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THE GUIDE TO NATURE 



was being contributed day by day for 

 a Young Men's Christian Association. 

 More than one hundred and fifty thou- 

 sand dollars had been contributed in a 

 few days. This was regarded as a 

 good investment and it was a good 

 investment to benefit the young men 

 in one city. It was worth while but 

 think for a moment what an equal 

 sum invested in the AA would do to 

 benefit not the young men and boys 

 of a single city but thousands of peo- 

 ple of all ages and both sexes through- 

 out the world. It does pay to give one 

 hundred thousand dollars to a Y. M. 

 C. A. to keep a few boys off the streets 

 and it would pay even a higher rate 

 to invest that same amount of money 

 in the AA to keep a hundred thousand 

 boys off the streets. According to the 

 rate at which money has been used in 

 the AA during the past thirty-six 

 years, and according to the work that 

 has been accomplished with so little, 

 one hundred thousand dollars would 

 help effectively in keeping one hundred 

 thousand people interested in Mother 

 Nature, whose influence is and can be 

 only good. 



It is said that within the town of 

 Greenwich, in which Arcadia is located, 

 there are fifty-one millionaires and that 

 many more are in the town of Stam- 

 ford near by. We have on our books 

 and we reach, directly and indirectly, 

 probably more than twice that num- 

 ber in other places, all of whom with- 

 out exception recognize the good work 

 of the AA. 



But regarding it merely as a local 

 affair what a simple matter it would be 

 for each of the fifty-one millionaires 

 to give the AA say five thousand dol- 

 lars for equipment and endowment. 

 Has any one the slightest doubt of 

 the continuance of the AA for all time 

 if it were endowed with a quarter mil- 

 lion dollars? Does any one doubt that 

 the Audubon societies will continue 

 with their quarter million or more? 

 There can not be the slightest doubt. 

 There are constantly advancing to bet- 

 ter and larger things and are calling 

 for another million dollars which are 

 worth while in the realm of birds alone. 

 The AA takes an interest in all nature 

 and teaches love and kindness for all 

 forms of life, the lowest at the bottom 

 of the scale, as well as the human at 

 the top. What the AA needs is not 



only to do more effective work during 

 the present presidency but to continue 

 the work after he is dead. We need 

 to increase our capacity for work, and 

 that means a complete plant and money 

 with which to accomplish effectively 

 that work and to employ assistance. 

 More than ten thousand people are 

 fully awake to the good work of the 

 AA. How effective it would be if each 

 one of these ten thousand would give 

 at least ten dollars a year. Think what 

 could be accomplished by five thousand 

 dollars a year, which is the salary re- 

 ceived by scientific workers in some 

 other organizations of allied nature. 

 If that much could be devoted directly 

 to the work in view of the gratuitous 

 labors of the workers here at Arcadia 

 we could move the world. So let this 

 question of worry regarding the death 

 of the AA at the death of the AA Presi- 

 dent be forever set at rest. Even if it 

 should go down immediately upon his 

 death, at least ten thousand dollars per 

 year could as long as he lives be used 

 to good advantage in direct application 

 to the work. But with ten thousand 

 dollars a year or more or even less 

 there would not be the slightest doubt 

 of the AA's continuance upon the event 

 of the President's death. 



The AA is exerting every nerve and 

 muscle to get to the top of the hill or 

 on smoother ground where better 

 speed can be made. Won't you please 

 push a little on one of the wheels? 



Once upon a time a ship stuck fast 

 on the ways, and the yard master was 

 at his wits' end, for he could furnish 

 no more power. He was beginning to 

 despair when a shrill voice beside him 

 piped up, "Say, Mister, I can push a 

 pound." "All right, sonny ; push." The 

 boy pushed his pound, and the ship 

 leaped grandly to the embrace of the 



waiting river. 



Hacc fabula docet that while a pound 

 is no great matter, it may work won- 

 ders. 



A little more than two years ago we 

 were pushing our best, assisted by the 

 same faithful and devoted workers that 

 are pushing to-day. We were nearing 

 the top of the hill with a part of the 

 load — namely, the establishment of a 

 magazine, but the greater part of the 

 burden, that of establishing a Home, 

 was still far down the declivity. Then 

 came the offer of assistance. We 



