ence at St. Cloud, Oct. 9-10; afterward a meeting at Des Moines, Ia., probably on Oct. 14th; the New York State Conference held in Rochester, N. Y., and several other less important meetings. We look for the effect of this tour to be even better than that of last spring. Our only regret is that the list of meetings is not to include one in Chicago.

A gentleman of Chicago furnished money last year to enable us to send 150 copies of the Unitarian free to Michigan University students. The missionary results thus accomplished were most gratifying many of the students not only reading the magazine themselves, but passing it on to others, and sending it home to friends. The same gentleman generously offers to pay for copies to be sent the coming year to 200 students. Who will help us to send it to as many in other colleges-Cornell University, Wisconsin University, Iowa University, Illinois University, Harvard, Yale, and a score of others? The field is unlimited, and we can think of no possible expenditure of money for the dissemination of our faith that will yield

better returns.

We also want help to send out the Unitarian as a missionary in other directions. The applications that come to us for free copies, for libraries, reading rooms, orthodox ministers, theological students and others who are beginning to inquire, also for poor persons who are unable to pay even the small sum of one dollar, are far more than we can supply. We need constant donations for this purpose. We hope some of our friends will be moved to start a permanent fund for this use. Let us push on the dessemination of our thought this year as never before.

We have not reached the time, and shall not soon, when the liberal religionist can be excused from negative and destructive theological work. There can be no sowing grain without tearing up sod with the ploughshare, no promoting health without clearing away nuisances and sources of disease. Moreover, denial of the false is often the

most real and emphatic way of affirming the true. Nevertheless the time has plainly come when we can and should put a diminishing emphasis upon the destructive side of our work, if for no other reason, because we are coming to have so many helpers on that side. All the science, intelligence and free inquiry of our time is working to undermine the unreasonable theologies of the past. What, then, remains for us? The higher task of leading the way to a new reconstruction. Man cannot live by destruction; man cannot live by mere free inquiry. If the old will no longer give life, we must find a new that will

life of faith, and hope, and love, and consecration and zeal. To help the world to this must be the great work of religious liberalism from this time on.

We have frequently spoken in these columns of the importance of home worship, and with the object of promoting it have published from time to time, and shall continue to publish throughout this year, our "One Upward Look Each Day." It consequently gives us much pleasure to find in the

editorial columns of the American Hebrew, one of our liberal Jewish papers, apropos of a collection of Hymns and Anthems for Jewish worship, an article entitled, "The Altar on the Hearth," from which we quote the following, which is as well worth the thoughtful attention of Liberal Christians as of Liberal Jews:

"It needs no extended experience or wide observation to realize how essential a factor in the perpetuation of religion, is worship in the home. The synagogue can have but by the subtle skill of sacred service at the a limited, superficial influence if unaided fireside. His must be but a cheerless life who cannot look back to the sweet serenity of home devotions.

"And yet how terribly easy it is to intermit these and deprive the young of their inspiring influence! Let but some slight cause interrupt these home devotions, be it even for a few times, and it is remarkable how quickly the attachment to them is insensibly dissolved and how speedily they fall into desuetude; and once they are discontinued how difficult it seems to resume

them!

ship is music. A woman or maiden seated "The most potent element in home worat a piano or organ can exercise a spell

which will convert an agnostic or a religiously indifferent family into one that shall be devotional, whose members will realize the fact of God's existence, and the need of acknowledgment of that fact with all its attendant duties. We trust that it [the Collection of Hymns] will find the widest dissemination, to the end that the altars of pure religion may once again be established in our Jewish homes."

Dr. E. A. Meredith has an article in the Andover Review on "Current Misquotations," in which he tells some things which will surprise some persons, for example: "Cleanliness is next to Godliness," "Pouring oil on the troubled waters," "The war horse scents the battle from afar," "God tempers the wind to the shorn lamb," are not in the Bible. Shakespeare says, not "heart of hearts" but "heart of heart;" not "Screw your courage to the sticking point," but "to the sticking place;" not "We are such stuff as dreams are made of," but "as dreams are made on;" not "leave not a wreck behind," but "leave not a rack behind." Milton says not "To-morrow to fresh fields and pastures new," but "fresh woods and pastures new." Butler's "Hudibras" does not contain the couplet

"But he that fights and runs away May live to fight another day," nor does any one seem to know where the lines come from. Dryden says not "Everything by turns and nothing long," but "Everything by starts," etc. The quotation from Lee's "Alexander the Great," should be, not, "When Greek meets Greek then comes the tug of war," but "When Greeks join'd Greek, then comes the tug of war." "Welcome the coming, speed the parting guests," is Pope's translation of Homer's line, Odyssey, XV, 74. There is no such French expression as "non de plume." From these and many other inaccuracies Dr. Meredith deduces the excellent precept, "Verify your quotations."

