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BV MRS. R. J. BOYLAN.
"Choose," said Conscience, "your
People or your art."
And W. F. Fransee. flrst violinist
and director of operas, chose "My
people."
He left the crowded theaters of
the world's big cities, where success
had been his and went to spend his
life In dingy, dirty districts helping
the people of his own and kindred
races to live better. He became an
ordained minister In order that he
might give them soul strength as
well as bodily health.
This ery day this man, who, like
. Kubelik and Kocian, studied under
il r Sevcik, is at his work in the foreign
t sections trying to give his people
chance in this new world cllliza-
linn that is such a problem to them.
He is well fitted for his task
Seven languages can his tongue talk
and his ear understand. He loves
his work and hi people and he has
& little brown-haired, brown-eyed
enthusiast for a wife who is truly
a helpmeet. He was more than
most ministers the fire of the
music Jan.
He makes even his music help
him. Men and women who could
not be won in an other way or who
are too home tide to listen to ser
mons can not keep from hearing
the songs of his violin. Often those
songs arc home songs and they
bring !he tears that are God's med
icine for the soul breaking "Helm
wen." Rev. Fransee trained for hi? pro
fession in the Conservatory of Music
in Prague, Bohemia. After his
graduation he made a comer', tour
through Europe, including England
and Scotland. He played !n Glas
gow and the manager of the
Metropolitan Opera House, New
York, heard him. The manager of
fered the young musician a posi
tion in his orchestra. It was ac
jj cepted and when the tour was over
W the violinist went to New York,
whre he remained for tlve years.
He was successful but h did not
use his spare '.line as many mu
sicians do. Instead he visited the
parts of the city whore his poor
countrymen lived. Sometimes he
took his violin with him and gave
them of his music. Often he was
depressed because he felt that they
were rapidly losing the best that
tlioy had brought with them from
their European homes and only
gaining in Its stead the worst that is
In America.
From New Tork hp went to the
Grau Opera Company of Boston a4
director of grand opera and after
wards to the Castle Square Opera
Company in Chicago. Meantime he
directed many orchestras, glee clubs
and chorals and once went to Texas
to lead a saengerfest.
In Chicago ho found the needs of
his people great, but he found also
that there were many organizations
who gave their time to them as
well as many volunteers who
worked in the foreign sections.
The conditions in cities not as
large as Chicago seemed harder
and more hopeless because there
were fewer helpers for the forelgn-.V-
rs. He saw them exchanging their
faith in God for a fatal unbelief.
e aw their children growing "P
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g
ZAMN OHOTC N
without school knowledge. He saw
their homes becoming dirtier and
less sanitary the longer they lived
in America- He realized that the
work was big and that he could
only give one life to the cause.
He had many conscience battles.
His music quarreled with his dutv,
but dutv won.
ORDAINED FOR SERVICE
SIX YEARS AGO.
He gave up a future that was
hung with success banners and en
tered the ministry, being ordained
by Bishop Spelmayer six years ago.
For six years h has served as a
missionary for the First Methodist
Church of East St. Louis, 111. He
has a mission on North Ninth street
where services are hold every Sun
day and prayer meeting every Fri
day night.
Ail his days and many of his
nights he spends going from home
to home helping the men, women
and children to whom few persons
think of giving aid.
His congregation hag no limits,
neither has his work. He looks for
employment for men and women,
sees that they have medical care,
encourages them to send their chil
dren to school and in every way he
can serve them as a brother.
His reward is seldom more than
the satisfaction of his own con
science. Often when his people are
in trouble they look for him. After
the trouble has been ptralghtened
out they forget about him or feel
ashamed to speak to him.
There is a kindergarten in con
nection with hla mission, where
children who are younger lhan
school age may stay through the
day while their parents arc? at work.
A deaconess is In charge of them.
Besides this there are junior league
societies and girls' and boys' club.
For a number of years he worked
away at his task and few persons
besides those connected with his
church knew that any effort was be
ing made for the foreigners.
