Phillipsburg herald. [volume] (Phillipsburg, Kan.) 1882-1905, 1892-06-02
STATE AFFAIRS
And Capital City News of State
Interest

A Gift to the Kansas Odd Fellows.
The charter of ssThe de Boissiere Odd
Fellows Orphans Home and Industrial
association was fled with the secretary
of state. Judge G. A. Huron is secre-
tary of the board of trustees, and from
him are learned the following facts about
the new organization.
By the munifcent gift Of E. V. de
Boissiere, Esq, of Franklin county, the
Odd Fellows of Kansas have a more val
liable endowment for an orphans home
and industrial school than those of any
other state in the union.
Mr.. Boissiere is a highly educated
French gentleman of great wealth. He
was a Jealous resublican in France. and
and when Napoleon III. was proclaimed
emperor he was among the patriots who
sought asylum in free America. He was
attracted to New Orleans, where he
sought to endow an orphan asylum for
colored children. Such an institution
did not meet the approval Of the people
OF New Orleans, and the opposition be-
came so burdensome that Mr.. Boissiere
abandoned the enterprise and sought
the free air of Kansas in which to prac-
tice his theories for the elevation of his
fellow man. He selected fine body of
land in the southwest corner of Frank
lin county, which he bought and at
once proceeded to found a colony for
the purpose of engaging in raising and
manufacturing silk. For this purpose
he planted seventy acres in Russian
mulberries, erected buildings, procured
machinery and applied himself zealously
=. ill - lie
silk products, both raw and manufac-
tured, were of the finest quality, but on
account of the high wages demanded by
his employees, he found it impossible to
make the infant industry profitable, and
abandoned it.
Mr.. Boissiere is a bachelor of 80
years. He has relatives and large and
valuable possessions in France, and has
recently determined to return to his
native land Having been so kindly
treated in Kansas, he desired to show
his appreciation by such a disposition
of his property here as to make it last
ing benefit to mankind. With this in
view he determined to endow school,
and began an investigation of the va
rious plans presented, which has lasted
through several months, and ended in
the organization of an association that
will be backed by the 10000 Odd Eel
lows Of Kansas, to carry out his plans.
The endowment is magnificent one.
It comprises g, 1855 acres of beautiful
rolling prairie, all fenced by fifteen
miles of substantially built stone wall
and twenty-five miles of wire fence.
There are fifty gates, 500 acres under
pillow, 100 acres of tame grass, 20 acres
of Russian mulberry trees, 20 acres in
apple orchard, fine walnut groves, and
three acres of grapes. The farm is
stocked with all necessary farm imple-
ments, forty-six head of horses, 800
head of cattle and 225 head of hogs.
The buildings consist of a substantially
built stone house of sixty rooms, with
walls two feet thick, planned for Co
operative family, and cannot be i'm
proved upon for an orphans home.
Then there are a carpenters shop, a
blacksmith shop, a frame house of
twenty rooms, a stone house just suited
for school, three large barns, granaries
and corn cribs.
The stone house is partially furnished
and contains piano and choice library
of $500 books. All of the above is in
C1uuCO III ILc LAO
trustees have not yet had time to take
an inventory of the stock, but the above
is a general inventory. The property,
at a conservative estimate, is worth
100000.
The plan of the association, as out
lined in the trust deed by Mr.. Boissiere,
is to furnish a home and industrial
school for the orphans of deceased Odd
Fellows of Kansas. The school is to pro-
vide domestic, agricultural, mechanical
and scientific education, but always
from a practical standpoint The one
browning thought in the entire plan, as
impressed upon the masters by Mr..
Boissiere is that the education given
here shall fit the children for the prac-
tical and exalted duties of American
citizenship. To this end he has directed
that ali teaching shall be to develop
and apply practical thought in the
pupils.
The trustees of the association are M.
B. Ward, grand master of the state; L..
O.. Slime, grand treasurer; George w.
Jones, past grand master; G. A. Huron,
grand treasurer of the grand encamp-
ment, and Charles Robbins, Esq, a
member of the order in Ottawa. The
trustees have organized by electing L.
G. Slime, president; M. B. Ward. vice
president; G. A. Huron, secretary, and
Charles Robbins, treasurer.
Immediate plans will be made and
steps taken to get the achool started by
September.
The state board of railway assessors
are likely to cut down the assessment on
telegraph lines this year.