Rev. T. T. Munger has an article in the September Forum on "Religion's Gain from Science." The conclusions he reaches are, that:

(1) Science has deepened reverence; (2) It has taught religion to think,

especially of natural events, according to cause and effect;

(3) It has removed some superstitions which were a hindrance to religion; (4) It has taught that moral laws are natural laws;

(5) It has delivered religion from the habit of defending supposed truths because of their apparent usefulness.

On the other hand Dr. Munger claims that science has also demonstrated its own limitations, and made it more than ever clear that it can never take the place of religion, but that religion is a permanent necessity of man.

It goes without saying that whatever of largely due to the plannings and exertions social activity our churches have, must be of women. Women are the natural creators of social life alike in the home and in the church. Nor may the social element be overlooked if our churches are to succeed; for, although sociability is not religion and cannot take its place, yet the churches whose members "shake hands," and know and care for each other, and maintain a cordial social life, will be far more influenthis particular. The social interests and activities of our churches should therefore be carefully planned for at the beginning of

tial and useful than churches that lack in

the year.

MONEY-RAISING.

Then, in most of our churches there is money to be raised by the women,-in a few even the support of the minister and the maintenance of stated public services being in part dependent upon the funds which the women are able to supply.

The means usually resorted to for raising money are suppers, fairs, sales of house plants, various entertainments, and alas!

here and there public dancing parties. Doubtless all work really valuable in itself done by the women of our churches, either to eke out the scanty church income or for charitable purposes, is good-strengthening the church life as well bringing in money. But let us see to it that we do not allow ourselves for money considerations to introduce into connection with our churches anything the moral or social influence of which is in anywise questionable. Better have no churches than churches that we have to apologize for or blush over in any particular.

CHARITABLE AND PHILANTHROPIC WORK.

A church that exists for itself alone has little right to call itself a Christian church. We believe that no church is so poor or weak but that it ought to give labor and money, something, if ever so little, to good causes outside of itself.

It seems to us no church is completely organized in which its members have not made themselves personally responsible for some local charity or reform. A neighborhood library and reading-room; a Lend a Hand circle to visit the poor, the old and the sick of the neighborhood and relieve their pressing necessity; a Humane Society or a Band of Mercy, to inquire into and try to relieve the often extreme necessities of our dumb neighbors, the cats and dogs, horses and cattle, tortured and starved by the thoughtlessness or brutality of inhuman masters; a boys' club to look after and win to better things the boys loitering on street corners, if not worse places, late at night; a cooking school for teaching scientific and healthful cooking; a dress-making class not merely to teach the art of cutting and fitting dresses, but at the same time to study the structure and needs of the body to be clothed, thus making sure that the dresses be healthful as well as pretty, pretty because healthful; a band of "King's Daughters" pledged to some form of service "in his name," if only to free their own speech and that of the community so far as they have influence from slang; a social purity circle pledged to pure and clean thoughts and lips as well as life, and to work for these things in the community; a temperance society working not only to save the drunkard, but to save the young by making a public sentiment which will close the saloons, and make even an occasional glass disreputable.

GAINING INFORMATION. STUDY CLASSES. Preliminary to and co-extensive with all successful work in any of these charities, philanthropies and reforms, must be intelligence about them. What charities and reforms are most needed in our neighborhood? Only investigation, careful and thorough, will answer. How can these best be inaugurated? To answer this question will require an acquaintance with the literature

of such charities and reforms; and in no better way than through such acquaintance can the enthusiasm be generated which will be found necessary to sustain them. What are Lend a Hand clubs? How are they organized? What have they accomplished elsewhere? and by what means? King's Daughters, what are they? and what are they doing? What are the history and literature of the Social Purity movement? the history and literature of the temperance movement in all its forms? the history and literature of the Humane Society or the Band of Mercy movement? and largest of all, the history and literature of that Christianity in whose name and spirit all these divinely human charities claim our service? Here we find the need for the religious study class into which may be legitimately brought year after year, one after another, each of these subjects, until the members of the church are generally intelligent upon the whole circle of Christian themes-those relating to the brother at the side, the fallen sparrow at the feet, the great Father over all.

