SF TE aie. Dib wpe, Sept 4-~-L. Paris’ The old Ying from Lost Bell bell that used to the tower of the Presbyterian Church Paris, is Idaho, seems careless, lost. but at This there were extenuating circumstances. The church was torn down years ago, and the en-. tire settlement has been -dwindling for several decades. Arthur Eborn has written me, urging me to give the bell wide publicity. They want to mount it in the tower of the courthouse, so it may be rung on the 100th anniversary of the settle ment next year. We must find this bell. The local chapter of the Daughters of the Pioneers have another bell—found in the tower of an old Mormon Church razed a few years ago, but never used within | the memory of anyone living, not even Dr. Edward I. Rich, 94, of Ogden, Utah, who taught school in the building before any of the rest of us were born. I have a letter also from Mrs. Edna Law requesting my help in locating the history of this bell, which is likewise to be mounted to ring on the town’s centennial. They’re determined up there to start a new era. Paris is a proud little town with a famous name and a rich history. It is the mother | of a seore of other little towns strung around the Bear River basin, and continues to assert itself despite its failure to make the lusty growth it once dreamed of. It is the county seat; it is the home of the oldest newspaper in the state — The Paris Post; and in the 1930s it was rated in the official guide book as having the most beautiful public buildings of any town its size in: the state. I like to think the spirit of Paris is the spirit of a thousand other little towns across the land. They’ve been careless about preserving their history and _ heritage; and often they’ve lacked the forward thrust - and vision to project themselves into the mid-20th century. Undoubtedly many of them have lost their bells, and should start looking for them. Nevertheless, they are the repositories of many of the finest traits found in the American dream. The present trend toward moving some industries out to the rural areas to supplement highly mechanized agriculture is growing. There are many opportunities and pleasant associa- tions in the little towns. i. They’re on the threshold of new growth and importance; and you may be sure the bell of Paris will ring again. EZRA J. POULSEN