In Memoriam
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Source: Bahá'í Library Online (bahai-library.com), curated by Jonah Winters. Used by permission of the curator. Original citation: unknown, In Memoriam, New York: Bahá'í Publishing Committee, 1937, bahai-library.com.
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THE BAHA'I WORLD
A Biennial International Record

Prepared under the supervision of the National Spiritual Assembly
of the Bah6'is of the United States and Canada
with the approval of Shoghi Effendl

Volume VI
91 AND 92 OF THE          BAHA'I ERA
APRIL 1934 - 1936 A.D.

BAHA'I PUBLISHING TRUST
Wilmeltc, Illinois
xvi                                      CONTENTS

17. Herbert Putnam. Congressional Library. Washington. D.C. . .
18 . Leo Tolstoy . . . . .          . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
.
19 Dr. Edmund Privat, University of Geneva . .             .   .   .   .
.
20 D r. Auguste Forel, University of Zurich . . . . . . .
.
21 General Renato Pioln Caselli . . . .           . . . . . . .
.
22 Rev . Frederick W . Oakes . . .             . . . . . . .
.
23 . Renwick J . G Millar, Editor of John O'Groat Jownzal, Wick, Scotland . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
.                .
24 Charles H Prisk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
21. Prof . Hari Prasad Shastri, D.Litt. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
26 . Shri Purohit Swami . . . . . . . . . .                 . . . . . . . . . . . . .
27 . Prof . Herbert A . Miller, Bryn Mawr College . . . . . . . . . . . . .
28 . Right Hon . Sir Herbert Samuel, G.C.B., M.P. . . . . . . . . . . .
.            .
29 . Rev K . T Chung . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
.
30 . Prof Dimitry Kazarov, University of Sofia . . . . .                   ..........
.
3 1. Rev Griffith J . Sparham . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
32 . Ernest Renan . . . . . .                              . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
.
3 3. The Hon Lilian Helen Montague, J.P., D.H.L. . . . . . . . . . .
34. Prof . Norman Bentwich, Hebrew University, Jerusalem . . . . . . . . .
3 5 . mile Schreiber. Publicist        . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
.
36 Dr . Rokuichiro Masujima, Doyen of Jurisprudence of Japan . . . . .
.
37 Miss Helen Keller           ..          .....                  . . . . . . . . .
.
38 Sir Hinders Petrie, Archaeologist. . . .                          ........
3 9. President Masaryk of C7echoslovakia . .                           . . . . . . . .
40 . Archduchess Anton of Austria                                   . . . . . . .
41 . Dr . Herbert Adams Gibbons . . .                          . . . . . . . .
42. H.R.H. Princess Olga of Jugoslavia                         . . . .               ...
43 . Eugen Relgis                  .........                       . . .             ..
44 . Arthur Henderson                               ........                    . . . .
.
41 . Prof . Dr V . Lesny . .                     . . . . . . . . . . . . .
46. Princess Marie Antoinette de Broglie Aussenac . .                           ...
.
47 Presidcnt David Starr Jordan, Leland Stanford University
48. Prof . Bogdan Popovitch, University of Belgrade, Jugoslavia . . . . .
49 . Ex-Governor William Sulzer . .                      ..                       . . . . .
10. Luther Burbank .          . .                        .     .                . . . . .
f I . Prof . Yone Noguchi . . .                          . . . . .                   ...
12. Prof . Raymond Frank Piper . .                       . . . . .                  ..
13. Angela Morgan . . . . . . . . .                                . .
14. Arthur Moore .                    . . . . . .
.
51 . Prof Dr . Jan Rypka, Charles University, Praha, Czechoslovakia
.
56 . A . L M. Nicolas        . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .                  . . . .
> 7. President Eduard Bmeg . .                             . . . . . . . . .
[I1. In Memoriam . . . . . . . . . . .                   ...........                   . . . . .
.           .
1 Susan I Moody . . . . . . . . . . . .                             . . . . . . . . .
2 . Hooper Harris . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
.                .
3 Harry H Romer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .                             ........
4 . Howard Luxmoore Carpenter . .                           . . . . . . .
1. Edward C . Getsinger . . . . .                                     ......
6. Sarah Blundell                       . . . . . . . . . . . .
7. Khalil Qamar                       . . . . . . . .
8 . Hiji Muhammad Yazdi                 .........                     . . .
9 . Extracts from "Bahi'i News" . . .                      . . . . . . .            . .
IN MEMORIAM
A B A H ~ P' I~O N E E R O F E A S T A N D W E S T -
DOCTOR SUSAN I. MOODY (THE HAND-
MAID OF T H E MOST HIGH)
Amatu'l- A'li
BY JESSIE E. REVELL
" I N reality," says 'Abdu'l-Bahh, "faith           whose teaching Dr. Moody was always exembodies three degrees: to confess with the ceedingly grateful.
tongue; to believe in the heart; to give evi-         The first BahVi Sunday School in Chicago
dence in our actions." In writing a brief was conducted by Dr. Moody and later
account of the life of Dr. Susan I. Moody she was one of the group of Bahl'i sisters
the real faith, as quoted here, is outstanding.     who traveled up and down the outskirts of
She was born November 20, 1851 in Chicago's north side in search of the best
Amsterdam, New Yorlr, of Scotch-Cove- location for the now famous BahVi Temple
nanter parents. Here she received the usual in Wilmette, Illinois.
schooling and orthodox religious training of          About 1908 a party of American Bahl'is
the "best" families of the day. After traveled to frhn to visit the Bahh'is in that
graduating from Amsterdam Academy, she land, and while there some friniau doctors
taught school, later entered the Women's asked if it would be possible to induce an
Medical College in New York City. After American woman doctor to come to Tihrhn,
her parents passed away, she made her home frhn, to live, for the purpose of caring for
with her brother in Chicago where she the women of frin who at that time were
studied music. Still later, Dr. Moody so deprived of skilled medical care. Stopstudied painting and sculpture at the Art ping in 'Akki, Palestine, on their return,
Institute of Chicago, then for three years the Americans communicated this wish to
in the Academy of Fine Arts in Philadel- 'Abdu'l-Bahh who asked them if they knew
phia, then under the great painter Chase, in of such a doctor. The name of Dr. Moody
New Yorlc and finally, in the art schools was presented, and she received word withand studios of Paris, but she was not, how- out delay from 'Ahdu'l-Bahi telling her
ever, to make art her life work for instead she had been chosen for this great medical
of following the professional art career, for work in frln. "I knew then," Dr. Moody
which she was well qualified, she finally often remarked, "why I had felt the urge
yielded to the conscantly increasing urge so strongly to study medicine; I was obliged
which she felt and concluded her study of to study medicine in order to come to frin."
medicine, graduating from a Chicago medi- When the call came from 'Abdu'l-Bahl,
cal college.                                        she proceeded immediately on her journey.
During those early days of her life in             Enroute to frln, Dr. Moody stopped in
Chicago, she met friends who were attend-          the  Holy Land to see 'Abdu'l-Bahl and reing the first classes formed for the study of      ceive from Him the necessary instructions
the Bahi'i Revelation, which classes she and encouragement for the work ahead of
joined but did not become a confirmed be- her. At the time of parting He said, "You
liever until 1903, after making an inten- will need patience." He also further stated
sive study of the teachings with Mrs. Isa- that He was sending her t o frhn and
bella D. Brittingham, for the privilege of whether living or dead He would always
THE BAHA'i              WORLD

Dr. Susan I. Moody, 18F1-1934.