Gradually organizations outside
of his church learned what he was
doing and asked hlni to tell them
about his people, He has often
spoken before women'H clubs and
given them valuable advice about
the kind of work that is helpful.
In several months he will be
given a new building In which he
will be able to do many of tha
things on a large scale which at
present must be dope In a small
way.
In speaking before the Women's
Civic Federation of his city about
the usefulness of a day nursery he
said. "Thero Is a need for a day
nursery here because laboring men's
wages are so small, and the saloons
are so many that the women have
to work away from home."
A number of girls who belong to
the Young Women's Christian As
sociation wished to do a Christmas
charity last year and asked Rev.
Fransee to select a poor family.
The hard part of that task was not
In finding the family, but In se
lecting the one from the many that
really needed the gifts most He
did this part, however, and the
Sunday before Christmas he and, a
committee of the girls walked far
out railroad tracks and down a
muddy road to the home. Home is
a kind word to apply to the habita
tion built by the father of scraps
of lumber that he was able to lind.
In it were the father, mother and
three children The girls had
brought Clothing for these and gifts.
The parents as well as the children
could hardly believe that such good
fortune was theirs They looked
at the toys as one might look at a
star far off In the heavens and won
der at its beauty, never dreaming
of taking it in one s hands.
When his people are sick he often
has to help give them medicine.
He has found that they are ashamed
to tell their physicians that they
cannot read directions on the bot
tle and thus can not give medicine
as ii should be done.
"Many times." he says, "my peo
ple have had as many as three
physicians in one day. They send
for one, he comes. He orders medi
cine. They get it, but can not give
it. The patient grows woTse and
they send for another physician and
so on.
"The only way they can be helped
Is for some one to stay right there
and give the medicine. I have done
that. I have sat up night after
night in order that no mistakes
might be made.
"Once I went Into a home as the
physician was going out. The wife
was very sick. The man hud given
his last $2 to the physician and had
no money to get the prescription
filled.
"1 was able to help there.
"Another day I went to see a
family living In a little addition that
Is built of pieces of freight cars. A
little baby had been born, the ninth
In that family and the mother had
not recovered but hai become seri
ously sick and was then burning
with fever. Her face was covered
with flies and she had tossed about
so in her suffering that she wu
lying on the child.
FOREIGN EHS AFRAID
OF THE HOSPITALS.
"Her husband was home and the
other children, but they could do
nothing for her. I said, "Your wife
should be In the hor.pltal."
"He objected. Many of my people
fear to go to hospitals or to let
those they love be taken there.
They do not know the ways of hos
pitals and they think that one who
goes away In an ambulance is al
ready In a hearse.
"I explained to tht man and at
last he consented, but he would not
go with his wife- He wished me to
do that I wrapped mother and
child in the blankets I could find
and rode with them In the am
bulance. My relief came too late,
T OP, left W. F. Fransee
and Mrs. Fransee. At
right Jan Kubelik. Below
Kubelik, his wife and five
little girls at play.
The mother could not recover.
When she died I could not bear to
think of having the funeral from
the awful shack In which the home
was, so I had her take i to the mis
sion. My funds were low and thero
was no money for a funeral, but
friends of the church who heard
of the death gave me enough money
to give that good woman, that
mother of children, decent burial.
"I sent for the oldest girl and told
her to dress the children in the best
clothes they had, in o-der that they
pay their mother their last respects
by going to the funeral. Sh9 went
home and came back with all of the
children except a little boy of 3.
When I asked why she had not
brought him, she said, There was
nothing for him to Wiar.'
1 I hurried to the home and found
the little fellow standing in the
middle of that cold house; there
wjuj a cold, drizzling rain falling,
the floors covered with mud and ho
wearing only a llttlo apron. I
wrapped him up in some rags and
carried him to my house, where wo
found clothes for him to wear to
the funeral
"When the burial was over the
father came to me and said, "You
are such a good man that I am
going to give you some of my chil
dren. You may have that little
baby and some of the others, but I
can not give up my oldest boy, nor
that Utile fellow of 3. He looks
so much like my dead wife.'
