CHI:\" A ASD BRITI H APITAL. To the Editor of THE :\10NTHLY RE:CORfJ. DE\R SIR,-On reading the letter from C. E. Scudamore publi~hed in the :\10NTHLY RECORD, one i~ impelJed to questioJ1oo much which he takes fer granted. Apropos of the la t paragraph, for instance, I would ask, I. " brain" a synonym for "inve tor?" Is tre labour which fundan~entally creates wealth, including di\'iclends, merely a mass of muscle with no brain? Is the moneyed m.an or wom.an who invests necessarily, or eVl'n usually, an example of "competence, industry and thrift," and is the worker only a "wastrel, spendthrift and incompetent?" Is it not" im moral ' to desire to particil'ate in wealth which is created notoriously by sweated labour, including that of children? ' Vith regard to the im'estor's "desire to share in the wealth which they have helped to create" that is precisely the case for the other side, with, in my'view, far more justifica tion. A . in of omission seems to lie in the fact that shareholders do not que. tion why they houlcl receive such high returns on money which they have im'ested in Chin 'I., and if th y did, the reply that the standard f eXistence in that quarter is very low would, it seems, satisfy them Yery well.-T am, ,ir, yours sincerely, G. LARTER. 1;2, ~ew Kent RJad, S.E.I. 12 He)N~RitRY e)PPU!lERS • 1'rea8u,rer ...... C. E. Lr-TER. 21, Abbolts Park !toad, Leyton, RIO. 860"tarie. {MU!. C. FLETCREU SMITH. 35. Station WR.V, Lelehwllrth. '" F. M. OVERY, 36, CaLerhnm UORit. L~wi.ham, " .E.13. Sunday Lecture Secretary F. W. READ, 65, Harley Road, Hl1rlesden, N.W.IO. Jlinute Secretar/! .•. ... Miss V. ALEXANDER, 165, A.hmore Ro,d, Pndclington, W.9 Registrar of Mambe .. and} Miss R. HALL' 21 ll,tcourl Road Fulham S W 6 Auoolatea . I ., • . • Bditor of MOllTBLr RleORD C. J. POLLARD, "Shanklin," The AYenue. Chinlrford, E.'. WALLlS M"'~SFo nD ," The Outlook," King. enit Avenue, Rulslip- Librarian, Miitdlesex. ... { F. J"."S, 302, Dalston Lane, Hackney, E.B. MISS V. A. ALEnNDER, 165, Ashmor. Road, Pndding-ton, W.g. Seeretaries of Sub-(!ommlttees. Butldlng F. HEnnERl' MANsrORD, .. Wnldcn,"' King-send Avenue, Ruislip_ Concert ALrRBD J. CLBMENTS, B, Finchley Way, Finchley, N.S. Conway Memorial E. CARR, 6, Essendon Road, Sanderstead, Surrey. Discussions J. J. MURrnr, 41, Southwood Avenue, Hilrhlrate, N.G. Esperanto S. J. SllITll, 43, Hornsey Rise Gardens, N.IO. Music Miss P. J . SU10N"S, :'::0. GrllnYillc Road, N 4. Publicatlons E. SNELLlNG, B, A mberley Rand, Leyton, E.10. Rambles MISS E. SlllONS, 20, Granville Road, N.4- SOCIal Mrs. F. M. HA .... K":•. 13. Thurlow Park Road, S.E.21. { Mrs. J. E, SU"CL I FF~, 1. lIlarllJorollAh 1'lnee, N.W.S. New Members: Mr. JOHN R. PmLLlPs. 6D, Thorngrove Rood, "Cptrn Pork. E.13. Miss E. E. Cl. bliss NYDU AT,T.EN, er Overnorton," 46, Ctunarvon R(1nd, outh 'Yocdford. E.IB. Jlris. OLIVE MUNDAY, 152. Sutherland .Ivenue, Mnidn Yale. w.n. Mrs. HOLYOAI DlitRV F~R N~VEMBER. I Service 1 LO a.m. 15 E sperallto Circle 3.'0 p.m. I Esperanto Circle 3.30 p.m. 15 Popular Concel t 6.3 0 pm. I Popular Concel't 6.30 p.lI1. 17 Lecture (see page 2) 3 Lecture (,ee page 2) 18 Esperanto Class 7.)0 p.m. 4 Esperanto Class 7.30 p.l11. 18 Whist Drive (se,: pilge 2) 7. 30 p.m. 5 Gelleral Committee meets 6.30 p.m. 20 Plav.reading (see page 3) o Play-reading (see page 31. 22 Service ...... I LO a.m. 8 Service .,' ... 11.0 am. 22 Esperan!o Circle 3.30 p.m. 8 E sperar,to Circle ... 3.30 p.m. 22 Pop, lar Concert 6.30 p.111 . 8 Popular Concert ... 6.30 1'.111 . 2+ Lecture (see page 2) 10 Lecture (see page 2) 25 Esperanto Class 7·30 P 111. I I E speranto Class ••• 7·3011·111. 27 Dance at Club 70 p.m. 12 Soiree '" 6.30 p.m. 2Q Service T [ ;t.m. 13 Play-reJdil1g (5ee page 3). 29 Esreranto Circle 15 Service .. , 3·30 r·m. •.• JI.O a.m 29 P')pular Concert '" 6.3 0 p.111, . !,riat.d .,.11 Publilhl'Cl by TnB UTor" I'R£9S LTD. ", Worship Street, E.C.2.