he with her. During that visit with 'Ab-        determination to accomplish what 'Ahdu'ldu'ldahl, Dr. Moody made a vow which            Bahd wished her to do.
was, "All that I am and have, and all that         Often she prayed for the supreme pa-
I hope to be and have, I dedicate to Thee,      tience which 'Abdu'l-Bahl had prescribed.
0 God." She also said that those three          She soon became fluent in the irinian landays in the Holy Land with the Master,          guage. Frequent were her letters to Amer-
'Abdu'l-Bahl, were all her life.                ica, explaining her work, enclosing photo-
Dr. Moody arrived in Tihrin November         graphs and telling of the lack of freedom
26, 1909. 'Ahdu'l-Bahd mentioned to some        and education of the irdnian women, of the
pilgrims the great love with which the          custom of wearing the veil, etc., of the
Bahi'i of f r l n had greeted Dr. Moody when    Bahi'i work of establishing a hospital, a
she arrived in frhn, saying that between        girl's school and a Ma'riqu'l-A@ir        there.
Enzeli, on the Caspian Sea, and Tihrln there    In a Tihrin newspaper in 1910 appeared
were nineteen relay stations and at sixteen     the following:
of these there were Bahi'is gathered to            "DOCTOR MOODY-AMERICAN LADY-
greet the western Bahi'i. Soon after her        not only does she know medicine, but also
arrival a reception was given to her and        gynecology, obstetrics and women's dis-
Dr. Moody then knew she had an eter-            eases. Her good qualities and kind attrinal home in the hearts of these dear            butes, her love for her Persian orientaI
friends.                                        sisters, are all equal. Every day from morn-
During her fifteen years of service to       ing till noon shc is in her office, No. 10 Avethe Cause in irln, many were her difficulties   nue Aladauleh, receiving her patients for
and hardships but she had an inflexible         consultation, examination and treatment, excepting Friday and Sunday afternoons, when        and self-sacrificing life was the fact that it
she goes t o the Hospital Sebat (Hospital of     was built on the solid foundation of the
Health), where she meets the patients of         Word of God. She had a keen spiritual
the higher and wealthier class.                  perception, a pure and undefiled conception
"We give the utmost thanks and grati-          of the Bahi'i teachings, and a desire to
tude to such a noble woman, to such a re-        render instant obedieiice. She was humble,
spected person, whose presence here is a         selfless, and her sense of justice was outgreat privilege to the country of Persia.        standing.
O n account of the great care of this blessed         After fifteen years of unique service in
person, the sick of all nationaliries, Moslem,   i r i n , Dr. Moody returned to America until
et al., become well. We beg of God to            conditions in Tihrin would improve and
keep this blessed and respected person with      enable her t o resume her work. Accom-
US.)'                                            panied by Miss Elizabeth H . Stewart she
Aside from her ~nedicalwork, there was        inade a visit in Haifa and there the writer
ever present in her mind the most impor-         joined them. Dr. Moody was the first of
tant question of the education of girls.         the four American Bahl'i women t o go t o
Often she would say, "My heart aches for         fran and survived the longest.
the neglected ones." She found that many              Dr. Moody, Miss Stewart and the writer
of the Bahl'i men were in full sympathy          arrived in New Yorli City in January,
with her views and through Bahl'i co-             1921, where the Bahi'is had arranged a
operation and consultation a girl's school       reception at the Hotel Waldorf Astoria.
was started with an attendance of thirty         Calmly, yet with the dramatic emphasis
pupils. It has now an enrollment of sev-         which always surrounds one who has actueral hundred and is known as the Tarbiyat        ally participated in stirring events, Dr.
School for Girls. Someone has declared it        Moody related her experiences in Tihrhn.
to he "the greatest among all the schools        After this reception she remarked t o the
in Tihrhn." One of the activities most dear      writer, "To return to America and receive
t o the heart of Dr. Moody was the raising       such love from the friends, is worth more
of funds for an additional building. She         than any sacrifice one could make."
wished this fund to be known as the "Kap-             That the remarkable work of Dr. Susan
pes Memorial Fund" in memory of Miss             I. Moody in Tihrhn had made her a public
Lillian Kappes, the first American Bahb'i        figure in this country was well illustrated
teacher who died in frill after giving nine      by extensive articles which appeared in the
years of untiring service t o the School. Dr.    press. While in Oakland, California, she
Moody not only started the Tarbiyat School       took a short trip in an aeroplane and the
for the secular education of girls, she also     press published her picture with her pilot
founded the Baha'i study classes for girls       and an article in part as follows: "Accordand herself visired these classes every Fri-     ing to Dr. Moody, who contrasts her entry
day. These study classes were managed by         into Tihrin, the capitol of frill, in a coach
trained teachers and in these classes many       and four where she went t o spread the
who started years ago in the first course        gospel of hygiene t o the Muhammadan
are now teaching others.                         women, and her exodus in a "flivver" of
Dr. Moody was loved and honored by            doubtful vintage twenty years later, she
thousands of people in her life time, among      sees no reason why aerial transportation
them being Major Robert W. Imhrie, who           should hold any fears for the women of
offered protection to the Bahl'is and who        today."
suffered martyrdoin b y fanatical Muham-              During her stay in America from Jannmadans. During the epidemic of influenza,        ary, 192!, t o November, 1928, Dr. Moody
the famine and a variety of dreadful con-        was interesting friends t o help with the
ditions, Dr. Moody wrote to America, "Oh,        work she, together with the Tihrhn friends,
what a mercy that we are alive and awalr-        expected to continue an her return to f r i n ,
ened and trying to serve in the Kingdom of       the Kappes Memorial School. She was a
Abhl." The secret of Dr. Moody's noble           member of the Revell household in Phila-
486                            T H E BAHA'i             WORLD
delphia for ahout 2 year and during that           instructing Persia rear monument perpetutime although she was then past 75 years            ating memory (of) her noble mission. (1)
of age, yet young in spirit and progressive         am gladly defraying whatever expense inand active, she studied Esperanto with a            curred as token (of) my admiration for
class.                                              community (i.e., America) to which she
In 1928, Shoghi Effendi, the Guardian of        originally helonged and on which her sacred
the Bahh'i Cause, sent the following in-           life shed imperishable lustre. Advise holdstructions t o Dr. Moody: "I pray that you         ing befitting Memorial gathering (in)
may soon in the company of a capable and           Temple Foundation Hall."
devoted American co-worker, resume your                Her funeral was attended by hundreds of
historic labors for our beloved Cause in           BahPi friends. Scores of school girls, with
Tihrin." Following this suggestion on No-          flowers in hand walked in procession
vember 17, 1928, Dr. Moody, then 77 years          through the city' for at least one mile to
of age, left for irin, accompanied by Miss         Gulastin-i-Javid (Perennial Garden), the
Adelaide Sharp of San Francisco, California,       burying ground of the Bahh'is.
who volunteered her services at the Tarbi-             BahPu'116h in one of His Tablets says:
yat School in Tihrin. To Dr. Moody's bis-          "The soul that hath remained faithful to
toric career in Tihrln was now to be added         the Cause of God and stood unwaveringly
the final chapter of complete consecration          firm in His path shall, after his ascension,
t o Bahh'i service. They conferred with             be possessed of such power that all the
Shoghi Effendi in Haifa en route to fran.           worlds which the Almighty hath created
Dr. Moody, named by 'Abdu'lLBahh                    can benefit through him."
"Amatu'l-PIC' which means the handmaid
of the Most High, wrote of the welcome in
Tihr6n in part as follows: "The friends
came singly, in groups, committees, assemblies, more than seven hundred the first               With the passing of our dearly beloved
week, and still we are greeting many new            BahPi brother, Hooper Harris, from this
and old friends, both women and men.                phenomenal world to the invisible eternal
Words fail t o express the joy of our 'home-        realm, the world-wide Bahh'i Community
coming.' I wish you might have seen how             sustained the loss of one more of those faiththat love overflowed in gifts, potted vines,        ful and devoted souls who gave the best
plants, flowers, silver vases, confectionery,       years of their lives to the promotion and
sweets of all kinds. Do you wonder why              establishnent of the F a ~ t hof Bahi'u'lltih
the two Americans were overwhelmed?"                in the West and in the East.
After her return to Tihrin, due to age, her            William Hooper Harris was horn in
health gradually weakened but she con-              New York City, December 14, 1866. All
tinually worked for the Kappes Memorial             his early years, however, were spent in
School, and the friends called on her con-          Nashville, Tenn. After finishing High
stantly. At the end of her life when asked          School, financial difficulties at home prefor some statement from her regarding her           cluded his intended study of law at Colservice to keep for posterity, Dr. Moody            lege. He therefore worked by day, studied
said, "Let it go, let it pass into the Infinite."   law at night and was admitted to the bar
Shoghi Effendi cabled to America as fol-         in Birmingham, Alabama, in 1893. In
lows: "Passing dearly beloved Susan Moody           1887, he married Sarah Gertrude Rawls of
deprives BahCi world (of the) far-famed             Birmingham and in 1894, they came to
pioneer who, through her indomitable spirit,        New York City to live, where he became
ceaseless services, earned unique distinction.      an expert court reporter, doing work of
(She) forged first link in (the) chain              unusually high quality till the very day of
uniting (the) spiritual destinies (of the)          his death.
cradle of our faith (i.e., Persia) and (the)           In New Yorli City, in 1899, his wife,
community (of its) stalwart defenders in            ever persistent in her desire and search for
(the) great American Republic. (I am)               Truth, was told, by Mrs. Archie Fisk, of the
I N   MEMORIAM

