Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1889-12-09
INSULTS TO LADIES,
The MOorhead's Hall Meetings
Rudely Disturbed.
POLICE HELP is ASKED.
A Scared Man Asks a Lady to Pro-
tect Him From Assault.
POLICE HELP is ASKED.
SHE ESCORTS HIM OUT OF DANGER

The good ladies Of the w. C. I. o. No.
have for the last three years been conduct
ing a most successful mission in Moorhead's s
building, with the object of saving young
men from evil influences and the taste for
liquor, and thence guiding them into the
church. They claim to have saved large
number of young people through the in
huence of these meetings, and are very
proud of their work. Sometime ago the
roughs of the locality made up their minds
that, as the people at the head of the move
ment were only women, they would break
up the meetings, and commenced system
of persecution.
In this they were mistaken, however, and
the little band of women held its ground,
although everv effort was made to disturb
the meetings by grOaning, kissing and other
demonstration. The ladies' held the fort
like little men, and the rough element
waxed bolder in its disturbances. About
month ago the ladies' applied for police
protection, and for three weeks an officer
was detailed on duty at the meetings to pre-
serve order Inspector McAleese, believ-
ing that an officer in plain clothes would be
of more use In catching the disturbers than
one in uniform, made no detail for last
night, and the scouts of the toughs seeing
no officer around, commenced operations
again, and were soon reinforced from the
outside.
The meeting was nearly half over when
DISPATCH man visited it last evening, but
there was a considerable crowd of boys and
halF-grown men around the door of the build
ing, who passed jeering remarks on those
who entered. Upon the stairs groups of
bows whose mothers had evidently never
studied the advice of Solomon, and conse-
uuently raised spoiled children, were hang
ing around each landing, and making as
much noise as possible, while occasionally
one would steal up to the doors of the meet
ing room and bang or kick the doors and
then clatter downstairs,
NOT VERY ORDERLY.
On entering the room there were some $50
people present, principally lads ranging
from IA to 25 years, fair sprinkling of men
and but very few girls or women. They
were about as orderly as the ordinary ses-
sion of a Democratic convention, and it
was with great difficulty the ladies con-
Quoting the meeting could make themselves
heard. The principal desire which seemed
to animate the audience was the privilege
of squabbling emong themselves, and some
five or six distinct fights were in progress
simultaneously which it kept the ladies and
ushers constantly busy to quell.
Mrs. Allen, the president of the union,
was in the chair, and upon the floor were
Mrs. Jones, Mrs. Duffy, Mrs. Sneed, of
Allegheny, and several other well-known
and energetic members of the institution.
Mrs. Jones was sorry that no police pro-
lection had been sent, but said they did the
best they could without it, and after all the
conduct last night was not at its worst.
A disposition to encore the hymns and
to drown the prayers by loud talk were
mild forms of amusement compared with
what they have had to suffer. The meet
ings had been overrun by members of the
Owl gang and worse, if possible, and she
really felt that the good work should be as
sisted by the authorities to the extent at
least of keeping order.
''They thought because we were only
women they would scare us, I" and here the
gritty little woman clinched her teeth as if
she wished to have the neck of an Owl be-
tween them, but they lost their reckoning.
We have shown them before that we are not
afraid, and we can do 1t again. We have
been the instruments of converting num-
Der of people through these exercises, and
we cannot be frightened by lot of hoodlums
from our life work"
SHE STOPPED THE NOISE.
And then, with the military ability of a
soldier in petticoats, the lady made flank
movement on a crowd of unruly little
toughs and dispersed it. Mrs. Duffy, who
had ably seconded the motion, returned,
and said she was by this time accustomed to
these interruptions, but was none the more
in love with them, and on the whole could
dispense with variations of this kind to the
regular exercises of the evening
Mrs. Sneed, who contributes the high
musical talent possessed by herself and her
daughter to these meetings, also deplored
the manner IN which the meetings had been
annoyed when there were no police present,
and urged that an appeal should be made to
Chief Brown to prevent the ladies from
being insulted while doing what was
prompted by sense of duty and conscience
Mrs. Allen, the President, was also sorry for
the turn affairs had taken, but hoped for the
best, and was sure, when the circumstances
were understood, that there would be no
difficulty in hiring an officer on duty for the
short time the meeting lasted.
just at this moment one of the most
laughable incidents on record in meetings
of this kind toak place. A man, evidently
about 40 years of age, and whose appear
ance would be much improved by the opera
tion of either barber or guillotine, ap-
preached Mrs. Jones. and, asking for
private conversation, begged her to escort
him up the street, as he had been threatened
by several of the unwelcome element with
determination or some other dire calamity.
he spoke loud enough for the little crowd
around Mrs. Jones to hear his request, and
q very hearty laugh was INDUCED in by all
at this reversal of the laws of etiquette.
Nowise disconnected, he persisted in asking
for the lady's protection, as he was afraid to
go alone, and wearled with the inportuni-
ties
OF THE BIG CALF,
as well as with the nights annoyances. she
said: "Well, my good man, if you are
afraid to walk up the street alone I shall ac-
company you and no one shall touch YOU, %
And away went the strangely assorted pair.
the woman as bold as lion apd the man as
valiant as a sheep.
On leaving the building a crowd of youths,
neither men nor boys, was still in attend
ance and flung jeering remarks at the ladies
as they passed out, using vulgar and pro-
fame language, and yelling, "Who's the
next to be converted?" ''Thats nv girl." &"
and other remarks as obtrusive as they we're
ioiotic. They were still In progress as the
ladies passed up the street for fully block.
Inspector McAleese was asked after the
meeting was over why the detail was not
made last night and he replied: 'These
ladies applied and we guarded the meeting
for three Sunday nights, during which time
not an arrest was made, and although there
were some rough boys around such as You
may expect at any open meeting in the
locality, there were no disturbances had
intended to have man down there tonight
in plain clothes and shall investigate why
it was not done. shall attend to the mat
ter tomorrow"
Working on the Monument.
During the week ground was broken and !