AND YE SHALL KNOW THE TRUTH, AND THE TRUTH SHALL MAKE YOU FREE."—John viiiiMS.
CHARLOTTE, N. C„ THURSDAY. SEPTEMBER 8, 1938.
NO. 36.
' THE THIRD TERM AND DICTATORSHIP
By DR. KELLY MILLER
Democracy and Dictatorship j
are incompatible terms. The
issue between these two types
of government is now upper
most throughout the civilized
world. In the final analysis the
distinction between the two
types of government will not
be found to consist wholly in
the exercise of irresponsible
and absolute power, but the ul
timate test will be seen in the
transmission of authority from
the existing regime to its suc
cessor. Who will succeed Mus
solini or Hitler?-—that is the
question. Under a democracy
the law of transition is fixed in
the Constitution. The suc
cessor of the dictator depends
upon his own will and choice.
President Theodore Roosevelt
designated William H. Taft for
his successor, but this designa
tion had to be confirmed by the
suffrage of the people accord
ing to prescribed Constitution
al method.
Hitler is called a Fuerher,
and Mussolini, .11 Duce, mean
ing leader in both instances.
The title of dictator is repro
bated in America for reason of
euphony, albeit we acquiesced
in emergency power conferred
upon or assumed by Abraham
Lincoln, Woodrow Wilson and
Franklin D. Roosevelt—emer
gency powers equal to or sur
passing those of European dic
tatorships. We tolerate the role
while detesting the title of dic
tator. Roosevelt cannot exer
cise any authority unless spe
cifically conferred upon him by
Congress and acquiesced in by
the people. The length of time
in which a dictator shall exer-|
cise extraordinary power de
pends upon the duration of
the emergency which made
him necessary.
•- —On-March 4, 1988, the Amer
ican people found themselves
confronted, not merely by an
emergency of short duration,
but face to face with an epoch
produced by the slow accumu
lation of economic and indus
trial forces. Invention, discov
ery and improved managerial
technique had produced an in
dustrial and economic impasse.
The new industrial revolution
required a re-shaping of the
processes of government to
j x meet the demands of the new
/age with or without epochal up
heaval. We had come to an
epoch in which our history
marked the sudden transition
from the individualistic era of
the horse and buggy age to that
of social regulation and con
trol. At this critical juncture,
in 1933, Franklin D. Roosevelt
stepped into the arena and re
quested and was accorded nec
essary emergency powers. He
willingly assumed the duty and
responsibility of leadership at
such a time as this.
The American people, with
out regard to parties, accepted
his drastic experiment as a way
out of the emergency then
pressing hard upon them. How
long shall Roosevelt remain in
office? The answer depends not
so much upon his own will and
choiee, as upon the emergencies
of the nation and upon inter
party and intra-party political
exigencies.. The outcome of the
duel between man and the ma
chine is not yet settled. It will
be necessary to retain Frank
lin D. Roosevelt in office until
the New Deal shall have made
an adequate trail of its power.
This may be accomplished with
in another year, before nomi
nating conventions of the two
great political parties. In the
meantime if the New Deal
hopelessly breaks down, a third
term for Roosevelt will be im
possible; if, on the other hand,
it gives increasing indication
of final success, his renomina
tion and re-election will be in
evitable. While the New Deal
remains in its experimental
stage, to use Abraham Lincoln’s
homely figure of speech, it
would be folly ‘‘to swap horses
in the middle of the creek.”
The American people have
commissioned Franklin D.
Roosevelt by overwhelming ma~
jorities in repeated national
elections to perfect the New
Deal as a fixed and accepted pol
icy of the nation. Until this high
commission is consummated
he could not let go if he would
and would not if he could. No
responsible spokesman of any
political party has yet proposed
any other solvent of our eco
nomic and industrial problems
comparable with the New Deal.