Hooper Harris, 1866-1934.

Bahi'i Faith and Mrs. Harris soon realized     request for specific instructions as to how
it to be the object of her search. Hooper      to teach in India, 'Abdu'l-Bahh's only reply
Harris accompanied her to hear the Bahh'i      was, "Face the people with a smile on your
Message and ere long he, too, realized the     face and the love of God in your heart and
Light and Bounty of the Revelation of          rely wholly upon the Holy Spirit." 'Abdu'l-
Bahi'u'llih.                                   Bahi sent with Mr. Harris and Mr. Ober,
Thereupon he became a faithful and de-      as companions and teachers, two frinian
voted student of the BahB'i Revelation and     teachers neither of whom could speak Engof all the previous Revelations of Truth to    lish. One was Janabi Ibn Abhar, an
mankind, especially those parts of the vari-   elderly frinian who had suffered for years
ous Books which prophesied this Great Day      in prison and in chains for his Faith, the
of Light. His continuous study and un-         other Mirzi Mahmfid, a young man whom
tiring efforts to know the Truth spiritually   we knew later when he came to America
as well as mentally proved to be a timely      with 'Abdu'l-BahP in 1912.
preparation which enabled him to answer           From the time of the first address given
the call of 'Ahdu'l-Bah6 in 1906 for an        aboard the ship by request of the Captain,
American to go to India to teach the Cause.    just before reaching Naples, Mr. Harris
On November 10, 1906, Mr. Harris, ac-          was engaged continuously, day by day, for
companied by Harlan Ober of Beverly,           a period of seven months, in promulgating
Mass., left New York City for 'Akki to         the Faith. The letters which he sent from
receive the blessing and instructions from     the East t o the friends in America form
'Abdu'l-Bahi. In answer to Mr. Harris'         a large volume and give most vivid descrip-
'f   WORLD

tions of his activities in Bombay, Poona,        thr Cause can be rncasurcd only by the All-
Lahore, Calcutta, Rangoon and Mandalay.          Seeing Eye of God Himself. We see and
He was privileged to address large audi-      know but a few of the traces of his spirit;
ences of the Brama Somaj and Arya Somaj          Balli'u'llAh knows the full record.
movements, Theosophical Societies, The Na-          Our prayer is that ~ a h P u ' l l i hmay etertional Association of Indian Women, and a        nally shower His love and bounty upon our
Conference of Religions held at Lahore. He       beloved brother in the Faith, Hooper Harris.
was interviewed by many interested seek-            From a letter received by Mrs. Harris
ers individually. He wrote a series of six       from Shoghi Effendi, dated September 20,
articles upon the Faith for the Zoroastrian       1934, the following excerpt is quoted: "His
daily newspaper and other articles for the       passing in these early days of the formative
"Bombay New Thought Magazine" and the            period of our Faith is, indeed, a severe loss
"Times of India."                                not only to his friends and relatives but also
His work in India was well done and           and mainly to ail the American followers
time alone will reveal the harvest from the      of the Movement who had found in his
seeds planted so carefully and prayerfully       person not only a real and sincere fellowin the fertile soil of India.                    believer hut also an active and capable ex-
Mr. Harris returned to New York in            ponent of the teachings and principles of
1907 and continued ceaselessly to set forth     the Cause." From the same letter, the postthe teachings, stressing the logical fulfill-    script written by the Guardian: "The irrement of the successive Covenants of God          parable loss of your very dear husband has
and bearing witness to the inspiration,          removed a distinguished figure from the
glory, and responsibilities of living in this    community of the American believers and
Day of fulfillment.                              inflicted a severe blow to its best interests.
His constant and efficient work in teach-     The share he has had in lending fresh impeing caused him to be appointed by the            tus to the teaching activities of its members,
National Spiritual Assembly as Chairman of       the contributions he has made to the adthe National Teaching Committee of the           vancement of its institutions, the example
Northeastern States, and the Conventions         he has set by his single-mindedness, his eloand Conferences arranged by him proved           quent presentation of the essentials of God's
a great benefit to those privileged to attend.   Faith and his exemplary devotion to its
He served as a faithful, conscientious and    cause will long be remembered after hi.
active member of thr New York Spiritual          He w a s indeed one of the leading apostles
Assembly for all but a few scattered years       of Bah6'u'llih."
from 1901 till his death on July 27, 1934,
and the present Spiritual Assembly feels
deeply the loss of his sincere and disinter;
ested counsel.
A t one time, in the early years of the          The friends of the New York Assembly
Cause in America, the Harris home served as      were deeply grieved to read the following
headquarters for the "Board of Counsel"; in      despatch from London to "The New York
fact, his home was open at all times to the      Times" of the passing of Harry Houston
friends. Many of the teachers of f r i n sent    Romer on April 1 3 , 193 5 .
to America by 'Abdu'l-Baha were his guests.         "On April 13, 1935, Harry Houston
Mr. and Mrs. Harris were rejoiced to have        Romer, member of the Associated Press,
'Abdu'l-Bahi Himself spend an afternoon          domestic and foreign staffs, died today of
and night in their home in 1912.                 heart disease, aged 64 years. A native of
The many Tablets which Hooper Harris          Westchester County, N. Y., Mr. Rorner was
received from 'Abdu'l-Bahi-now       preserved   a member of an old American family. Durin the National Archives in Chicago-were         ing the war he held important posts in the
a constant stimulant toward ever greater         news organization. He became Chief Foreffort to serve.                                 eign News Editor and later was placed in
Hooper Harris' life of loving devotion to     charge of the Berlin Bureau. Subsequently
IN MEMORIAM

Harry H. Ronler, 1870-1931.

