The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1870-04-06
w. BOT. s, +. t. P. o. G. A.
A"e AZ Interss,inE MeetIne thIs AIornInE.

ture room of the Mercantlle Library. Inc fre-
sident Mrs Richard r. White, in the chair.
Miss Elizabeth Morriss, Secretary, and Miss
Ritchie, Treasurer.
The minutes of the previous meeting, which
was the first, were read and approved.
The President offered the annexed report
One day in this pleasant month OF April, year
ago. about thirty ladies assembled in the parors OF
our esteemed friend and colRborer s. Morris Vain,
for the purpose of organizing "Womens' Branch OF
the Pennsylvania Society for the Prevention of
Cruelty to Animals. It was the wish Of the
gentlemen composing that society that the women
OF our city should aid them in their bencvo-
lent work. and in consOnance with that desire
we organized our "Women's Branch" but as far as
we ourselves were concerned we were doubtful OF
our ability to accomplish much in the way OF assist
ance. ! may safely say that there was not one OF
should be able to efTect one half OF what we
have done; but far be 1t from us to boast. We re-
member that "Pau may plant and Apollo water,
supreme praise and glory In TINS as In al
other good works are due TO Him, who mas inclined
to our cause. At the time OF our organization our
strongest wish was to be able to employ an agent,
who should go through the city inspecting horses
and examining into their condition; finding whether
there we're CALLED spots underneath their harness,
and not only this but at the same time checking, as
far was in his power all excessive beating aud
overlooking, as well as the working OF lame ami
mails. We soon found that we should be able 70
then we have increased the number to two Before
many months we hope to have more for we do not
consider that the city could be properly attended to
with less than 1ve or Six.
our agent began, in the first place, to work chiefly
by moral suasion, method which we should always
prefer for it is better to persuade men than 10
coerce them but we find this will not in all
cases. There are some so brutal that they can only
be acted upon through fear and these we are
Obliged whenever we are able TO have punished for
their cruelty. Since the latter part OF December
last our agents have made 20 arrests; OF these, 2
were on the charge of cruelty whipping their horses;
on the charge Of having CALLED animals; for
9ysiT9adHg Tor 0nng IN c9cf d h rSr Pa
horses and on a gene raj charge OF cruelty OF
these Ia have been fined, committed TO prison,
have forfeited their bail, ana Blk nave been dis
missed, so that you see the conviction OF the offend
ers was secured in very large proportion of these
cases.
OurTreasurer reports that we have received since
our organization last year. in subscriptions and do
nations s701462; but as we resolved that all dona-
tions over five dollars should go towards perma-
nent fund.- unless expressly designated by the donors
as intended to meet current expenses, we have to
s5GS2S0, OF which we can only use the nte-
rest This leaves S133252 for current expenses; and
as these during the past year have amounted to
s329 see that we are not only entirely free rom
debt but have small sum to begin our new year
with, which will soon be increased, as our annual
subscription are now due. For the purpose OF fur
ther augmenting our FUNDS, and enabling us 10 meet
additional expenses which are fast coming upon us,
we have resolved to hold fair for the sale OF useful
and fancy articles, for the Joint benefit Of our own
and the Gentemens Society, at Horticultural Hall,
in November next. We trust that all the
members OF, the society, and all the ladies'
The coming summer, in working for this fair but
Will kindly induce their friends to do the same
heriting bequests while we remained an unchar-
tered society, we have solicited and obtained from
the Legislature q charter during the present ses-
sion so that now there is nothing to prevent any Of
those benevolent Individuals who are SO disposed,
from giving us the benefit of clause in their Wills
Our publishing committee report that we have had
printed 5000 copies of the little book entitled Early
Lessons in Kindness, 1000 picture cards, and 1000
OF the little slips containing "The horses petition
and "Take not the life you cannot give" More than
half of these have been distributed among children
| by cur managers and by other members of the
| SOpiptV. We have received q communication,
| through Mr.. Armstrong, President Of the Board OF
| Control Of Public Schools, who seems to take a
most kindly interest in our society, that our petition
| asking for leave to distribute our publication in
these schools has been granted, so that we can
| enter at once upon what we doubt not will prove
one of the most Important of our fields OF labor.
Directly after the organization Of our 'Women'
Branch one OF the first subjects that engaged oui
| attention was the barbarous manner in which the
dogs running loose in the streets were every summer
taken up and killed. do not hesitate 70 say 1t is
disgrace to our city that this was allowed to go on
for so many years. The system heretofore in vogue
| was not only most cruel to the animals upon whom
| 1t was practsed, bpt brutalzing in the extreme tc
those who we're made the instruments OF carrying
| II out, and demoraztng TO those who were the wit
nesses OF It, Public indignation was aroused during
last summer, and numerous complaints from citizens
upon the subject were handed in to u.s. Feeling sure
that wishes would never be properly attended to
until we had the matter to some extent at least In
our own hands, we resolved, with the consent of ouI
honored Mayor, to found 'a temporary home fol
London, where all these animals found
running at large could be taken and
! kent fOr q snort time. IHOSe naYlug
owners could be redeemed; those which were in
any way valuable possessed OF desirable qualities
could be given away to farmers or any other class In
the community desiring thera and the remainder
could be mercifuly killed Perhaps we were unfortu
nate in speaking OF it as temporary home, though
/ do not see why, for the word temporary certainly
implies that they would only have the comforts Of a
home for a limited season. Be that as it may, nc
sooner was our plan made public than we were
made the recipients Of a vast number OF attacks
from several OF the daily journals OF this city,
and from one, at least, Of those in New
York, in which Misrepresentation and ridicule
constituted the chief weapons OF our opponents. II
stated that we proposed to erect hospital fol
| dogs that were about to employ corps OF
nurses to sttend to them; that we had petitioned
Councils for S25, 900, with which to build this hospi
tai or asylum; that our esteemed friend, Mr. Bergh
the excellent President OF the New y ork society
had originated the idea and induced us to adopt it
and q number Of other absurd statements, which il
| is not worth while to repeat
After noticing in nattering terms several news
papers, and defending the society from the assaults
OF those which have proved unfriendly, the repor
repeat most emphaticaly that we do not intent
TO have a hospital for dogs, nor an asylum where
they can be kept till old age, or anything OF thu
Sort but merely pound conducted upon humane
system. our plan is one which, rightly understood
must meet with the approval OF all rational persons
in the community, ana must even commend itself Il
those who are irrational in their dread OF hydro
phobia since, as we propose to take up the dogs al
the year round, the number OF those running in tn
streets viii be very greatly diminished.
The Mayor has consented TO become President o
our institution (Which, in Difference to those who d
not like the word "home," we have concluded T.
name "Shelter for Dogs and Other AnmalsD, AM
this fact is OF itself sufficient guarantee OF tn
practicability and wisdom of what we propose. VIVA
we have asked OF Councils, is not that they give
twenty-five thousand dollars, but that of the SUI
which they have appropriated this year to tn
taking up and killing OF dogs, without an
reference to oar society, namely, twenty-five hundre
dollars, they give us sufficient amount to erect, IL
plain and inexpensive manner, suitable building
for our purpose, aud the use OF piece OF grounc
upon which to locate it, the remainder of the appro
priation to be expended as usual, under the super
vision OF the Mayor, In paying for the taking up o
the dogs. In return for this we agree 10 tender &
| all finds which we rpCeiV