Any wise government will con
tinue in power the leader who
has proved himself to be so ca
pable of coping with the exist
ing emergency as long as it con
tinues. We are in the thin
timber but not yet out of the
forest. By universal agreement
Franklin D. Roosevelt is the
one American best able to
handle the critical domestic
and foreign affairs in which our
nation is now involved. Politi
cal conditions remain in turmoil
until the question of a third
term is settled. Chairman Far
ley, of the National Democratic
Committee, sagely admonished
the nation that no candidate of
either party would have the
temerity to declare himself as
long as President Roosevelt’s
decision remains undeclared.
The American people want
the New Deal, but deprecate a
third term. They will uphold
the New Deal without the third
term if they may, but with it
if they must.
CHRISTIAN UNITY GAINS A
VISIBLE SYMBOL
(From Federal iCouncil Bulletin)
When Stanley Jones gave
his last address at the Preach
ing Mission in Washington,
D. C., in the Fall of 1936, a
woman in attendance was in
spired by-iris plea -for -ChristiaTr
unity. She already knew what
the Washington Federation of
Churches was doing to effect an
active cooperative unity, and
had been especially impressed
by its united ministry to the
sick and lonely in the hospitals
of the city. She concluded that
it would greatly strengthen the
forces making for Christian un
ity in the national Capital if
the Federation had proper
headquarters for its work. She
therefore purchased a five-story
residence, half a block from
busy Connecticut Avenue, re
modeled it and presented it to
the Federation of Churches.
So today the Washington
Federation of Churches has a
splendidly equipped building of
which all the Christian forces
of the citv are Droud and which
is a visible symbol of their
movement toward unity. The
ground floor contains a recep
tion room, working offices and
a room for prayer and medita
tion. On the second floor is a
commodious conference room
and a dining-room for interde
nominational luncheonjs and
dinners. On the upper floors
there are living rooms, which,
rented to residents, yield an in
come for the upkeep of the
building.
The Washington Federation
of Churches is the first city
federation to have its own
building as the center of the
movement of Christian cooper
ation and unity. We hope that
many another city may soon
have a similar asset. Perhaps
there are other generous Chris
tian spirits who will follow the
example of the Washington
benefactor. In the midst of
enthusiasm for cooperation on
a world scale we need to realize
that the crux of the problem is
in the local community and
that if unity does not exist
there it exists nowhere.
Read not to contradict and
confute, nor to believe and take
for granted, nor to find talk
and discourse, but to weigh and
consider.—Francis Bacon.
It is more important to me
to preserve an unblemished
conscience than to accomplish
any object, be it ever so great.
—Dr. Channing.
NOTES FROM THE RUSSELL
GROVE CHURCH,
AMELIA, VA.
« e By C. A. Wright
Sunday, Sept. 4th, found
most of the members of the
Russell Grove church in their
places at the eleven o’clock
service. Although Rev. R. L.
Hyde, our pastor, is still in the
hospital, preaching services
went on. Fortunately, Rev.
H. W. McNair, D. D., came to
our rescue. He spoke to an ap
preciative audience. He called
our attention to Gen. 28:17;
Philippians 4:11, and St. Luke
17:21. His remarks were prin
cipally from Luke 17:21, “Neith
er shall they say, lo here! or,
lo there! for, behold, the king
dom of God is within you.”
Dr. McNair’s discourse was
edifying and inspiring, and it
is hoped he will soon be with us
again. Dr. McNair is President
of Ingleside-Fee Memorial In
stitute, Burkeville, Va., and
has frequently dropped in and
usually favored us with a mes
sage. We hope for him much
success in his work.
“Didn’t We Have a Time!”
So said the children of the
Russell Grove Sunday school
Tuesday, August 30, when they
had enjoyed the day at a pic
nic over at Manikin, Va., A bus
carried a load and others went
in cars. We took the Sunday
school through Richmond, and
finally reached our destination,
Manikin. It is several miles
beyond Richmond. We went to
a small park owned by a col
ored man.- We were made wel
come. Among the amusements
was pony riding for the smaller
children.