he was a member of the London Staff where       ings and lectures at the New York Center,
his experience and background in United         at "The Bahi'i Congress," and at the Ethical
States and international affairs aided him ~n   Culture Society, etc. The program for this
handling the swiftly moving events of the       work at the Center was essentially planned
post-war era. Mr. Romer carried on his          for the purpose of presenting to the people a
duties through the present European crisis      coniprehensive outline of Bahh'u'llbh's great
until physicians ordered him to bed two         principles laid down for the New World
weeks ago. Surviving him are his widow          Order and to study the most efficient propaand a son, Professor Alfred S. Romer, of        ganda for this worlc.
Harvard University."                               First Mr. Romer conceived the idea of
I t was in 1922 that Mr. Romer became a      publishing each week (Saturday) in the
member of thc New York Community. On            Leading newspapers unique and attractive
April 21, 1924, Mr. Romer was elected to        advertisements which included quotations
the Spiritual Assembly and after February       from the words of Bahi'u'llih and 'Abdu'l-
19, 1921, was its chairman. On April 21,        Bahh. This was the first time such a thing
1921, he was again elected to the Spiritual     ever had been done and it was found to
Assembly and made chairman. O n June 11,        be a most effective way to publish the
1921, he was a delegate to the Convention      "Word of God."        See page 490 for an
at Greenacre.                                   example.
I t was the writer's happy privilege to be      The plan resulted in capacity audien?es
closely associated with Mr. Romer during        throughout the entire series. For two years
the period of establishing the public meer-     Mr. Romer took the responsibility of adver-
490                               THE B A H A ' I              WORLD
the sense of the i r ~ i ~ o r t a ~of~ c the
e thcn
THE FORCE BEHIND
THE NEW CIVILIZATION                     little-known BahPi Movement. I t was
The Moving Power of the Present Marvelous                  largely through his efforts that much of the
World Dweloprnent Revealed by the
Baha'i Message                  publicity was obtained at the time of 'Ab-
Next iu the Senes of Free Ledules o n
the Basic BahB'i Princ~pler, at the            du'l-Bahb's passing. He heralded the news
BAHA'i LIBRARY
250 W e t 57th Street,              to the press, and leading newspapers pub-
Sunday, Nav. 16, 4 P. M . , by            lished reports which in some cases gave his-
MARY HANFORD FORD
Subject:
torical data of the Cause and an outline of
'"HE TEMPLE OF MAN"                      'Abdu'l-Bahi's visit to the United States.
"In this dav he who seeks t h e lizht of the              We consider that Mr. Romer rendered
Sun
~b';,.f,;hes~.\;g,";p;J               2; :;:
Truth must free his lnlnd f r o m t h c
&
&
d
:;h                signal service to the Cause in his association
of virtue       Then shall he arrive at the   with    the New York Assembly during a peocean of 0ncnesr."-Behb'u'ilph.
All Cordially Invrted.             riod when it was emerging into a new phase
Library open daily, 10 A. M. t o 4 P . M.             of Bahd'i activities after the passing of
'Abdu'l-Bahi.
tising and printing for this work, including                       ~ i ,                 qualities were his
Bahi'i meetings on other platforms.                            straightforwardness, uncompromising loy-
Mr. Romer's devoted and inspiring service alty to truth, keen perception, clear vision,
never flagged; always his thought enter- simplicity and humility. w i t h him -word
tained the broad, universal scope of Bahi- and deed alike one color bore," H~ lived
'u'llih's teachings and was the basic view- and dwelt in the steadfastness of his shining
point from which all activities emanated. faith,                   very       kind in          life, naturaland
His very presence of radiant cheer was a simple, with an unerring instinct for the
pervading influence at' all gatherings-a                        finest and best, especially in             and litpresence which banished all fears-strength-                     erature, he attracted all               him by =
ened our hope and faith in the power of benevolent equity and tenderness of soul.
BahB'u'll6h to overcome all difficulties which
might arise. I t was a thrilling experience in                     I t was in 1926, that Mr, and Mrs. Romer
that we were privileged to witness the "Sun arrived in London, and at once became
of Truth" dispersing all clouds.                                known    to the friends. The presence of these
No thought of self or personal advantage two sincere and earnest Bahb'is has had an
ever dimmed the light of his clear vision. influence on the Cause that cannot be esti-
Like all illumined aouls he exhaled the frag- mated till the secrets of all hearts are disrance of humility. He had but one all- closed. Mr. Romer was prevented by his
embracing desire-the                    advancement of the professional obligations from taking the
Cause and the promulgation of its Teach- active part in the work of the Movement,
ings. Nothing could depress his buoyant which his wife undertook so faithfully; but
spirit or lessen the fervor of his vital efforts his influence was deeply felt. His sincerity
in this work. He had indeed caught a and selflessness gave great value to his counglimpse of the Glorious Splendor and it grew sel, and his simple faith was an inspiration
upon him as he witnessed the result of ear- to all who knew him. He was beloved for
nest effort evolving steadily and increasingly his kindIy generous nature, and when he
as the months passed. We fel-c it to be a entered a gathering an added warmth and
great appreciation when our dear departed light seemed perceptible. He was always
brother, Mr. Hooper Harris, said, "You've                      reluctant to speak in public, or to take a
established a great work and it will go on prominent part in meetings; but when he
forever."                                                      could be prevailed on to do so, his words
Mr. Romer was the only professionaI carried great weight, for they were backed
newspaper man in the Bahi'i community by a life lived on the purest Bahi'i ideals.
and he spread the knowledge of the Bah6'i A young friuian was once heard to remark
Movement throughout the News Association that they looked on him as the exemplar of
with which he was connected, thus estab- what a Bahi'i should be. I n 1929 great
lishing in the minds of many foreign editors efforts were made to give the Movement a
I N   MEMORIAM                                      49 1
better setting in London. It was felt that             HOWARD    LUXMORECARPENTER
a Center for work and meetings should be                     \--
( 1 9 0- 6- - ---',
193%)
acquired; and a room at Walmar House,
Dr. Howard Carpenter became a BahPi
Upper Regent Street, was rented. Mr. Romer
through conversations with Howard Macdid good work on the Committee formed to
Nutt when the latter was lecturing in
bring this into operation. Later, in 1933-34
California, and shortly afterward he matriche served on the London Spiritual Assembly,
and Finance committee; but the exactions of ulated at Stanford University, graduating
his profession gave him very httle strength from the Stanford Medical School in 1932.
or leisure for other thmgs, and it was his During his uliveraity years he attended
strong sense of BahPi obligations that led Bahl'i meetings at Stanford and in San
him often to tax his strength unduly.            Francisco, and served on the San Francisco
Though averse to public speaking, Mr. Assembly in various capacities including
Romer was never backward in speakine of that of Chairman. He was present at the
-         u

the faith that was in hinl, and in his daily ~essiousof the Geyserville Summer School,
life he found cou~tless opportunities to and was the first to build a cabin on land
speak of the Cause.                              offered to Bah6'is by John Bosch for that
In matters of policy he always deprecated purpose. A t Stanford he exemplified the
any t e l ~ d e n c to
~ rigidity or sectarianism;   Bah6'i  principle of race oneness-incidenand his clear, direct vision always led him to tally startling his university contemporaries
a clear and logical conclusion. There was no by rooming with Yoshio Okumoto, a Japcompromise with truth as he saw it.               anese fellow-student.
I t was with great gief that the friends         He married Mardiyyih Nabil in 1929, and
heard of his sudden illness a l ~ dthat the doc- in 1932 he and his wife left San Francisco
tors had ordered him to have complete rest. for Vielma, where he toolc a medical course,
His brave cheerfulness had concealed from 2nd afterward at the Guardian's direction
most of them how heavily the weight of traveled through Central Europe and the
business cares had pressed on him, undermin- Balkans. With Martha Root in Vienna,
ing his health. No one was prepared, how- Budapest and Belgrade, he then spent five
ever, for the sudden call, "Friend, go up weeks in Sofia, Bulgaria, assisting Miss
higher."                                          Marion Jack, after which he stopped briefly
His outward presence was quietly with. in Saloniki and went on to Tirana, Albania,
drawn, without stress or undue sufiering, to visit Refo Chapar~. He then left for
but he was coi~sciousto the last.                Haifa, where he stayed three weeks on his
His earthly form rests in the beautiful way to TihrAn.
cemetery at Hainpstead close to his last            In frln, notwithstanding the efforts of
home.                                             the Assembly, he was prevented for more
A Bahb'i Service was held in the Chapel than one year from obtaining a medical
there; and as the friends gathered round the license. His health failed, and he was bedgrave, passages from the Hidden Words were ridden for many months. At last his ~ h ~ s -
recited. " 0 Son of Spirit, with the joyful ical condition improved, he resumed activitidings of light I hail thee. Rejoice! To ties as a member of the Unity of the East
the Court of holiness I summon thee, =bide and West Committee, and the authorities
therein that thou Inayest live in peace for granted him a license to practise medicine.
evermore," seemed to fill the hearers with At this time he was stricken with paralysis.
solemn joy, for truly they felt that his spirit He lay seven months in a hospital, after
was with his Lord. His lovable, kindly which Mr. and Mrs. Rahmat 'Alh'i invited
nature, his sensitive artistic soul, and above him to their home, surrounding him with
all his uncompromising straightness remain the same loving care which they had given
with a fragrant memory and inspiration, Keith Ransom-Kehler the year before. His
while we believe that hc is called to worli in doctors advised a return to the United
a higher station in the presence of Bah6- States as his only hope for recovery; he
'u'116h.                                           braved the long journey across the desert
THE BAHA'I              WORLD

