Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1890-03-24
THE NON-PARTIsAN w.C.T.U.
Mrs. Foster Talks of the Aims and
Methods of the New Order.

The Congregational church, corner 10th and
Il streets, was comfortably filed at o'clock
Yesterday afternoon to hear Mrs. ]. Ellen
Foster president of the new line W.C.T.U. for
The District of Columbia, on the subject
Home above party; principle above organiza-
ton" The meeting was presided over by Mrs.
Kelley, wife of the presiding elder Washington
district. Baltimore conference. NJ. E church, and
on the platform were the wife of Bishop New
man. Mrs. Roach, Mrs. Lcggett of Michigan
and Miss Tilton, secretary OF the local union
Mrs. Newman conducted the devotional exer-
cises by asking the audience to give few min
utes to silent prayer, at the close of which she
led in the recitation of the Lords prayer. In
introducing the speaker Mrs. Kelley stated
that the meeting had been arranged and the
subject announced while Mrs. Foster was out
of the city and it was not till her return from
New York Friday night that she knew she was
20 speak yesterday.
FIGHTING OUT MORAL ISSUES ON NON-PARTIsAN
GROUNDS.
Mrs. Foster began by comparing the task
thus imposed spon her of explaining the de-
tails of the work to the household cares that
once burdened her. but which now that her
children had reached maturity. were forgotten
or counted only as joys. The task. she said
was an unpleasant one but must be DONE and
IL that spirit she undertook it. She pictured
the home as the unit of all social organization
pointed out the value of the pledge. as not
every man Is as good as his bond showed the
necessity OF banding together in common
cause. and hoped all women would sign the
pledge and JOIN the union. The distinction
between partisan and political questions was
@xpert.y handled, and it was commended that
m Irai issues could be best fought on non-parti-
san lines L. was natural and proper that men
slOuI1
tons Of tariff or free trade, and hard or
soft money, as those were not moral ques-
tons and involved only a difference OF in
tellectua opinion, but it was not best that
any party should make an issue of moral
question like prohibition, for when one party
takes up question men of the opposing party
are driven to take the other side, it being neces
sary to have issues between them.
PROHIBITION.
she said, had been secured in Iowa and the Da-
kotas on non-partsan basis. She was pleased
at the noble stand taken by Representative
Stewart of Georgia. democrat, and Repre-
sentative Morse of Massachusetts,, a republican
and thought it better for the prohibition cause
that they were in different parties. The old
line organization had asked them to disregard
their opinions on the tariff finance and other
questions and come out by themselves on the
single question of prohibition. The pledge of
Membership had not required that they ally
themselves with any political party. They
made pledge of total abstinence and they had
kept that. they promised to meet certain dues
and they had paid their taxes, but when
they were asked to join political
party they said no, and so they had
formed non-partisan organization. When
the speaker stated that she saw Miss Susan B.
Anthony in the audience there was a burst of
applause. Miss Anthony, she said, thought
woman suffrage more important than prohibit
ton. others thought social purity the great
question and still others held something else of
first importance but if all split up into parties
they would be too feeble to accomplish their
purposes and would but give comparative
strength to the enemy. Therefore they stood
for total abstinence and prohibition accom-
pilshed by non-partlsan means and without
political alliance. Mrs. Foster paid high
tribute to Senator Blair and said his educational
bill would pass when some of our statesmen
had grown little taller. Referring to the
District of Columbia she longed for the day
when the liquor traffic would be wiped out
here and declared that when the people here
demanded Ii Congress and the White House
would not stand in the way