Mr. A. B. Wingo, our Supt.,
and other adults went along
also. They, like the younger
set, enjoyed games, etc. The
young ladies and a few boys
played soft ball, while most of
the men and larger boys pitch
ed horse, shoes. As there were
several players very good at
this sport, the game became
very interesting, and, finally,
the center of attraction.
Miss Susie Shepperson, form
er principal of Russell Grove
High School, met us there, to
gether with her sisters, Miss
Chaney Gray and others. All
present voted a pleasant time,
and are looking forward to the
next picnic which, likely, won’t
be until next year about this
time.
We are pleased to note many
of our church and Sunday
school members will be with
us again in a few days.
We are also glad to note
Rev. Hyde will be home this
week from the Retreat Hospit
al at Richmond, Va. We are
sorry he will leave one of our
church members there, Mrs.
Cleverine S. Booker. We hope
that she, too, may soon recover
and be with us again.
A CALL TO YOUTH
At the Young People’s Con
ference held in St. Paul, Minn.,
last February, the opening serv
ice of worship used as a medi
tation the following poem by
Thomas Curtis Clark, express
ing the call of Christian serv
ice to young people of today.
i
You whose hearts possess a dream,
You whose vision still is true,
Will you follow still the gleam?
Will you build the world anew?
Futile is the reign of hate,
„ Fated is the rule of gold;
On your deeds great issues wait,
Let your hearts with love be bold.
Vain are all the tools of war,
Vain the boastings of success;
These the dreams you battle for;
Faith and truth and righteousness.
Let who will despise your youth/
Let then^Jbrail your words in dust;
You sham conquer, with the truth;
In your visions be your trust.
You whose hearts possess a dream,
God is God; his word is true;
Follow still the luring gleam
Till the world is built anew.
The Bible plainly discloses
the reality of Satan and the ex
tent of his sway in human
life.-—Sel.
THE WOMEN’S AUXILIARY
OF THE YADKIN WEST
ERN DISTRICT
By Mrs. Sadie Perkins Murdock,
Corresponding Secretary
The 31st annual meeting of
the Women’s Auxiliary of the
Yadkin Western District Pres
byterial was held at Church
Street Presbyterian church of
Salisbury, N. C., Rev. J. P.
Johnson, pastor, July 28th.
The meeting opened with the
President, Mrs. W. A. Hawkins,
presiding. The theme for the
immediate thought of the meet
ing was, “Church Women
Ready for Creative Work,”
which was beautifully touched
on in every phase of the dis
cussions.
After the President had giv
en warm words of welcome to
all, the devotionals were con
ducted by Mrs. Lina Lucky and
Mrs. Beulah Knight. A district
choir was selected and furn
ished music throughout the
entire sessions.
1 A very interesting report
from the Presbyterial Confer
ence was given by Mrs. Clara
Pearson.
After listening to the dis
cussion on “Church Women
Ready for Creative Work,’'
which was led by Mrs. B. F.
Murray and Mrs. S. J. Taylor,
we were beautifully entertain
ed by two papers coming from
Mrs. Mary E. Phifer, of the
Freedom church and Mrs. Mag
gie Cowan, of Alien Temple.
Both ladies gave many helpful
suggestions on what women
may do to bring about better
results in their own society by
creating a better co-operative
spirit. There were quite a num
ber of visitors from the various
other churches and they were
introduced by the President.
sThe President thoroughly
explained the amount of dues
expected of each society arjd
the*1
People and Light Bearers.
The Memorial Service was
very impressive. It was con
ducted by Mrs. Grace Scott and
the Logan delegate. Quite a
number of names were given of
those who had quit the walks
of life and heeded the call of
One who “Doeth all things
well.”
After being filled from the
loaded table in the basement
of the church, all were very
anxious to return to the ses
sions again to listen to the
“High Lights of Twenty Years
Ago,” given by Mrs. Odessa
Carr, of the Mooresville church.
Twenty years ago she was the
Secretary, and she read from
her minutes many interesting
things that were carried on
then. After listening to the
inspiring remarks we can say
that the society has made pro
gress by leaps and bounds. We
also can say that there are a
few things that were done
then that we are still doing
only on a higher scale.