Dr. Howard Luxmoore Carpenter, 1906-193:

by motor, the presence of the 'Ali'is, who      brilliance, his almost surgical frankness, his
escorted him to Haifa, helping him to sur-      hatred of sentimentalism, his intellectual apvive it.                                        proach to the Cause of Bahl'u'llih, his utter
After nine days in Haifa, during which      devotion t o the furtherance of Bahl'i instithe Guardian visited him daily, he tooli a      tutions, were a light and guide to those who
ship for New York where he was greeted          accompanied him through his brief life. O n
by the National Spiritual Assembly, and         the occasion of his passing, the following
then left by way of the Panama Canal for        cable was sent his family by the Guardian:
San Francisco. Here he had recourse t o the     "Griefstricken sudden loss beloved precious
best medical authorities, but was pronounced    soul. Meinory his interrupted historic servincurable. He passed away November 24,          ices in Persia imperishable. Assure . .  .
1 9 3 1. He is buried at Sunset Memorial Park   relatives profound sympathy ardent prayers
in Berkeley. The Bal~l'i service held for       Holy Shrines-Shoghi."
him was conducted by Leroy Ioas of San
Francisco; Bahl'is of Berkeley, Oakland,           As it was the privilege of Howard Car-
Geyserville, San Francisco and Santa Paula      penter to achieve his greatest tribulation in
were present, and the words of Bahi'u'116h      the land of BahA'u'lUh, one is reminded in
on immortality radiated such power as to        this connection of the words addressed by
efface all thought of death.                    Bahi'u'llih to Tihrin: "0 Land of T i !
Those who remember Howard Carpenter          Thou art still, through the grace of God,
are especially grateful for certain of his      a center around which His beloved ones have
qualities of mind, qualities which served to    gathered. Happy are they; happy every
enrich the lives of those near to him. His      refugee that seeketh thy shelter, in his suf-
I N MEMORIAM                                           493

Dr. Edward C. Getsinger, 1866-1935.

ferings in the path of God, the Lord of this   -"Gleanings From The Writings of Bahiwondrous Day!"                                 'u'llhh," translated by SHOGHI EFFENDI.
"Thou hast, moreover, asked Me concerning the nature of the celestial spheres. T o
comprehend their nature it would be neces-
"Give ear, 0 My servant, unto that which    sary to inquire into the meaning of the alluis being sent down unto thee from the          sions that have been made in the Boolis of
Throne of thy Lord, the Inaccessible, the      old to the celestial spheres and the heavens,
Most Great. There is none other God but        and to discover the character of their rela-
Him. He hath called into being His crea-       tionship to the physical world, and rhe influtures, that they may know Him, Who is          ence which they exert upon it. Every heart
the Compassionate, the All-Merciful.  . . ."   is filled with wonder at so bewildering a
494                         THE      BAHA 'f       WORLD