Here is some noble work waiting the doing this winter in all our churches, and it is most womanly work too. One practical charity or reform and a winter of earnest study into the history and underlying principles of the same in each of our Unitarian churches this coming winter, and what a grand record would our women be able to make at the close of this year! REACHING OUT STILL FARTHER. DENOMINATIONAL CO-OPERATION.

WOMEN'S AUXILIARY.

THE

In what has thus far been said, we have not gone beyond the individual churches. But if our work stopped here, good as it might be in itself, it would not be the best. Charity should begin at home, but alas for us if it stays there! Outside of our little neighborhood and church worlds, are the great denominational and humanity worlds. The Crow Indians and the country-women of Ramabai are our brothers and sisters, and the struggling little society trying to build its church home on the distant prairie, loves, and will make known there, the same gospel we love and are trying to make known here, and they need help. So when we have got our own home work of study class and neighborhood beneficence fully established, let us clasp hands helpfully with the larger world of kindred workers. It is to facilitate just such co-operation among the women of our whole denominational body that the Women's Auxiliary Conference has been established, and for six years has done work of which we are all so justly proud. But the Auxiliary could do a much larger work if it numbered a branch in every one of our churches. Shall not each of us see to it that such a branch is formed in our church this fall, if it has not been done before? The Auxiliary ap

peals to the women of our denomination, first, as a national organization, which knows no sectional lines; second, as a distinctly Unitarian organization, pledged to the spread of Unitarian Christianity; and in these days of slipping away of foundations this is much.

Three distinct lines of religious work, then, we would commend to the women of our churches east and west, as they are forming plans for this year. 1. Religious Study Classes; 2. Practical philanthropic work at home; 3. The making of the women's organization in each of our churches a branch of our national Women's Auxiliary Conference; thus broadening our horizon and multiplying our resources by co-operation.

WOMAN.

giving reports of the movement for the abolition of the state regulation of vice in all parts of the world where this pernicious system has found a foothold. It is interesting, and is edited with courage, combined with delicacy and discretion.

The Unitarian S. S. Society has just published a new manual of Lessons on the Old Testament," by Rev. George F. Piper. It is designed for pupils from ten to fourteen years of age. It contains twenty lessons, beginning with Abraham and ending with Saul. Another volume of the same length will complete the Old Testament. The work seems to us excellently done; we think the manual will be found widely useful.

The Sunday School Society has also published (for the U. C. Temperance Society) a little pamphlet called "A Hand Book of

LITERARY NOTES.

The Atlantic Monthly's comment upon the pamphlet reprint of the Field-Ingersoll articles on Christianity vs. Agnosticism, is: "There is a great hurling of missiles in this book, but when the field is cleared, there appear to be no dead or wounded."

One of our valued exchanges is "The New Christianity," started only a few months ago in Philadelphia, under the editorial charge of Rev. B. F. Barrett and Rev.

S. H. Spencer. It represents ably the broader and less sectarian aspects of Swedenborgian thought.

Mrs. Josephine E. Butler, of England, has begun to edit a paper called The Dawn,

lessons for Sunday-schools, by Rev. Charles F. Dole. The lessons are in every way excellent so far as they go; but it seems to us a mistake to have made them so few and the ground covered so limited. The subject is large and important enough to warrant a series of at least twelve lessons; nothing like justice can be done to it in less. Nor does it seem to us that many schools will wish to be to the expense of buying manuals for five lessons, though we think many would have been willing to do so for the sake of three months of instruction in this subject about which it is of so great importance that all our children and youth should be intelligent.

The Chicago Woman's Unitarian Association (Room 93, No. 175 Dearborn St.) will loan without charge, except for postage, the following among other books:

Arnold's Literature and Dogma.
Bartol's Radical Problems.
Batchelor's Social Equilibrium.
Bierbower's Morals of Christ.
Blackie's Self-Culture.
Channing's Complete Works.

Cobbe's (1) Broken Lights and (2) The

Peak in Darien.

Emerson's (1) Nature and other Addresses;
(2) Essays, and (3) Conduct of Life.
Fiske's (1) Destiny of Man and (2) The
Idea of God.

Greg's The Creed of Christendom.
Hedge's Reason in Religion.

Herford's Story of Religion in England.
Longfellow's Poems.

Martineau's (1) Endeavors After the Christian Life, and (2) Hours on Sacred Things.

Merriam's A Living Faith.
Mozoomdar's Oriental Christ.
Parker's Views of Religion.
Phelps' Gates Afor.

Ramaba The High-Caste Hindu Woman.
Savage's Social Problems.

Sears' Foregleams and Foreshadows of Immortality.