The Indianapolis journal., 1885-02-01
SECRET SOCIETY NOTES.
A Proposed Statue to Mr. COlfax's Memory
Work in the Scottish Rite.


There will be work, in some one of the degrees,
in all the lodges during the week.
Morning Star Lodge, No. 9, D. of B., of Spring
field Mass, will hold Colfax memorial service
Feb. 8.
Tomorrow night Metropolitan Encampment
meets in Grand Lodge Hail. The first rehearsal
of the dramatic work will be held.
Corinthian Lodge had visitors from Massachu-
setts and Ohio on Friday night. The work of
thenitiating and the third degree was rendered in
good form.
A delegation of Daughters of Rebekah from
Greencastle will visit Olive Branch Lodge Of this
city at the next meeting Feb. ia. The degree
will be conferred in beautifed form, with new
features introduced, greatly improving the
work.
delegation of members of Olive Branch
Lodge will visit Columbus, o., on Thursday, TO
attend a social and exefnplification of work by
Naomi Lodge No. 62, ID. of R. This is a return
visit, and doubtless the visitors will be hospita-
bly, entertained.
The Colfax memorial services at Terre Haute,
on last Sunday, were held IN the Opera-hou
anu were largely attended. James Hook, P. g.
R., presided; Rev. G. c. Pierre. chaplain; music
by the Oratorio Society, and a eulogy by Colonel
w. r. Mclean. Short speeches were made by
Hon. r.. w. Thompson, Hon. d. w Voorhees,,
each of whom spoke in the highest terms of Mr..
Colfax.
Odd-fellowship from Eve members and one
lodge has grown in sixty years to the following
dimensions: One sovereign grand lodge, two
independent grand lodges, German Empire and
Australia), forty three grand encampments,
1,9l8 subordinate encampnlents. sixty four grand
lodges, 8,O02 subordinate lodges 81, AL encamp-
ment members and 522, 318 subordinate lodge
| members Last year So 0l5 1872 50 were expended
fDrr af Ernv EUynrn
expended for burying the dead and relief to its
members
The grand instructor has gone to Rainsville on
invitation of Dufour Lodge. and held school of
| instruction last night. Some time since. Oliver
Dufour, of Washington, for whom the lodge was
| named, presented the lodge with ife-sized pho
| tograph Of himself neatly framed. and the lodge
| reciprocated by presenting him with a gold
headed cane, Grand Instructor McQuiddy re-
| ceiving it in the name of Mr. Dufour, which he
| will forward to Past Grand Master Dufour. A
| four days school of instruction will be held at
| Pierceton, Koseiusko county, commencing Feb.
| q.
| The intimate connection of Schuyler Colfax
| with the adoption of the Degree of Rebekah and
| the interest he manifested in its behalf for
| thirty-four years. has suggested the idea of
| the members of that degree erecting 1nonu-
ment to his memory to be placed in University
| square, in this city, the Capital of his State
| There are over one thousand lodges of this
| degree and $40 or an average of
$40 from each would accomplish the
work There are $4,000 members in these
lodges Twenty cents from each would erect q
monument that would honor the dead and be a
credit to the living 1t is impossible to tell what
will come of this proposition, but if the women
of the order undertake, with anything like unan-
| unity, to raise the money for this object it will
| be done. 1t is to be hoped that this matter may
| be thought of and the women of the degree
| of Rebekah thus honor the memory of one who
| honored them, and labored successfully to break
up the prejudices that existed in the early days
| of the order against woman being admitted to
any part of the ceremonies. He champoned
their cause, and singly and alone convinced
| forty-seven of the eighty five representatives in
| the Grand Lodge of the United States in 1850
that it was right and proper to admit women to
the order, and they voted for the adoption of his
minority report signed only by himself. The
| other two of the committee feared that women
could not keep a secret. Mr.. Colfax. in meet
| ing of the Daughters of Rebekah held in this
| city in November last, declared from the ros-
trum that it was his pride to say that the Re-
| bekah degree was the best kept secret in the
order Men had been expelled from the order
| for divulging the secret work, but that there
! was no ins tance on record where woman had
ever proved recreant to her obligations