theme, and every mind is perplcxed by its       interest. His interpretation of the science
mystery. God, alone, can fathom its im-         of celestial mechanics was to remain to him
.
port. . ."-]bid.                                a fascinating branch of the great scientific
tree of astronomy.
"These holy ones have, moreover, an-            In the year 1893, Dr. Getsinger is found
nounced that when He Who is the Day at Chicago, as he writes: "Was appointed
Spring of the manifold grace of God mani- one of the state's (Michigan) delegates to
festeth Himself, all the Prophets and Mes- World's Congress of Scientists, Chicago
sengers, including the QB'im, will gather World's Fair." And it was at this Fair, in
together beneath the shadow of the sacred another World's Congress, rhe "World's
Standard which the Promised One will raise. Congress of Religions," that the Baha'i
That hour is now come."-Ibid.                   Faith, the greatest of all the interests that
was later to gain and hold the attention of
Within the above quotations, one can per- Dr. Getsinger, was first mentioned in
ceive the heavenly skies that hounded the America.
life history of Dr. Edward C. Getsinger. T o       As its distinguished Guardian Shoghi
his many friends, who recall the spirit of Effendi has written: "Of pomp and circum-
Dr. Getsinger's interests and Faith, both stance, of any manifestations of public rethe problems that attracted his attention joicing, or of popular applause, there was
and the final success of his life are therein none to greet this first intimation t o Amerclear and evident.                              ica's citizens of the existence and purpose
Dr. Getsinger was born at midnight, Jan- of the Revelation proclaimed by Bah6'u'IlBh.
uary 7-8, 1866, in the town of Franken- Nor did he who was its chosen instrument
muth, Saginaw County, Michigan. He died profess himself a believer in the indwelling
in Hollywood, California, March 12, 1935. potency of the tidings he conveyed, or sus-
The name of his parents is given as Goet- pect the magnitude of the forces which so
singer or Goetzinger, but he, himself, always cursory a mention was destined to release."
wrote his name as Getsinger.                       Whether, or not, "the magnitude of the
At the early age of seven, the child, forces" released by the mention "of the
Edward, had left the home of his parents Revelation proclaimed by Bahi'u'llkh" at
and disappeared into a neighboring town. this great World's Fair in Chicago in 1893
Five years were to elapse before he was again had, in some way not as yet understood, an
seen by his parents; for in this town he had effect upon Dr. Getsinger, certain it is that
been talcen into the home of a former pro- Thornton Chase, confirmed by the Center
fessor of Heidelberg University and there of its Covenant, 'Abdu'l-Bah6, as "the first
he contentedly remained. At this early age BahS'i in America," heard of the BahCi
he is fascinated by the mystery of the lumi- Faith within a year (June 1, 1894), and
nous bodies in stellar spaces, and often Dr. Getsinger is listed as certifying t o his
climbs to the roof to gaze at the illimitable wish to be counted a believer in the Bah6'i
heavens.                                        Cause on October 27, 1897. (At this time
A t a later date he feels himself a disciple the early believers considered the giving of
of Hahnemann, who passed away in 1843, the Greatest Name as the symbol of acand takes to reading medicine with such ceptance.)
success that, at 2 2 , he is admitted to prac-     I n his own chronology of events, Dr. Gettice in the state of Michigan, having served singer is d e n t as to the years after the Fair
the required year in a hospital, and is classed in 1893, until the year 1896. Dr. Getsinger
as a homeopath.                                 writes: "It (the Bah6'i Faith) was first
But with Dr. Getsinger, the practice of brought to my attention in Chicago in 1896,
medicine as the object of his life, beautiful and after hearing the Message as delivered to
and important as this profession is, when me by a Syrian, I returned to my home in
united with the Love of God, soon gave way Detroit, Michigan, and there studied the
to the more preponderant appeal which the matter for months in absolute fairness to
stars in their orbits exerted in attracting his truth." By 1897, he had accepted the Reve-
ORIAM                                      495
lation of Bahi'u'llih. And, also, in 1897,         and all to the principles for which He stands
he married Lua A. Moore.                           in the world."
Again quoting Dr. Getsinger: "Mrs.                  According to his own account, before
(Phoebe) Hearst read of me in the news-           becoming assured of the existence of God
papers in 1897, and called me to her Haci-         because of the clear logic in the Bahb'i Faith,
enda. She was regent of the University of          Dr. Getsinger had been an atheist. This
. .
California . gave her the Message." (Of            statement he makes in a lecture written by
the Bahb'i Faith.) In response to this call        him and from which he read in 1902, and
Dr. and Lua Getsinger went to California           he goes on to ask his audience, reading from
together, and not many months elapsed be-          the same lecture, "What power or glory of
fore Mrs. Hearst expressed the wish to visit       any belief can bring atheists back when once
'Abdu'l-Bahb in His home in 'Akkb, the             they turn from hope? Only the sensible
Prison City of Palestine. She invited Lua          truth, rational religion, scientific exposition,
and Dr. Getsinger to be her guests on that         clear interpretation of' symbolic prophecy as
trip. Late in the year 1898, they all de-          given by the Bahi'is can accomplish this."
parted for the Holy Land, via Paris, France.           An old friend of Dr. Getsinger writes
To quote from the letter of an early be-       of him: "His early writings show him to
liever: "She (Mrs. Hearst) took them       ..  .   have been a student. . . . And even then
to 'Abki and they were the very first              he warred upon worldliness, a~nb'itiou,pride
pilgrims to the Prison City, from Amer-            and strife. . . . He was ,. . . not an egoist,
ica."                                               for he did not regard self-development and
"Mrs. Hearst and her guests went first t o      self-satisfaction as the supreme end of exher home in Paris, France; she took her col-      istence."
ored butler from there    ...   to 'Akki, and          As one sympathetically reviews Dr. Getthe Master, as you probably know, was very         singer's life, its two strong foundations are
loving and kind to Robert."                        his zealous attention to research along scien-
From the account of still another early         tific lines, and his, but for a short interval,
believer, it is ascertained that Mrs. Hearst        continuous, unfailing service to the Faith of
remained for a time in Paris, France, sending       Bahl'u'llbh. Dr. Getsinger's aim, and his-
Dr. and Lua Getsinger ahead of her to               torians of the Faith will probably record
'Akkb, where she joined thein later.                these matters in detail, was the search for
In Lua's written account of this first          additional truths that seemed unquestionably
pilgrimage of Americans t o the "Most Great        related to the central truth of all truths to
Prison" city of 'Akki, Palestine, the state-        him, the great Revelation of Bahi'u'llih.
ment is made that she and Dr. Getsinger               Those in position to know state that he
arrived in Haifa, Palestine, Thursday, De-         left volu~nesof manuscripts completed only
cember 8, 1898, about 10:30 P.M. The day           three or four days before his death, of reafter the next day, of December lo, 1898,           search into the ancient truths of the Old
in the morning, they left Haifa, and in a           Testament and in relation to his theories of
short time they had arrived at 'Akkh, passed       celestial mechanics. At one time he had
through its gate and had gone directly t o         toured the universities and had been invited
the home of 'Abdn'l-Bah6. They then met            to Carnegie Institute in relation to these
'Abdu'l-Bahi.                                     subjects.
Dr. Getsinger writes: "When I first saw            Of his early services to the Bahl'i Cause
'Abbis Effendi ('Abdu'l-Bahi) the Servant           there is much of historic importance. In
of Bahb, at 'Akki, in spite of my former           cn-operation with Mrs. Fannie G. Lesch,
belief I still had enough spiritual perception     who had collected the material, and with the
witb(in) my living Tomb to see at once, a          financial assistance of Mrs. Phoebe Hearst,
holy man, a divine character, a most humble        as reported by Mrs. Lesch, he published the
yet profound spirit and intellect, a heart as      first book of the Tablets of Holy BahP'i
great as human weakness, a mercy as wide as        Writings ever to be printed in America.
justice, s soul that I could not comprehend        Likewise, Mrs. Lesch states, he published the
and at that moment I consecrated my life           first volume of "Hidden Words" translated
496                           T H E B A H A. ' f      WORLD
in this country. With the approval of             lishment; the child was wit-hdrawn from
'Abdu'l-Bahb, he published, as he told this       religious instruction at the request of her
writer, the Album of beautifully colored          Nonconformist parents. This experience of
photographs of Bahi'i Holy Places in Pales-       withdrawal was a sore trial to the sensitive
tine-these   photographs had been taken by        child, but its effect was t o make her search
a Greek photographer. The beautiful Tab-          for causes and think for herself. This gave
let, the first which 'Abdu'l-Bahi chanted         rise in her immature mind to what later
into a phonograph to he retained in record        developed into a wholehearted and unfetform, was chanted after continued solicita-       tered search for Truth. I t was during her
tion by Dr. Getsinger that He grant such a        school days that Sarah Andrews heard fainr
request, and the record was brought to            echoes of the terrible religious persecutions
America by Dr. Getsinger in 1899.                 in irin, which later she identified with the
I n that pamphlet of glorious promise and      Blbis. She remembered vividly wondering
encouragement to American Bahi'is writtell        why such deeds should be perpetrated beby Shoghi Effendi, Guardian of the Faith,         cause of religion. She was an intelligent
in the year 1933, and called "America and         student and before leaving school at the age
The Msst Great Peace," the Bahh'i Faith is        of eighteen she was among the first group
divided into four decades to include the          of young ladies permitted to enter for a
forty years, from 1893 to 1933, of its devel-     Cambridge University Examination-a sign
opment in America. I n each of these decades      in those days of the colning advancement of
Dr. Getsinger had lived as a Bahb'i accord-       women.
ing to his ever growing understanding and            In her early thirties Mrs. Blundell received
development. He was an old and tried              a definite spiritual awakening. Such an exbeliever. A friend has written of him: "My        perience can never be adequately described
memorier of him are very precious of a            by words. When speaking of it t o the
firm, faithful believer who gave all that he      writer, she said, "I thought I was in Heaven.
had of Bah6'i treasures, his knowledge and        Texts of scripture poured into my mind
anything he could do to serve the glorious        with new meaning." In the light of this
Cause of Bahl'u'llih."                            awakening she received such deep spiritual
joy and strength that the material troubles
Note-The author wishes to acknowledge          she was at that time encountering became as
assistance, in furnishing data upon which         nothing. So having received "oil for her
this article is based in part, from Mrs. Fannie   lamp" she continued her journey in the
G. Lesch, Miss Leone Basnitz, and W. F.           "Valley of Search" with unwavering faith
Lucus.                                            2nd hope. Some years later in a state of perplexity, she took her problem to God in
prayer. She heard a voice which said, "Can
One of the pioneers of the Bahi'i Cause        you go through poverty?" Her trustful rein New Zealand-Mrs.        Sarah Blundell-        ply was, "Through anything or anywhere
passed away at her home in Auckland on            with Thee, Lord."
December 20, 1934, at the advanced age of            In 1887, when Mrs. Blundell with her
eighty-four years. She was born at Burwell,       husband and family of seven children ar-
Cambridgeshire, England in 18 10-the year         rived in New Zealand, her faith was put to
sacred in Bah6'i history as that of the Bib's     the test. Here she experienced for a time,
martyrdom.                                        not only lack of material wealth, and the
Mrs. Blundell received her early religious     comforts of life to which she was accustraining from her father, Mr. Henry               tomed, bur also lack of friends, for she came
A n d r e w k a Nonconformist of strong con-      as a stranger to a strange country. She
victions and high principles.                     passed through these years of trial and test-
Before the age of seven she had acquired       ing with cheerful courage, firm in her belief
a knowledge of Bible history and a desire         in God's help and guidance.
"to be good." A t this time little Sarah was         In her search for Truth she passed through
sent to boarding school-an orthodox estab-        many fields of thought, emerging through
I N   MEMORIAM