Many of the leaders of those
days were mentioned, as the
late Mrs. B. F. Murray and oth
ers. Mrs. B. F. Murray was
beautifully spoken of while we
ate by Mrs. Lula Kelsey, of
Salisbury, who gave us some of
the high lights of her life. Mrs.
Beatrice Powe sang a solo and
then the delegates of the va
rious churches gave their re
ports, which were very in
teresting indeed,, and showed
that the local societies are
making prgoress.
Mrs. Bessie Waddell and
Miss Cora Lee Morton were in
charge of the Young People’s
program which was very good.
Many of the young people took
a part, and an address was giv
en by Mrs. Ruth Neeley Free
man.
Because of illness our Pres
byterial President, Mrs. Meares,
could not be with us. She sent
a letter of regret which was
read by Mrs. Bessie Waddell.
The Committee on Place of
Meeting was ready to make
its report, having been in
vited to Tradd Street church,
of Statesville, on the last Thurs
day in July, 1939.
The vespers service was held
on the beautiful lawn of the
Soldiers’ Memorial A. M. E.
Zion church, just opposite the
Church Street church. The
service was led by Mrs. H. N.
Sullivan and Mrs. Mary Woods.
From the Scripture lesson we
gathered the thought of-creat
ing in us a new heart, that we
may be able to do more crea
tive work.
Promptly at 8 P. M. the
choir of the church sang and
prayer was offered by Mrs.
J. M. Morton and the Scripture
lesson was read by Mrs. Sadie
Perkins Murdock. Words of
welcome were given by Mrs.
J. P. Johnson, of Church Street.
The response was made by
Miss Allie .Coble, after which
we listened to a very inspiring
sermon by Rev. Leslie Smith, of
Statesville.
The amount of collection
raised during the entire ses
sions was $20.41, which was
announced by the acting treas
urer, Mrs. Odessa Carr. After
which we adjourned by sing
ing ‘‘Blest Be the Tie That
Binds.”
AUGUST VESPER SERVICES
AT CALVARY PRESBYTE
RIAN CHURCH, WILSON
The fourth series of August
vesper services at Calvary
Presbyterian church, Wilson,
sponsored by the young people,
came to a close on Sunday,
August 28. These services were
up to the standard—full of in
terest, thought and inspiration,
and well attended.
The services were conducted
each Sunday in August, on the
lawn of the church, bom 6
P. M. to 7 P. M. They consist
ed of the following:
Prelude.
Call to Worship.
Hymn.
Scripture Reading.
Prayer and Response.
Poem or Reading.
Vocal solo.
The message.
--
Offering and offertory.
Announcements.
Closing Hymn.
Benediction.
On August 7th the Reverend
J. W. Smith, pastor of Davie
Street Presbyterian church,
Raleigh, gave the vesper mes
sage. His subiect was: “The
Lost Sheep and the Lost Coin.”
Rev. Smith pointed out many
helpful lessons from this sub
ject. His message was inter
esting, and enjoyed by all.
The second vesper message
was delivered by the Reverend
Wendell C. Somerville, General
Baptist Secretary, Raleigh.
Rev. Somerville spoke from
the subject: “The Unavoidable
God.” The speaker emphasized
the fact that one cannot es
cape God, and that he is to be
found everywhere, and in all
movements for progress, up
lift and service. Rev. Somer
ville is always good.
On Sunday, August 21ist, the
third vesper service of the sea
son was conducted by Rev. H. T.
McFadden, pastor of St. Paul
Presbyterian church, Louisburg.
His subject was, “Some Ad
vantages in Seeking God.” Rev.
McFadden was greeted by an
appreciative audience, and his
interesting and thoughtful mes
sage was seemingly enjoyed by
all. This minister does not
term himself a successful open
air speaker, but we enjoyed
hearing him.
