Article April 18, 1942 ISSUE

The Beautiful and Real

[Written Especially for Young People]

MARY LEE GOUGH NAY

Recently a contest was conducted by one of the oldest and best American magazines to encourage young writers. The judgment was, after more than one thousand manuscripts submitted had been examined, that the stories contained "not much sweetness and light." It would seem that the writers in their endeavor to depict realism had regarded distortion and ugliness in human experience as the reality of life and, to quote the comment of the magazine, the stories "showed that their authors had only a romantic notion of the realism they were striving for."

In marked contrast with this trend toward accepting ugliness in human experience as real and necessary, a current trade journal, The Inland Printer, relates a delightful and inspiring story about Mary Baker Eddy, the Discoverer and Founder of Christian Science, who, with one comment born of a deep perception and a yearning to inspire the young in their search for beauty and its expression in life, set forth a great spiritual fact. In an article entitled "New 'Science and Health' Edition a Monumental Work," it is related that the publisher of her book, "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures," sometimes sent his young apprentice to talk with Mrs. Eddy about the book.

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