The Weber Literary Journal of living and their morals, that the nations have progressed. What was China before she opened her gates to the world, compared with what she is today and what she may become in the future? The same may be asked of Japan, of the Philippines. Their whole standards of living have been raised through travel and contact with the outer world. The fourth angle of travel's advantage which I mentioned is, I believe, the most important of all; for we may be educated, we may be cultured and well mannered, our standard of living may be on a high plane, but our aestheticism is the foundation upon which all true education, all genuine culture, every standard of living and of morals, is built. Travel, the right kind of travel, develops, as nothing else can, one's aestheticism. For example, read Byron's "Prisoner of Chillon." Then go, yourself, to that prison, which is most artistically situated on the edge of Lake Leman, Switzerland. When you come away the poem will have for you a new meaning in its vividness. Sit for an hour in silence on the little iron bench in front of the "Lion of Lucerne," read the inscription written beneath, and the faithful Swiss in whose memory it was carved and Thorwaldsen, the sculptor, will be given a new and more reverent, impressive place in your memory. Could anyone tramp through Switzerland with its mighty snow capped mountains shadowing the quiet, peaceful valleys below without feeling, in a measure, the power of God and the insignificance of man? Go up into Norway where is revealed the soul of Peer Gynt and then into Germany which is saturated with the music of Wagner, Beethoven, and Mozart. See the magnificent splendor of Versailles and the quiet atmosphere of Stratford on Avon. Ponder over the sublimity and grandeur of the Grand Canyon of the Colorado and over the mysteries hidden in Yellowstone Park. It matters not in what part of the world one may go, there is beauty, there is mystery, there is the spirit creation waiting to develop our reverence and our aestheticism. 22 The Weber Literary Journal Mariner Durant's Awakening Ellen Hornsby MARINER DURANT was narrow minded, cruel and intolerant of the things that amuse and cheer one. From childhood his one ideal was to enter the ministry but, while yet very young, his father died and the burden had fallen upon his youthful shoulders to care for and support his mother. The plans of his life's desire had then been thwarted, making him a very stern and austere man. When not at work, Bible study was his devoted pastime. He had, as he had grown older, become a veritable religious fanatic. The people of the neighborhood in which Mariner lived were greatly astonished when he began to bestow his attention upon Janis Moore, the prettiest girl in the town. They had never heard of such a preposterous thing as a religious fellow like Mariner Durant falling in love with a lively girl like Janis. However, Mariner was greatly respected by all the townspeople, even though he wasn't particularly liked. Most girls admire any man who takes the responsibility of caring for his mother. At any rate, they were married. Two weeks after their marriage Mariner's mother died, and he, with his girl wife, moved to Chicago. They first located in one of the rooming houses of the city. Durant was very cruel to Janis. She was forbidden to speak to any of the roomers. Even magazines and books were out of the question. "If you want to read," he told her, "read the Bible." If she dared to mention dances, movies and the like, he became furious immediately. Weeks went by and still he continued to be the same, always finding fault with Janis. Whatever went wrong he was sure to blame poor Janis. When he left for his work in the morning, it was, "Now don't let anyone come in the house while I'm away." He was in the same mood when he came home in the evening. Several months later they moved from the rooming house into a small bungalow further from town. Day in and day 23