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JUDGE WILLARD E. STEWART
Judge Willard E. Stewart, candidate
for re-nomination for judge of the district
court, has good claims for that re-nomination,,
and for re-election, based upon
his record during his first term upon the
bench. Four years ago this newspaper,
then under another name, opposed Judge
Stewart, and for what it then deemed lo
be very good reasons. Fairness demands
confession that this newspaper was mis
taken in its estimate of Judge Stewart.
His term of service upon the bench has
given him ample opportunity to demon
strate his fitness for. the place, and he
has done so. Because of that record, and
because he has convinced this newspaper
of its mistake in opposing him four years
ago, Will Maupin's Weekly welcomes an
opportunity to make such amends , as lies
within its power by advocating his" re
election. Judge Stewart has made good.
PROGRESSIVE ADULTERY IN NEW YORK
The Episcopal clergy has refused to of
ficiate at the marriage of John Jacob As
tor and Miss Madeline Force. The
clergy of other denominations also refuse.
But Mr. Astor and Miss Force will have,
no trouble in finding some minister or of
ficial competent to tie the nuptial knot.
About the only result of all this hullaba
loo will be to call renewed attention to
the progressive harlotry of New York's
"four hundred." Plainly speaking, the
"swell set" in New York is made up of
men and women who are about as pro
miscuous as flies, who look upon the mar
riage tie as merely a legal protection from
arrest for open adultery, and whose org
ies are a stench in the nostrils of decent
people,
We do not know Mr. Force, father of
the bride-to-be, nor would wre care to
make his acquaintance. A man who
would allow his daughter to become the
legalized mistress of a man of millions
isn't worth knowing. Nor is the girl will
ing to thus sell herself into chattel slav
ery any better than the girl who sells her
body for a chance to wear pretty clothes
and picture hats. We are sending mission
aries by the hundreds to save the heathen
in foreign lands. In heaven's name let's
send a few to "Darkest New York" and
put them to work among the besotted mil
lionaires and millionairesses to whom the
marriage tie is about as sacred as swill
is to a porker,
IS THE CHURCH MAKING GOOD?
Whenever I hear a man declare, with
emphasis, that the church is a failure;
that it is a waning power; that it is an
effete institution which will soon be sup
erseded by another organization, I am re
minded of the anvil that wore out many a
hammer. The church is the anvil and the
"knocker" well, he is another hammer.
We will admit, at once, that the church
needs to be criticised severely criticised,
sometimes. Hut there are certain facts of
which we must not loss sight. When it is
said, for example, that the "church hav
ing failed, outside agencies have arisen
and today they are taking the place of the
church," it should not be forgotten that
the religious institutions which are sup
posed to rival the church are all of them
supported by the church. The Young
Men's Christian Association, for example,
is the church at work among men. The
rescue mission, or the Salvation Army, is
the church specializing upon certain
classes . of people. Whatever one may
think of the value of these agencies and of
their effectiveness, they are not really
rivals of the church in the sense that they
have been organized because the church
has failed to make good. ' Not ever'
church can be run as-the Salvation Army
is being conducted, for instance. In min
istering to the spiritual needs of the
world, the church has simply learned to
adapt itself to various constituencies.
And the workingman, who, for social rea
sons which are perfectly legitimate, does!
not care to go to the rich man's church
for fear of being patronized and I don't
blame him much for this greatly prefers
a church made up of his own class where
he can hold his own with the rest of the
people. There is such a thing as "class
democracy" and the church, in its deal
ings with men, has learned to recognize
this very human fact. We may theorize
about it as we please and wish that condi
tions were otherwise, but we must take
people as we find .them. When it is as
serted that the churches are not doing
anything in the work of caring for the un
fortunate in our great cities who are out
side of the church, I recall a very exten
sive study which was recently made
among the social workers in the United
States. This study revealed the fact that
while the church membership in this
country is only about one-third of the en
tire population, it furnishes 75 per cent
of the social wrorkers. Rev. Charles
Stelzle.
COMPLIMENTING THE LAWYERS.
A St. Louis judge has just paid the law
yer sof . thecountry a compliment that
they' should?be proud to acknowledge. "I
have found reporters to be as honest and
as reliable as lawyers," says this St. Louis
judge. 'Nothing kinder has been said of
lawyers since we can remember, and our
experience" 'as a newspaper reporter dates
niake more; than. a. quarter of a century,