Sarah Blundell, 1850-1934.

the mists of dead creeds and dogmas, always      Whilst in London, she said to the late
following the light, and helping doubtful        Mrs. Claudia Coles, "For me, the search is
and troubled souls to set their feet on the      over."
path of spiritual endeavour.                        From her acceptance of the Bahh'i reveIa-
From the "Christian Commonwealth"             tion till the end of her life she experienced
Mrs. Blundell first heard of 'Abdn'l-Bahh's      complete spiritual joy and contentment.
visit to London in 1911. There she read of       The words of 'Abdu'l-BahB were fully ex-
His life and teachings, and was at once at-      emplified in her life: "Sacrifice all thy taltracted. She sent for literature which she       ents at the feet of that heart-enkindling
read with an open mind and prepared heart,       Beloved and characterize thyself with such
so when in 1922, Mr. and Mrs. Hyde Dunn          deeds and words that thou mayest become
came to Auckland to spread the Bahk'i mes-       the cause of the guidance of others." She
sage, Mrs. Blundell invited them to her          worked unsparingly for the Cause of Bahlhome and there the first BahPi meeting was       'u'llih in New Zealand until her failing
held.                                            physical powers could no longer reflect her
In 1925, Mrs. Blundell was one of the first   loving spirit and her body was laid aside as
party of Pilgrims from Australia and New         a wornout tool. She passed away peacefully
Zealand who were privileged to visit Haifa       in the presence of members of her family,
-The Holy Family-The         Shrines of the      who ,received comfort and strength through
Bib, Bahh'u'llih and 'Abdu'l-Bah6, and t o       the spirit of triumphant joy which filled the
come into personal contact with many con-        room and which took away the sting of
firmed Bahi'i-a     "crowning gift" to one       death. Truly for her death was as "glad
whose spiritual path had been traveled alone.    tidings." I n the hearts of New Zealand
-196                        THE BAHA'I              WORLD

Khalil Qamar.

Bahl'is she will ever be a shining example of   for those who gathered at her home for that
a beautiful and consecrated life.               event. (The day the accompanying photo-
Mrs. Blundell's fathcr, Mr. Henry            graphwas taken.)
Andrews, in the days of his early manhood
was one of a group of young men who met           Slyym ~ A L I LEL-QAMAR      OF   'AVASEQ
each day at midday for prayer and Bible
study in a room at the business house of           Siyyid Lhahalil El-Qamar was born in
Messrs. Hitchcock & Williams, St. Paul's        1867 A.D. at 'Avl&iq, a village situated
Church Yard, London. Mr. Williams, one          sixty-five miles from B a d d i d . After a
of the heads of the firm, on hearing of this    long period of insistent and continuous remeeting was greatly impressed, and the idea     sistance he was attracted to the Cause and
was born of forming the organization which      wholeheartedly embraced the Faith and has
is known all over the world as the Young        been f o r twenty-five years a famous and ac-
Men's Christian Association.                    tive Bahi'i.
-.                               During the whole period of his new Bahl'i
Mrs. Blundell's gift as a pianist was above   life he was well known by his activities in
the average. Her music master in Germany        the Cause not only at his birth-place bur
wished her to enter the profession, but this    also at B a d d i d and in most parts of 'Irlq.
her parents did not agree to. All her life         Although he was a villager by birth, illitshe used her talent, giving pleasure to many.   erate and very far from schoIastic life, an
Her soul qualities spoke through her fingers,   agriculturist and landlord by calling, yet
uplifting her hearers with the spirit in the    through the sublime spiritual influence of
music. O n her eightieth birthday she played    the Cause he could eloquently present proofs
IN MEMORIAM

Hiji Mhammad Yazdi.
of the Cause confirmed by Verses from the         elected a member of it, which post he held
Qnr'6n and H a d i h to all classes of people,    until the end of his life.
in such convincing manner that they became           He was privileged twice during his life to
surprised by his inspired and effective speech.   be honored by visiting our belove& Guard-
He was one of the few old believers who        ian and was a recipient of his loving kindness
attended the court as a witness while the         and appreciations, which increased considercase of the houses of Bah6'u'llih was under       ably his activities and self-sacrifice.
trial. Amidst the infuriated populace he             His tragic death occurred on January 9,
pushed his way to the court and very cour-        1936, in consequence of a falling down of a
ageously and boldly declared his faith and        section of the Haziratu'l-Quds of Ba&did
gave the necessary testimony and paid no          where he was sleeping with his eldest son
heed t o the menaces aqd intimidations,           Isma'il and both of them died immediately.
though his life was exposed to inevitable         This sad news was communicated to the
death under such critical circumstances.          Guardian, who immediately sent a telegram
He was the real mover of the Friends of        of deep sy~npathyand hearty condolences to
'AvQ&iq and the one to whom they came             the Friends of 'Avi&iq whicl~was followed
for help, guidance and counsel. He was an         by a letter in appreciation of his brilliant
important factor in erecting the Haziratu'l-      services, the translation of an extract of
Quds of his locality, which was the first of      which, written by his secretary, is as folits kind in 'Irlq.                                lows:-
He was secretary to che Spiritual Assem-          "That zealous servant of God has renbly, and on formation of the National Spir-       dered excellent and sublime services t o the
itual Assembly of 'Iriq in 1931, he was           tl~resholdof his merciful God. That digni-
I00                         T H E BAHh'f            WORLD

