Evening star., 1895-11-08

Rev. DR.. EastOn.
| tracted attention to the order and naturally
| has increased the interest in the reports of
dssensions in the local body.
| 1t is said that DR.. Easton and his friends
| contemplate forming new national order.
so the trouble here has some interest be-
yond the boundaries of the District.
An Interview With DIR. EnstOn.
In an interview with a Star reporter to-
| day DR.. Easton said:
MY dissatisfaction with the manner In
which the organization is conducted dates
| back to May of this year, when l was Sc
lected as a delegate from the District to
| the Supreme Council at Milwaukee.
When l arrived there l found a deplora-
| BILE condition Of affairs. Over half of the
men who sat in the supreme body were not
| entitled to seats, under the constitution of
! the order. They were seated by a creden-
| tsal committee appointed one week before
the convention met by Supreme President
Traynor. With a membership in the mil
lion5 the books of the treasurer showed an
apparent balance of a few hundred dollars
and subsequent developments forced the
confession from the supreme president that
| even this balance was only apparent, ard
| that the treasury was bankrupt. A trust
| fCrd of several hundred dollars taken up
| by subscription for specific purpose had
| been misapplepd. and the administration
had been characterized by an utter d;sre-
| gard of the constitution. Through the
votes of the delegates illegally seated in
| the convention Supreme President Traynor
| was reelected. Utterly disguised, 1 left
| the convention before it's adjournment hav-
| ing previously announced my Intention to
| withdraw from the order.
AT the earnest request of prominent
members mere and throUs hout the country
| l held my resolution in allegiance for a
| while in the hope that something could be
| done without open disruption. but recent
events have satisfied ME of the futility of
| such hopes.
The power of the supreme president is
in fact supreme. He can pack future con-
ventions as he packed the last. He is as
much of despot in his particular province
as the Car CT Russia: he can override the
constitution with impunity and if charges
were preferred against him his own ap-
| pointees would try him. 1t is useless to
struggle against such an organization.
! THE discomfort is widespread throughout
| the order. Several Of the most peaceful
state bodies have declined to pay any per
| capita tax into the supreme treasury or
give it any support; others pay just enough
to maintain nominal allegiance to the su-
| preme authority. The need for new ma
| tional organization is apparent to every
one. 1t can be obtained with comparative
| ease, for many of the state organza tons
notably New York, Massachusetts, Illinois
and Ohio-are in excellent condition.
| ''Will there be such an organiZation?
There must be if any effective work IS to
BE- done in 4 national way. 1t has been held
| off because of the fear that an open rup-
|
the cause, but it is clear that nothing could
| be more injurious than the manner in which
! the affairs OF the order are at present ad
| min Stered.''
their charters ard go into the new organi-
| Zation?''
| Il do not wish to ~peak for the councils
| Each VIII probably do what it considers to
be for its best interest. 1 will not attempt
| to influence them in any way. Any action
| they take must be their own"
MIR. Eoyer's Explanation.
| Mr. A. j. Boyer, prominent A. p. A.
man and editor of the United American" +"
was disposed to attach little Importance or
| Significance to DIR. Easton's detection from
| that order, when seen by Star reporter
! today He said that DR.. Easton's grievance
is only a personal one, and that when he
processes to make national issue out of
| il he takes altogether too much upon him
self.
| ."The truth Of the whole matter is" said
| Mr. Bower, that DIR. Easton has taken
umbrage at some triling matters that do
| not meet with his approval, and If he does
not like the way things are run IN the or.
ganization he is at perfect liberty to get out
| lust the same as he would out Of any other
| society.
az is unnecessary to say that everything
| does not run with invariable SmoothnesS;
| there are occasional dissenSionS in the
| ranks and differences of opinion just as
there are in any other body Or. Easton
| charge against President Traynor ana the
recent convention in Milwaukee are not
worthy of serious attention. He went into
| that convention with the rest of US and II
| he had any fault to find with its orsaniza-
ton that was the time to do 1t; 1t is rather
| a late date now.
| II NAV be doing DIR. Easton an injustice,
| but it seems to me the trouble is merely
local. and has nothing to do with the ma
,ional organization. The association Is
| Of councils. there
| a sufficient number of these a state council
| is formed, and that is just what was done in
| this city this week. Washington has been
| entitled to a state council for some time
| mast but the supreme officers thought best
| to wait awhile. l presume. However. Su-
preme President Traynor deputized state
| president from neighboring district to
| come here and organize the state council.
| This was done Monday evening, and Of
| ficers were elected. DR.. Easton was candi-
| Gate for president, but he was defeated by a
| very small majority. l think if he had been
| elected he would not have had any criticism
| to pass upon the A. 2. A.
| The A. p. A. and the Election.
There is one thing" said Mr.. Boyer, that
was proved; by Tuesdays election. and that
| was the influence and solidarity of the A P.
| A. There never has been time in the his
| tory of the organization when 1t has taken
| sucn prominent part in politics and with
| such pronounced success. Wherever the as
| sociatioE put forth its powers it carried the
| day. and there is no use in wasting time
| picking out local issues TO account for that
| general landslide.
Take the state of Massachusetts. for
| example There of the two candidates,
Greeuhalg" and Williams. the A. P. A. had
nothing serious against either one of them.
| The members, as a rule, followed their
| personal preferences at the polls, but many
preferred Greenhalge, and the result speaks
| for itself