Omaha daily bee., 1893-02-25
Second Days Session Of the Young Mems
Christian Association Convention.
GREAT INTEREST IS BEING AWAKENED
Papers OF Various Subjects of Interest to
Young Men Read-Many Suggestions
Made Worthy of Consideration
The Program for Today.

took in the meetings. and the great
est interest was manifested. To at
tend one of these meetings has tendency to
broaden the view Of the association work
which is held by those who have never given
very much attention TO the matter, and who
are accustomed to think of the mem
bcrs OF the Young Mems Christian
association as goody-goody people, whose
wings have already begun TO sprout How
ever many exceptions there may be, the
men who are attending this convention are
anything but on the milk-sop order. There
is not sign Of wings. They 60 about their
work in as business like a way as if they
were engaged in a monetary conference, and
the laughter and applause that are fre-
quently heard during the addresses show
that even the truths Of the gospel need not
be presented in way that breathes of tomb
stones and self-crucifxion.
Organized for Business.
The convention was organized for the work
Of the day by the election of the following
officers. President B. G. Ward of Des
Moiues first vice president, G. ". Mcclure
Of Marshaltown; second vice president, Fred
Brasted Of Iowa City; recording secretary,
u. Brown Of Western college; first assistant,
{. :. hughes of Ottumwa: second assistant,
i. j. Thomas Of Penn college; press secre-
taries. G. :. Tufts Of Iowa Agricultural col
lcgc and T. :. Bunting of Iowa college finan-
claI secretary ana press reporter, james
Flannery of Cedar Rapids; state secretaries
" a. MaGee, G. G. Michener and X. A
Haddon
The report of the state committee, which
was made at the morning session, showed the
following interesting figures Receipts for
the year, S49gl.4l; disbursements, - ,92J j6 ;
number Of separate associations. 81. divided
as follows: College, %; city, %; railroad, !:
paid secretaries, 3S; vacancies, 4. Six new
associations have been organized during the
wear. There have been 30 conversions at
district conventions, lGj in college assoCia-
toas, 222 in railway state deputations and
80 IN all The membership of the col
lege associations is ! 1,724, and the total
membership is 7.119. Thirty-five men
have been sent TO the summer school
at Lake Geneva. The average attendance
of the meetings held all over the state on
Sunday afternoons is 2,l26. There are eight
buildings owned by local associations, with
total value of S260OO0. The total expense
has been Sia,G39. The state secretaries have
travelled $4,000 miles. The report recon-
mended that $1,000 be set aside for the state
work.
Letters were read from forty of the asso-
Citations, all of which took very hopeful
view Of the situation. The work is being
pushed out III all directions, the improve
ment being III none more noticeable than in
the colleges, where spiritual needs are being
cared for with the same solicitude as mental.
Personal Workers."
DR.. j. V. Conzett of Dubuque spoke on the
great need Of trained personal workers in
the associations. Alexander Patterson of
Chicago conducted an interesting bible read
ing in which the central thought was
Christ as a Personal Worker" No attempt
was made at oratory, but the speaker in an
unassuming, straightforward way, which
was rcmarka bic for its clearnCss, proceeded
to lay down the rules of action for Christians
III regard TO personal work as derived from
the accounts OF the work Of their great
leader. He was listened to with the
closest attention. A paper written by
Fred A Dayton of Clintonon Boys Work"
was read by another delegate, the writer
having been detained at home.
In the afternoon, after u song service led
by Z. {. Smith, Il paper written by H. B.
Soulter OF Cedar Rapids, was read, not by
the writer, but by lone of his products" as
the chairman expressed it,
The paper upon The Responsibility of
Directors for a Businesslike Management of
the Association - was very interesting al
though short. He thought in some
matters the members followed too
closely the directions of the secretaries
in the various matters of the association
work or, rather, relied on them to do the
work and then they would follow their di-
llulNluuantN.
also brought out the point that to be sue
cessful in any undertaking we must be inter-
ested III 1t. How would business man sue
ceed were he TO drop in once or twice Il week
TO look after affairs Thus if the associa-
tion We're 10 succeed each director should
make it point TO visit the meetings and
take an individual interest He recon-
mended that each give IA few nights each
week in which TO go in and shake hands and
have talk with the members or visitors.
Although hr. Soulter is as the secretary
OF the Cedar Rapids association said, lone of
the busiest of the busy men" vet he finds
time TO spend Il portion of his time in such a
manner and seldom fails To visit two or three
times week. He seemed to think directors
We're sometimes too willing that the secre-
tary should take the matter off their hands.
some interesting discussions followed upon
this subject.
Evening Educational CIasses
A. NJ. Wright of Sioux Falls, S. D., read n
paper on Evening Educational Classes
he showed the different classes of Young
men IN the cities, and what each class was
doing III association work. Even with the
mighty strides in such work the intellectual
lines We're neglected too much He ad-
ylsed, as some have already done, the estab-
lishment of schools in the associations for
those unable TO attend other schools II
was shown that out of thirty city associa-
tlons there were only about SIX or seven which
conduct such schools. Others had tried but
had made failure Of it, In one or two
associations trade schools are conducted.
Mrs. b, II. Slocum of the Iowa sabbath
association was next introduced to the CON
vention and briefly stated the object of the
work IN which she was interested In a
stirring talk she portrayed the increase of
Sabbath desecration and open violation of
all Sunday laws, and stated that the object
OF the association was 10 do away with this
and make the day what 1t should be-a
day OF rest and conservation. She especially
urged the young men to take up the work
foI, said she, THE Sabbath Of the future
Will be what the young men make it," She
showed that there was an increase of 100
sabbath working men over two years ago
The appeal was one that could not but hello
touch the hearts Of her hearers and she NAV
expect the help of all true Young Mems
Christian association members in her noble
work
The different committees were given a few
Instructions after which the benediction
was pronounced.
BRnqueted by Young Ladies'.
immediately after the close OF the after
noon service the delegates divided into three
sections, the railway, city and college men
going 10 the Young Mems Christian associa-
tton rooms the Fifth Avenue Methodist
and the First Presbyterian churches, where