The last vesper service of
the season was held on August
28th. Rev. 0. E. Sanders, our
pastor, was the speaker. His
subject was, “Watch Your
Life.” Rev. Sanders used the
word “Watch,” and made each
letter stand for a separate di
vision of the message as fol
lows: “Watch your words;
Watch your actions; Watch
your thoughts; Watch your
character; and watch your
heart.”
Music for this service was
furnished by the “Handel
Chorus” and the choir of the
First Baptist church, Mir.
Hartford E. Bess, Director. Se
lections rendered by these sing
ers were: Hymn, “Come Thou,
Almighty King;” Spiritual, “I
Couldn’t Hear Nobody Pray;”
(Continued on Page 3)
THE YOUNG PEOPLE’S CON
FERENCE OF KIAMICHI
PRESBYTERY
By Irene Griffin
The Conference of Kiamichi
Presbytery which convenes
yearly was held at Pleasant
Valley Presbyterian church at
Broken Bow, Okla., July 27-29.
All had been looking forward
to this meeting and were there
fore ready for whatever might
confront them. Every individ
ual gave his whole hearted co
operation, which made the
meeting a very successful one.
The first phase of our pro
gram began Wednesday night,
July 27, at 8 o’clock. The local
church was in charge. The
President, Mr. C. M. Burris,
gave a splendid address.
After having rested peaceful
ly during the night, we were
awakened at 7:30 o’clock for
breakfast which was servedjin
family style. After breakiast
we had one hour for preparation
and study, after which an in
teresting “Bible Study” was
given by the Rev. Hi C. Cous
ins, of Lima, Okla.
At 9:45 our class work be
gan. The teachers were as
follows: Rev. A. S. Meachem,
“Methods of Young People’s
Work;” Mrs. M. L. Morrow,
“Teaching Children in the Sun
day SchoolIrene Griffin,
“How to Conduct a Daily Vaca
tion Bible School;” Rev. C. N.
Shropshire, “Our Presbyterian
Church.”
We relaxed from classes for
15 minutes, after which there
were nine one-minute reports
made from each class. The
purpose of these reports was to
give each individual a general
knowledge of each subject that
was taught.
The devotions were conduct
ed by the Rev. S. W. Mallard.
After devotions we looked for
ward to our well prepared meals.
After our physical body had
been_^Mljvp_ the many
good things to eat, resting wa,s
then in order. After the rest
period we had various group
meetings. °
The recreation period began
at 3:30 o’clock. The confer
ence was divided into two
groups, the Reds and the Blues.
Each team tried to beat the
other. The following games
were played: relay race, pass
ball, stealing the dag, hoop race
and baseball. Mr. Elijah Wheel
er was the captain of the Reds
and Paul Morrow captain of
the Blues.
The vesper period was in
charge of the Rev. J. W. Mal
lard.
Thursday night a wonderful
sermon was delivered by the
Rev. C. N. Shropshire. It was
inspirational and was enjoyed
by all.
Friday night was Young
People’s Night. This part of
the program was in charge of
Mrs. M. L. Morrow, Misses Ger
trude Cubit and Irene Griffin.
Ljttle Misses Betty Shropshire
and Vemice Scafe rendered two
musical numbers. The choir,
directed by Mrs. W. J. Meach
em, also rendered several num
bers. The main speaker for
the night was the Rev. R. R.
Craig, pastor of the white
Presbyterian church of Idabel,
Okla.
Saturday morning was the
time for the election of officers.
They are as follows:
President, Elijah Wheeler;
Vice-President, Paul Morrow;
Secretary, Irene Griffin; As
sistant Secretary, Annie Hern
don; Treasurer, Mrs. M. L.
Morrow.
The Conference gave a fee of
$1.00 each to Paul Morrow,
Gertrude Cubit and Irene Grif
fin as delegates to the Canadian
Young People’s Synodical Con
ference.
Every one will be looking for
ward to another Conference of
this kind, which will be at El
liott Community Center.
There are but two thorough
fares in this world; the way of
life and death. Every traveler
is walking in one or the other.
A good book is the precious
life-blood of a master spirit,
embalmed and treasured up on
purpose to a life beyond life.—
—ohn Milton.