"I didn't know just what I would
do with the children but I did know
that greater danger threatened the
oldest girl than any of the others
and I asked for her at once. Ho
was glad to give her to me. I kept
them In my house for a while and
then found good homes for them.
"I was sorry afterwards that he
did not give me the other two. He
let the oldest boy. born mind you
in America, grow up without school
ing, and he let a woman take that
little fellow and pretsnd he was
hers in order that she might beg "
This instance Is given In order
that you may see just how far this
work la from grand opera
He does his duty as a citizen of
the United States and helps his fel
low men and women when they
wish to become citizens. Notice the
fellow women. That part of his
work did not begin until this year
when for the first time Illinois wom
en were permitted to vote in civic
elections. At the request of the
women's clubs he spoke before
meetings of foreign women explain
ing to them their rights and their
duties. Which may be in some the
grand operas of tomorrow, but
which have no place m those of to
day and yesterday.
He takes interest In any project
that is for the advancement of his
people and the city in which they
live. He is a member of the Pas
tors' Alliance and his fellow minis
ters love him ah men love younger
brothers who have had more priv
ileges than they.
Some time ago a concert was
given by the First Methodist Church
and Rev. Mr. Fransee agreed to
give of his violin music for the
evening's entertainment. There were
those among the audience who had
never heard such music as he
brought forth from his instrument
V
and for days after there was talk
of the "missionary who plays the r
violin." L
Since then ho has taken part In jS
a number of church entertainments i'
and recently he was a soloist In the
annual entertainment of the Schu
bert club, the leading women's mu
sical club In his city. The concert
was directed by Oliver Howard
Clark, who also has known the
pleasure of study In old world music
centers. This is Rev. Mr. Fransee's
way of "paying back" the interest
taken in his people by men and
women of the city wnose homes
are happier and more comfortable.
His music is his recreation after
hard days and nights at his work. i
His conscience ullovs him that
much pleasure after his great sacrifice.
OLD MASTERPIECE IS FOUND IN PHILADELPHIA
Old paintings are among the
most elusive of art treasures, even
though as has been contended of
late their primitive colors neither
fade nor change. An old master
may be one thing today and some
thing quite different under later
expert treatment.
This happened recently to Carlo
Dolcis' sixteenth century picture in
the Memorial Hall collection, where
It was cataloguer as "Youth and
Love." When it was turned over
for restoration to Artist Pasquale
Farina, he found that It was In
reality one of the Florentine artist's
missing masterpieces, ' Salome With
John the Baptist's Head." Some
graceless fellow had painted a heap
of fresh fruit over the dissevered
head.
Since coming to Philadelphia
from Buenos Aires ten years ago,
to undertake the restoration and
reconstruction of the great Mun
kacsy pictures In the Wanamaker
prlvato collection. Mr. Farina has
made old masters an especial study.
Under his restoring hands, the
Wanamaker paintings; the great
chronological collection of John G.
Johnson and the old masters In
Memorial Hall and at the Fine Arts
Academy have resumed pristine
brilliancy and perfection. He has
utterly demolished the "Golden
Bloom" and "Faded Color" theories,
heretofore so useful to dealers in
tent on victimizing long-pursed col
lectors. Incidentally, he set about collect
ing old masters himself. The expert
has in this a vast advantage over
the mere man of money, and soon
Mr. Farina began to engage the
Italian authorities' attention. Most
of the genuine old pictures nowa
days arc from old castles in Italy;
and the government forbids their
removal from the country. How
this edict Is evaded by a thousand
cunning devices (s another story;
but Mr. Farina, two or three years
ago, found that he possessed a pri
vate gallery in Rome of more than
100 old masters, none of which he
was permitted to take to America,
One. however, he did bring over,
with the aid of friends In Naples
a fine "Madonna. by Joseph Caruc
cl, a famous Florentine painter,
who flourished during the flrst half
of the sixteenth century. Caruccl
was a careless genius, fond of paint
ing goddesses and bacchantes, and
In no wise inclined to save his soul,
as other artists did, by painting
paints, angels and holy virgins for
predellas and alter pieces of the
churches.
