The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1882-06-29

sary of the Portland Young Mems Christia
Association, the exercises celebrating whicl
were held last evening in City Hall. Their
was very large attendance of the friends an
sustainers of this most excellent of societie
and it certainly was gratifying to the board o
management and its "head-centre," MI
Secretary Winter to see such response to tn
invitations freely distributed. Considerably
effort had been put forth by the officers OF tn
association to make the Doth anniversary lon
to be remembered, and it is pleasant to note
successful issue of their plans. Every avail
able spot in the hall where seat was obtain
able, contained an interested and gratifiet
auditor, and it is safe to say that 2200 peopl
assisted in extending to the Young Men
Christian Association of this city their sincere
congratulation upon the attainment Of such {
mature age as twenty-nine years, AMI beini
found in such an excellent state of health
morally and religiously speaking.
DIR. Carlton Kimball called the gathering tx
order in few appropriate remarks. DIR. Lind
say invoked the divine blessing, after which
an anthem was sung by choir. Scripture
was read by the Rev. DR.. Anderson and
PRAYER was offered by the Rev. G. A. Dickin'
son, followed by the choir in the hymn
"Christian Soldier DIR. Kimball then in
troduced Mr.. H. P. Winter, the General
Secretary of the Association, who gave an
elaborate review of the years work.
SECRETARY WINTERS ADDRESS.
Mr.. Fl. P. Winter, general Secretary of the
Association then addressed the audience sub
stantially as follows:
Mr.. President, fellow-members and friends
1t is Justly due TO our contributors as well as
to the community at large, that at least once
during the year they have an account OF what
we are doing, This is hardly necessary for
those who have seen the work in progress from
week to week, but there are number OF our
friends who place such unlimited confidence in
the ability of our managers, that they not only
entrust them with their funds, asking no ques-
tions but rarely visit our rooms to see how
they are being invested, This we shall endea-
vor to show in a very general way
The total income for the year ending April
1, 1882, was $17S1.22; expenses, $176l.00; bal
lance to next year, $20.14. The sustaining
has more than doubled, and there
has been great increase in the regular mem
bership. We have, now, 400 members-an in
crease ofl213 during the past year. Men who
have never given before are now cheerfully
aDQ llD6Fdlly I6SpOuulAS W Ouk lIudHClal APP
peals. Strange to say, our largest (annuaD con-
tributor resides about fifty miles from Fort
land.
Perhaps it is not generally known that any
person of good neral character, whether a
church member or not may become member
of the Association. This includes the ladies,
many of whom we hope will join tonight. The
ushers have distributed cards upon which those
desiring to Join, or to make annual or special
donations, may write their names. Our mem
bership fees are as follows:
Regular. .............,......... 100
Sustaining .....,..,''......'.' .'''s'''. o.OO
Life. ...............-.-.'.... 1o'oo
Like all religious organizations we find that
money is needed to carry out Christian work
successfully. We never needed money more
than we do to-day. We have been unable to
certain valuable lines OF work on
account of a lack of funds; our rooms are total
ly inadequate for tie proper work OF an Assocl-
alton, and we labor under the disadvantage OF
being two flights from the street. We need
a cheerful and homelike parlor for social inter
course a gymnasium furnished with all the
appliances necessary for complete physical
development; rooms for evening classes;
larger hall; better library and readlng-room
money for our boys work. and for other lmpor-
tant departments. The young men OF to-day
are not attracted by the prayer-meetlng; othef
agencies must first be used TO win their friend
shin before you can touch their hearts. The
places of resort open to young men where naplU
Of vice are formed are filled with attractions.
There, music and paintings may be found. Ii,
then, we would allure the young from such
places. we must invite them to those where
,hey may have music and paintings, books and
such as will exert over them the
BEST moral influence. Money is used without
limit to ruin young men; how insignificant IS
the sum expended in any community to bene-
it and save them. Portland ought to do her
row, hoct for bor vounO man We need a build
ing or rooms that would be in keeping with tne
enterprise and growth of the city.
Our secular and religious meetings during the
year ending April 1, 1882, numbered 342-an
average of six meetings of some kind every
week Through these meetings we reached an
of -, 757 persons; how many were
influenced, we shall never know. We do know
Of several conversions of young men and young
women who were led to turn from darkness to
light, from the power of Satan unto Cod one
Of these CONVERTS young man named Nelson
died happy and triumphant DEAN at one
Of the hospitals in this city. We spent many
pleasant and profitable moments at his bedside:
Another young man, formerly OF dissipated
habits, is now member of a Christian church,
and is filling responsible and lucrative posi-
ton in an important western city. FRIENDS! Is
it not worth the paltry $3.50 we spent last year
If we were instrumental in saving only one OF
these young men from temporal and eternal
ruin? Shall we shirk from labor? Shall we
hesitate from labor? Shall we hesitate at cost,
when the work before us is the salvation OF I'M
mortal souls? While some portion OF our rell-
gious work has been outside our rooms, yet we
have felt that the rooms (as the centre) nave
the first claim, and that ours was not general
missionary and relief work, but one for young
men by young men, and all efforts which DO
not tend directly to this end are not those Tor
which we are organized. The Association is
not company of evangelists, but a society
whose object is the "mental, moral ana spirltu-
al improvement of young men"
we try to reach young men when they first
come to the city, to furnish them with good
homes if not already provided Tor. More IMAM
one hundred have been directed to gooo BOARD
ing houses. We endeavor to introduce tnem
to our membership and to throw about them
such good influences as we can command Our
rooms. poor as they are, have offered to such,
many of the attractions of home, where we
try ALWAYS to have some one to welcome them.
We have rendered to sick young men who
required them such services as were IN our
power. Sixty-five visits were to boarding
houses and hospitals for this purpose. We
have offered to the unemployed the advan-
tage of our free employment bureau, and
placed number in good situations. We have
tried at all times to act the part OF the Good
Samaritan with young men who needed relle1,
furnishing them with such assistance as we
could. Our reading tables have been suppiled
special view to meeting the tastes OF the vafl-
Gus classes of literary. scientific and CONNER
cial Young men. We have tried by our lee
lures and receptions to furnish a wholesome
class of entertainments which would instruct
and profit whilst they entertained. During
the year there were given nine lectures, eight
concerts and six social gatherings and recep-
lions, to all of which the members were ad-
mitted free. In our religious meetings we
have endeavored to point out where the great
want of every human soul (peace with COD
could be satisfied.
We have been glad to furnish young mon
who were leaving the city for pleasure or busl-
ness. letters of introduction to associations
elsewhere at home or abroad. One hundred
and two letters were thus given. More young
men have sought personal advice than In for
rner years, and in several cases the occasions
have proved the turning point in lies history
At the solicitation of many anxious parents
in other cities, young men have been looked
up and invited to gospel meetings and to the
privilege of the rooms We have Judlclousiy
distributed TO- 400 religious and secular papers,
magazines, etc., at the hospitals, Jails, State
prison and amongst the shipping. We have
also given away 288 bibles and testaments.
For them we are indebted to the Bible Society
of Maine which has made us many liberal 90
nations. The general secretary has made thlr,
weight addresses at different churches and
conventions; 1895 calls in the interests OF the
Association; has edited the Helping Hand,
the organ of the Association, and made IL