The Principle of Vision

The Principle of Vision By Professor Perry G. Holden* I am not a "Mormon," but I am a good friend of the "Mormons." Perhaps only one other man in these United States has said more things outside of Utah, in behalf of the "Mormons," and the great work which they have accomplished, than I, and that is Doctor A. E. Winship, whom many of you know. WHAT TO SAY I am reminded at this time of a little incident. Some years ago it was my pleasure to be at a great Sunday School conven- tion at Waterloo. They had had a great meeting and had listened to some marvelous addresses, and as the boys thought they were about through they ran for their hats, but the presiding officer said: "I have a friend here, boys, and I want him to say a few words to you." And they settled back with some discomfiture, and he stepped before them and he said: "Boys, I don't know just what to say to you this afternoon." And a boy way back in the back part of the room didn't want to take any chances. He stood up a'nd flung his hand a little and said : "Say, Mr., I can tell you what to say. Say, 'Amen,' and sit down." Now, good people, for the few moments that it is my privilege and supreme pleasure to be before you, I hope that you will have the Spirit of God in your souls, and that you will listen to what I say in the same spirit that I present the few things that I may be able to present at this time ; and I am sure you will, because I have met you people everywhere throughout this and other states, and it is a plea- sure and a privilege that I cannot describe to you at this time to have this opportunity of talking for a few moments with you. I want to say Amen, from the bottom of my soul, to the ad- dresses which I have heard today, and this last addresst is such a wonderful thing that I wish that in some way it could be heard throughout the length and breadth of this land, as something that helps to dedicate and consecrate us to the great things which we can accomplish, if we but will. _ *Professor Holden, of Chicago, is a man of national and international repu- tation as an extension worker. At the annual conference of the Church, in April, 1921, he was a speaker, and was introduced by President Heber J. Grant. Professor Holden's remarks are full of strong points and wise counsel, and worthy of careful consideration by the boys and girls of the Church. — Editors. fBy Richard R. Lyman, of the Council of the Twelve. See Conference Re- port, pp. 142-46, April, 1921.

12 IMPROVEMENT ERA THE CALF PATH OF OUR CHILDREN'S CHILDREN I want to refer to a little poem to illustrate a great principle upon which all progress depends. Samuel Walter Foss wrote many beautiful things. You know he wrote the wonderful little poem entitled: "Let me live in my house by the side of the road, where the race of men go by, men who are good and men who are bad, as good and bad as I." And then he wrote another wonderful little poem with a very common name, entitled : "The Calf Path." He tells the story of this calf that went out to pasture one morning from Boston, when it was a little shack of a town. At night the calf came home as all good calves do, but it made a very crooked trail, all bent askew, winding in and out and round about through the brush. The next day the old bell wether sheep took up this same trail and all the other good sheep followed, and a path was made through those primeval woods. Then the people followed this little path, winding in and out and round about through the brush over to a neighboring settlement, and then they built little homes by the side of this path, and they cleared off the land and it became a road, and then they built houses and stores and it became a street. Then they built great manufacturing plants by the side of it, and it became the avenue over which the commerce of a continent has passed. Samuel Walter Foss then falters, and says : "But you know that was three centuries ago, and I infer that the calf is now dead." The good people of Boston cannot straighten that calf path today. You people are building, have been building and are building a great empire. The religion, the calf paths of home-making, and the calf paths of humanity-making — those calf paths that you have been making and will make for the next twenty or thirty years will be the calf paths that our children's children's children must tread for the thousands and the tens of thousands of years to come. Building so, putting the very best that we have into our lives at this time, that we may help to make those calf paths straight, that it may be said a thousand and ten thousand years from today: O, they builded better than they knew. I wonder if we begin to realize the tremendous responsibilities that rest upon us at this hour and this day. People, I am wondering if you will lose your great birth-right ; and what a birth-right you have ! Men and women like these who came here, came over this great continent, years ago and suffered as they suffered, lost their dear ones, as they did, and endured that they might come here and build up an empire that should represent their principles! They sacrificed much. THE ^MORMON" CHURCH AND THE PRINCIPLE OF VISION And now, you know, people, I am wondering if you and I are willing to cross* a continent today, as they crossed a continent in those days that have gone by. If we are not willing to suffer as they