But he painted one "Madonna" on
a wooden panel ruthlessly sawed
from an earlier picture, and this, by
a process of bargaining, some years
ago came Into Mr. Farina's posses
sion. Caruco they called him "II Pon
tormo" in his time, because of the
suburb where he lived lavished all
his skill on this Madonna. The
painting was critically regarded as
one of the finest examples of Flor
entine art.
But it was obscured by the
"bloom" and dust of ages, the col
ors dull, the draperies almost In
visible. Recently Mr. Farina set
about a long-delayed task of dis
closure and restoration, with this
Pontormo "Madonna" ks .JUbJeJt.
The countenance sparkled anew; fhe
flowing draperies A'ere l'ght. feath
ery and free flowing Ju.s ;i3 when
the colors were firt 'aid on in dis
temper, more thai four centuries
ago.
Traces of a dim figure in thn in
ner angle of the left elbow caught
the artist's eye. an 1 beneath Tl Pon
tormo's heavy imposts he found an
old man's head painted with mlnla-ture-Hke
cere the heud of St Pe
tor. That was the last of Caruccl's
work The painting beneath It was
even rarer than a century older.
With true antiquarian zeal the
artist at onco proceeded to destroy
the Pontormo picture, one of the
loveliest Madonnas of the Floren
tine school, in order to reveal an
unknown artist's conception of
"Christ In Gethsernane."
The photographic reproduction of
this picture, painted at least six
centuries ago, In an artistic land
mark, denoting the beginning of
that amazing movement in Italian
art which culminated In immortal
masterpieces of Venetian, Umbrian
and Neapolitan schools in the six
teenth century,
This now long-moldered painter
had little notion of drawing or per
spective. He outlined his figures
with a graving tool, the marks of
which are plainly visible. His fig
ures are manifestly portraits from
life, the faces finished with miniature-like
delicacy. He gilded as well
as painted, and on the hair and
drapery of his Savior and saints
may still be seen the gleam of gold
a tradition of the Byzantine man
ner. Pontormo himself evidently
thought nothing of this old picture.
It was evidently much larger orig
inally; but the great Florentine cut
out of it the panel he desired, and
covered this Co such excellent pur
pose that hi "Madonna" remained
untouched for nearly 400 years.
The earlier painting in distemper,
now hard as enamel Is an extreme
ly rare example of art in the earlier
period of the renaissance.
' There are many coses," said Mr.
Farina. 'In which painters of all
periods, made use of canvases or
panels on which amateurs or In
ferior masters had already painted
a picture. .
"No matter how Inferior the
painter, every one of his canvases
or board3 was properly prepared.
These men of no repute were equal
to their masters in sound knowledge
of the technical part of the paint
er's art i I
Americans Wearing French Shoes.
The tables have been turned this J
spring, for instead of American slip
pers being sent for by fair Parislen
nes. who admit the superiority of
American footwear, a French slip
per as frivolous and extreme as
only a French fodtcovertng an be
has arrived to play its part in
this American summer.
The new slipper has an enorm
ously high Louis heel and the thin
nest of thin turned soles. It Is ideal
for dancing, not only because of the
high heel and paper thin sole, but
also because the broad strap at the i
front holds it as firmly on the foot "VH
as a well fitting buttoned boot The
strap and its cut steel buckle are of
exaggerated size and the huge
buckle 16 absurdly in contrast with
the speck of a cut steel ornament
on the slipper toe: but all the same
this Is a very smart and a very
popular slipper style.
H
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