Led m a l ~was the sign of firmncss and the     or returning they would be the gnests of the
essence of steadfastness and rectitude, hold-   Alexandria friends.
ing fast t o the teachings of God and cling-        Meanwhile, in addition to the Alexandria
ing unto His brilliant and sacred command-      interests, Muhammad Yazdi opened a store
ments. He never let any opportunity pass        in 'Akki with his close friend the late Siyyid
without manifesting his self-sacrifice and      'Ali Yazdi and the two carried on business
sincerity and let no chance slip away with-     there. In 1882, as a consequence of the
out showing his gallantry and solemnity. So     rebellion of 'Arribi Pi&&, the occupation
it is no wonder if this sudden and unex-        of Alexandria by Great Britain, the great
pected incident caused a deep grief and         fire and the general confusion, he left for
intense sorrow to the Guardian who enter-       the Holy Land, returning some seven
tained so great an attachment to him, was       months later.
utterly satisfied with him, and had complete        When in 1872, the life of every Bahi'i
confidence in him."                             was darkened by the ascension of Bahi-
'u'llhh, he, suffering bitterly from separation
from his Beloved, in accord with the Will
and Testament of BahB'u'llih turned toward
The late y a j i Muhammad Yazdi, the son    the Center of the Covenant, and, fully
of 'Abdu'l-Rahim-i-Yazdi, was born about       obedient to 'Abdu'l-Bahh, remained firm in
1810 in Yazd, and at the same time as his      the Cause. At that period he was instruelder brother, the late &ay&-'Ali,         he   mental in establishing a Spiritual Assembly
achieved in early youth the privilege of be-    which achieved renown. He later made of
coming a Baha'i. He then became the re-         his residence in Ramlih (Alexandria) a gathcipient of blessed Tablets from Bahi'u'llih     ering place for the believers, it being his
and was singled out for especial grace. To      custom to hold regular Sunday meetings
such a degree was he set aflame that he spent   lasting from afternoon till nearly midnight,
most of his time either in teaching the Cause   at which occasions the believers would come
to his friends and kindred, in holding Bahi'i   together, partake of refreshments and chant
feasts and gatherings in his home or in         the holy prayers and Tablets. Whenever the
chanting the Tablets and prayers. At last,      Master and members of the Household
however, he could no longer eudure his long-    would visit that city, he exerted every effort
ing for the presence of Bahi'n'llhh; he set     in carrying out the Master's behests. Previout with the late H i j i Amin on his first     ous to this he married Jamilih Khhnurn,
journey to the Holy Land, and there, in         daughter of the late 'Ali Man&6diy-i-
'Akki, he attained to meeting with the          Yazdi, and believers from various parts of
Blessed Beauty.                                 Egypa, from Port Said and Alexandria came
Afterward, with the permission of Bahi'u-    to Ramlih for the wedding.
'llih, Muhammad Yazdi went to Alexandria           During the World War, from 1914 to
in Egypt and settled there. I n Alexandria      1717, Muhammad Yazdi carried on business
around the year 1870, he and the late Hiji      in Beirut and Damascus, and also in Haifa
Siyyid Javid-i-Yazdi undertook the postal       with my brother, Aqb Mirzi Husayn.
despatch of tablets from Bahi'u'llih t o the    When the ascension of the beloved Master
Bah6'is of frhn and of letters from the         had plunged the believers into sorrow, he
latter to the Holy Land. Within a few           turned, obedient to the Master's Testament,
years some of the Baha'is who had come          to the Guardian of the Cause, remaining
together in Alexandria established a trading    staunch and steadfast. Around 1925, he
company, and conducting their affairs with      went back to Port Said, engaging in business
great and spiritual harmony, they prospered.    in the store of his brother, Ahmad Yazdi,
A t that period all the 'Akkl pilgrims trav-    and almost yearly he would journey t o visit
eled by way of Alexandria; from the frinian     the Guardian and pray at the Holy Shrines.
Gulf, from India, from the Caucasus and         I n his eighty-fourth year, M4ammad Yazdi
Turkey, frinian and other believers would       was struck by a motor cycle and passed
come t o the Holy Land, and whether going       away September 1, 1933. He is survived
I N   MEMORIAM                                         SO1

by his widow, four sons and one daqhter           Oil Company in fran; Rawhin, attending
as follows: say@-'Ali, now a resident of          the School of Medicine at Lyons, France;
Berkeley, California; 'Abdu'l-Rahim, Port         Fitirnih-Sultin, now living with her mother
Said; 'Aziz, employed by the Anglo-idnian         in Port Said.

E X T R A C T S FROM BAHA'f NEWS
I N MEMORIAM                           Christ Jensen, Racine, Wisconsin.
Owen Mead Snyder, Seattle, Washington.
Dmth proffereth m t o every confident            Mrs. Bertha Bruss, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
believer the cup that is life indeed. I t            Mrs. Sophie Wagner, Milwaukee, Wisconbestoweth joy, and is the bearer of gladness.     sin.
I t conferreth the gift of everlasting life.         Mrs. Mada Longmeyer, Chicago, 111.
As to those thrzt huzie tasted the fruit of      Mr. W. M. Cline, Sr., Verdugo City,
man's earthly existence, which is the recog-      Calif.
nition of the one true God, exalted be His           Mr. A. I. Truesdell, Santa Monica, Calif.
glory, their life heyeafter is such as We are        Dr. Howard Carpenter, Berkeley, Calif.
unable to describe. The knowledge thereof            Mr. John Stoeffel, Baltimore.
is with God, alone, the Lord of all wo~1ds.-         Mrs. Iva Johnson, Urbana, Ohio.
Bah6'u'lIih.                                         Mrs. Annie E. McKinney, Providence,
Mrs. Lily Wiggins, Phoenix.                   R. I., and Eliot, Maine.
Frederick Diehl, Pasadena.                       Mr. Weaver vor~Kirtley, Glendale, Calif.
Mrs. Pauline Ayres, Trenton, N. J.               Mrs. Clara Hillhouse, New Haven, Conn.
Mrs. George Busey, Urbana.                       Mrs. Frances A. Moore, Lima, Ohio.
Mrs. Angela Lynch, San Francisco.                Mrs. Rose Hilty, Topeka, Kansas.
J. T. Reddin, Marstock, N. S.                    Dr. Edward C. Getsinger, Los Angeles,
Mrs. W. H . Repogle, Bakersfield, Calif.      Calif.
Lorene Neville, Glendale, Calif.                 Mrs. Mathea Larsen, Racine, Wis.
Henry Blankenbecker, Mrlwauliee, Wis.            Miss Mary Hudd, Washington, D. C.
Mrs. C. B. Anderson, New York City.              Mrs. Lillian A. Kendall, Phoenix, Ariz.
Mrs. C. L. Lincoln, Brooklyn.                    Mrs. Nellie A. Rahn, Detroit, Mich.
Mrs. Frank Moxey, Newark.                        Mr. George Russell Monroe, Vancouver.
Mrs. Mary Isabel Marshall, Washington,           Mrs. C. E. Cuddeback, San Francisco.
D. C.                                                Mrs. Helen M. Babo, Chicago.
Charles F. Coles, Washington, D. C.              Miss Rhoda Nichols, Troy, N. Y.
Otto Weiss, Teaneck, N. J.                       Mr. Leslie Calhoon, Racine, Wisc.
Hooper Harris, New York City.                    Dr. Clement Woolson, St. Paul, Minn.
Mrs. Julia McCormick, Everitt, Wash.             Mrs. Dora Smith, Seattle.
Mrs. Sarah J. Swift-Hardy, Richmond              Charles Belyea, Milwaukee.
Province, Quebec, Canada.                            Mrs. Caroline Brown, Chicago.
Otto Weiss, Closter, N. J.                       H. De Vogh Wright, Orange Springs,
Mrs. Harriet Schwartz Lebman, Colum-          N. Y.
bus, Ohio.                                          Mrs. Hulda Mecher, Muskegon.
Dr. Susan I. Moody, Tihrhn, i r k .             Marshall Humphrey, Phoenix.
Samuel Angus Roberts, Kelvin, Arizona.          George Monroe, Vancouver.
Fay Swain, Portland, Oregon.                    Miss Ella J. Abeel, Pasadena.
Mme. Frieda Stjerna, Portland, Oregon.          Mrs. Eleanor Terry, Atlantic City.
Mrs. Mabel F. Geary, Seattle, Washington.       Mrs. Fred Hale, New York.
Mrs. Evora Ella Jones, Worcester, Massa-        Mr. E. B. Rabb, San Francisco.
chusetts.                                           Col. Henry S. Culver, Eliot.
Mrs. Emma Hanson, Racine, Wisconsin.            Mrs. Ellen M. Glines, Washington, D. C.
102                       T H E BAHA'i          WORLD
Mrs.   Gertrude   Mattcrn,   Washington,     Mme. Marie Beck, February 10, 1915,
D. C .                                       Lausanne, Switzerland.
George E. Witte, Willcox, Arizona.            Miss Elsie Lea, Whit-Monday, June 1 0 ,
Mrs. Thursa Morwood-Clark, Vancouver.      193 5, London, England.
William B. Remey, Bremerton, Wash-            Mrs. Edith Burr, June, 1935, Florence,
ington.                                      Italy.
Mrs. Maverette Fisher, Three Rivers,          Mr. Kustner, June 1935, Stuttgart, Ger-
Massachusetts.                               many.
George Steiner, in April 1934, Gyar,          Jinib-i-F6dil-i-&irhzi.
Hungary.                                        MirzI T6&i W i n Bahin-Ayin.
-- In Memoriam (Used by permission of the curator)