THE PRINCIPLE OF VISION 13 suffered, if we are not willing to go through what they went through, then we are losing our birth-right. I fear there are many of us younger people that would not endure, would not think of going through all that they have gone through ; and don't you think for a moment that there isn't just as much need of suffering today for principles, for rights, for our boys and girls, for our homes, and for America as there was in those days. The question is whether we are consecrated, whether we are dedicated, whether we have a vision ! In my estimation your Church illustrates better than any- thing I have ever known in all America, the great principle of vision. Where there is no vision the people perish, and today you are blessed, because the people before you had a vision, and not only had a vision, but were willing to live and die for it if necessary. That is whac made you great. I admire your great buildings, I admire your tem- ple, I admire your fine buildings and schools that I find everywhere, all over this land of yours; but, people, more than all, do you know what I admire most? It is your people whom you have reared under this religion of yours. When I said to you I was a friend of the "Mormons," I meant all that could be said in those words. It was not to please you. It was because I believe in it. A religion that will do what your religion has done, not only for the temporal things, but for human beings, for God, is certainly a great religion, and you ought to be proud of it. I want to say to you that the time is coming when your religion is going to be understood as it should be under- stood, in this world, and I want to say that through some of the things that you have been doing, you have come into more favor- able attention over the United States, within the last two or three years, than in all the time put together before. You have thought of your boys, of your girls, of your homes, and it is the outgrowth of religion that made it possible to put through your legislatures that wonderful bill that prevents the use of cigarettes in this state, and I say it should go out to all of the states of this Union. It is wonderful what your religion has done. Let me say to you, that I fear sometimes that the people who enjoy it, who live here and have not been out, as some of us have, over all this great world, do not appreciate the greatness of what you have. I wish that, some way, I could say it to you. THE "MORMONS" LIKE OTHER PEOPLE WITH A DIFFERENCE I wonder if you will pardon me for saying one or two little things? They may seem entirely out of place, but I couldn't help but think of it as those words were uttered here by the former speaker. Last year, as I was in your state, I went out over it with the hope of holding a large meeting with the one motto in mind that a state is made of men and women, and not of houses and fac- tories and wealth. So, I went out. I was telling them, of your schools

14 IMPROVEMENT ERA and your education, and as I was leaving Provo for a trip through to Ogden, where I was to speak, some of the people from the east with me on that commission, said: "Mr. Holden, these people look very much like other people." And I said : "Why, yes," but I said that there is a good deal of difference in some respects, and I want to tell you of one or two of the things I have noticed, -as I have been out here working among these people. I will demonstrate it to you — and I said, do you know anywhere through Colorado or Illinois or Iowa, or everywhere you stop at a depot, that there you find young men about the depot, leaning up against the wall or railing, smoking and chewing and passing remarks about the people that get on and off the train? Now, I have gone up and down this state, and it has been peculiar to me that I haven't observed that anywhere. And they said nothing, and we got through to Ogden, and one of them turned to the other, "and then they turned to me, and said: "Mr. Holden, we thought we would take you up on that statement," and they said, "We have made a good many stops" — I don't know how many, twenty or thirty stops — "and we have yet to see the first young man standing by the side of the depot smoking, on our trip through." Now, I was glad that it didn't happen that there were any boys smoking while they were in my company. OUR PRINCIPLES RIGHT, BUT ARE WE DRIFTING? The other night, at Rexburg, at that wonderful little city — and I want to say to you that you have a little city up there that i's setting an example to the rest of the world — throughout the year, every year, all the program which you are putting over there, and which you have been putting over there, is wonderful. It is helpful. It must go through all the United States, and you people are setting the example to us. As Mr. Ryan came down the street he was telling this little incident: By the front of the town hall, there were a 1iunch of young people gathered, and he went away first, then came ^ack and walked back and forth two or three times, that he might observe. During the time that he was there not a cigarette was in evidence, not a cigar; neither was there any profane language, or any language that wouldn't be proper before the father and the mother, and he told that incident there ; and that has been my obser- vation. Now people, your principles are right, but are we realizing, are we living up to them fully, or are we drifting away just a little bit? Now, I want to say, as I said to some people over at Payson the other day. "There are two kinds of audiences I like to speak to. One is a penitentiary audience and another is a 'Mormon' audience ; for," I said, "you know that no matter what happens or how late it is you know they will all be there until you get through." And you know, good people, that one of the things that impressed so much

THE PRINCIPLE OF VISION 15 those eastern people, as they came here last year, was that when you open your meetings you open with a prayer, and ask that the people might have open hearts and willing souls to gather from what the speaker may say something to take home ; and then they closed with prayer that we shall take home some of these things and put them into our lives and into our practices. I hope you will never give up those little customs, because they are wonderful. Another thing that you are different in, the little courtesies, which you always have, that of your seeking to put respect and dignity into all things. I must compliment you upon those things because they belong to you. And there are a good many things that stand for education ; and you stand for the boys and the girls., as was said in these words by the President, that if you will take care of the young men of the Church today, and the young women, the young men and the young women will take care of the Church tomorrow. DUTY IN THE HOME AN EXPERIENCE Now we must do our duty in our homes. If the spirit of the Lord is in your souls to such an extent, I! may tell you of an experience and not be misunderstood, for it is not egotism. It is just my wish to help to put into your souls and hearts those things that you can take back with you to make better homes, better educa- tion and a better Church, and so I want to tell of this little thing. When growing up in our own home we had to work. It was so new, we were one hundred and fifty miles from the end of the railroad, and we grubbed the stumps and worked ; and they had a ball game, and we wanted to go to the ball game on Saturday afternoon. Father didn't seem to think that was worth while, and we got a notion into our heads that we were going to the ball game, and we would run away from home. We were passing from the barbarian stage, I think, at that time. But that was, nevertheless, the situation. So, we decided we were going down to the house and tell father we wouldn't work like this all the while, unless we had a chance to play a little bit. So, finally, it was decided to do it, and then the question came as to who should go ; and that was different ! But finally, my brother gave a suggestion, that may be, if all went down he wouldn't lick all of us. So we all started and went pretty fast for a ways. Finally, we got to going a little slower, as the importance of the case dawned upon us ; and, by the time we got pretty near to our house, we saw father go out towards the barn. We let him go, and went to the house and told mother instead of father. Father was one of those stern, New England people who always said : "Boys, I guess you had better do so and so, now," — he never guessed but once, and so you see how it was we told mother about it ! I will never forget as we came into the house, and my brother began to tell how we wasn't going to work like this, she turned and looked at us and then she rubbed out the piece of dough in her hand, looked down the side

16 IMPROVEMENT ERA once or twice, and when she was through she turned around and with a smile, she lined us up by the crack in the floor of the old log cabin — and then she stood back and looked us over and she said: "Boys, you're not working too hard," that is not what is ailing you, it is work that will make you. If you don't work you will be tramps, you will be beggars and will be in the penitentiary somewhere." She said : "No, I know what is the matter with you, you want to go down to that ball game on Saturday." She had just touched the spot. Now, I don't know how we got away from that place. I can't remem- ber a thing about it. I think we just evaporated, but anyway on this next Monday morning the thing happened in our home that trans- formed it and transformed our lives. I think father and mother had had a consultation over our difficulties, over Sunday, and as Monday morning came and breakfast was over, father stood around a little and by and by — he didn't know what else to do — he went out and cut an armful of wood. While he was out, mother spoke up and said : "Boys, why don't you sit down and talk with your father a little while? May be you can arrange to go to that ball game Saturday." Father came in. He threw the wood in the box, and then he stood around again for a little while, and we all stood around. By and by mother saw the situation, and I sometimes think that mothers have a little longer vision than fathers, and she said: "Father, it's raining this morning a little, why don't you sit down and visit with the boys? I guess they would like to talk to you." He sat out the chairs and mother started about the work, but he said : "No, mother, we want you to sit down with us for a few minutes." When we were seated he raised up his hand like this, two or three times, and he said : "Boys, your mother and I have been trying to get a little together so that you wouldn't have quite as hard a time getting started in the world as we had, but it is all for you. We can't take it with us. Now," he said, "I want you to help plan the work for this farm for next year." I want to say to you, fathers and mothers, that that was the richest, and I think the best, thing ever said in our home. "I want you to help me plan the work for this farm for next year!" The sun was brighter, the grove was greener. My, I got through early that day, and came around the corner to get the mail, but really to tell the boys all about what we were going to do on *the farm next year. On next Monday morning, when breakfast was over, fatlieri said : "Boys don't you think it would be a good thing for us to sit down for a few minutes and plan the work for the week?" So from that day until my father's death, we sat down for a few mo- ments, about fifteen to thirty minutes every Monday morning, and there we planned and talked over together the things we were to do. The idea of us boys helping father plan the work! I remember thif Monday morning, when we were through, father said: "Well,

THE PRINCIPLE OF VISION 17 boys, I have no criticism only this, you planned too much." He said, "it might rain, or perhaps you would like to go to the ball game Sat- urday afternoon." And now I want to say another little thing1. He said: "Boys, remember that when we agree to do certain things we must do them, if it takes all night." And I have been glad a thous- and times over what he said, and through all the years after, father never carried out anything else that wasn't agreed on, unless we had a meeting and settled it. GREAT MEN AND WOMEN MADE IN THE HOME And I want to say, folks, if we are to have great men and women, with richness in their souls, truth in their lives, and relia- bility and dependability, we must make them in the home primarily. It must not be turned over to the school alone, because it is a task that they can not handle alone, as much as they can do. And I have been thankful that through all these years, no matter how trivial a thing was promised, that thing was granted. One of your good citizens, you would know his name if I men- tioned it, at Logan the other day came to me and said : "Mr. Holden, I am sorry that I cannot hear you in the tabernacle today, because I promised my pupils that I would go up the canyon and eat dinner with them, and I mustn't disappoint them." You know how proud I was of that citizen who was keeping faith with these dear boys and girls ! That is one of the grandest things that could possibly be done. THE INFLUENCE OF GREAT TEACHERS Now people, just, one other thought, and I must close. I want to refer to a little thing that has had a great influence on me through- out my life, and that was a great teacher. I was a good deal of trouble to all of the teachers that came to me, and they troubled me a good deal. They seemed to think that, some way, they had to lick me in order to settle everything for the whole school, and I guess that was all right, as I think about it, though I didn't at that time; but the time came when we had a great teacher come into our midst, and that teacher wasn't looking for the bad that was in us. He was looking for the good that was in us. I want to say to you people if we go through this world looking for the bad, we find it everywhere, but if we go through this world looking for the good that is in it, we find it everywhere; and this teacher was looking for the good in it. One time as I leaped out of the door of the school house, at recess, I landed in his hands. I went out with a whoop and yell. You could hear me half a block away, and he got me, and I thought my time had come, but instead of that I felt him pulling away at my chin, and he was smiling, and that was an event in my life, because no teacher ever smiled on me before. And as he pulled, tugged away on it, he made a little remark. The great railroad had been built

18 IMPROVEMENT ERA into Traverse city, and we had been down to see the great iron horse that pulled the train — he said: "My boy, you have lots of energy, haven't you?" and I agreed to that all right. He said: "Do you know, my boy, it is the same steam in an engine that makes it go ahead that makes it go backward. It all depends on which way you pull the lever." Further he said: "Do you know, my boy, it is the same energy in you that will make you go ahead and do> something worth while in this world or perhaps send you back into the peni- tentiary? It all depends on which way you pull the lever." And you know, good people, up at Rexburg, as we went over to that indus- trial school, that little saying of that great teacher came into my mind, and at other times, that they had pulled the wrong lever. Y.our Mutual Improvement association, nobody, or any thing, no father or great teacher had taken a hold of the very life of that very boy or girl at the right time, so they pulled in the wrong direction. You know over in Chicago that seventy- three per cent of the crimes and murders are committed by our young men, from the ages of 17 to 23 years — just the time when we lose so many of them, just the time when they are full of the ambition to do something in this world, and they simply pull that lever in the wrong direction. Well, this teacher didn't stop there. He said : "My boy, I would like if you will do a little thing for me for thirty days and then if you like it, follow it all of your life." And do you know what it was? It was a very simple little thing, but it has just made a wonderful difference in my life. He said : "When you get up in the morning, and look out in this great, great world again, instead of getting up dreamy like, with your hands in your pockets, with a grouch on ready for trouble, just swing those good arms of yours a little and look out and see what a great day it is, the best day of all creation, because you have back of you all that humanity has accomplished, you are heir to it all." And he said: "It is the greatest day of all creation, because you have ahead of you all of the things yet to be accomplished," and then he continued. "Stop just long enough to hold up your right hand and say: This day I will beat my own record. I will put the best I have in this day's work." THE SPIRIT OF COOPERATION Why, Mr. President, there is power enough in this organiza- tion gathered here, to go back of certain fundamental things that you are to put over for this year's work and accomplish it, no matter what the obstacles are ; and when you put it over, it means that it will go throughout the length and breadth of this land, and among the nations of the world. It is wonderful what you can accomplish when all have the spirit of co-operation, have the spirit of working together. I want to give just one little illustration, and that is this, to show what it means to co-operate and to aid at the same thing and at the

THE PRINCIPLE OF VISION 19 same time. You have that opportunity in greater degree here than in any other organization that I know of in these United States. One morning as I went down to my office, in Chicago, a great plate glass window had been broken in, and the furs stolen out, and I looked a little farther and there I saw a gunny sack filled with about two pecks of sand. The burglar had gone across Michigan avenue and scooped up a little sand, and then come over and slung it through the window to break it. I couldn't help but think had he had a train full of sand, taking up a handful of sand at one time, he could have been throwing sand yet and he could not have broken the window ; and yet, when he organized a peck of it, it went through easily. People, are we too much divided, a little there and here, and over yonder, throwing sand, little handsful of sand? Oh, if we can unite, then set out to work at it, like you have with the anti-cigarette law; after you ac- complished what you did with your cigarette law, there is nothing that cannot be accomplished that is good. PUT THE BEST YOU HAVE IN YOUR DAY'S WORK Now, people, it has been a pleasure to me to talk to you. I wish there was something I could say that would stimulate you, that would make you want every morning to put the best you have into the day's work, and into the years of your work. Let us remember that no matter what the troubles are that come to us, if we solve them they are for our own benefit, and remember that there is a worst place in every road, and we have struck it perhaps now, but that is no reason why we should lay down and give up. We must go through those worst places, we must measure up to it, and I have noticed them through all my work, throughout my life, that the peo- ple who have done things for this world are the people who have car- ried a burden, are the people who have crossed a continent for their principles and their religion. I thank you.