The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1896-11-13
MARCHED FAR.
Miss Willard Addresses the wv.
G. T. u. Convention.
She Says the Movement Has
Made Great Progress.
COME SLOW.
They Make PitffuI Failures But
Have Forged Ahead.
The Temperance Movement In
Politics Is Discussed.


early as 8 o'clock this morning. a
prayer meeting being held in Schuyler
Memorial home. at which Mrs. Eliza
beth wv. Greenwood of New York,
worlds and national secretary of the
evangelistic department, acted as
leader.
Music han. in which the convention
met, was appropriately decorated with
the color of the order, white. Fes-
toons of this color hung from the bal
cony interspersed with the stars and
stripes. over the immense stage, be
tween two immense United States flags,
hung a British flag, above which was
large sign with the word Welcome"
upon it. Below these was a huge ban
ner bearing the words: THE star of
hope of the temperance reform stands
over the school house"
1t was considerably after o'clock.
the hour scheduled for meeting when
Miss Frances E Willard national pres
ident. called the gathering TO order.
Previous to this all the women identi-
fed with the original crusade" were
called to the platform.
AS Miss Willard stepped to the front
she was received with a salute Of Wav-
ing handkerchiefs. The exercises be
gan with the reading respOnsively Of
the Crusade Psalm, the 146th.
Mrs. Henrietta T.. Monroe, president
of the w. @. IT. TT. of Ohio. offered up
a prayer. the delegates standing.
After the singing Of the crusade
hymn, Give to the Winds Thy Fears,
the roll of the ex-oficio mem bers was
called by the recording secretary, Mrs
Clara @. Hoffman of Missouri
The report Of the executive commit
tee was then made 1t was in effect
a report of what had been done at the
meeting Of the committee yesterday
and related to the work of the cOnven-
ton and the national union. 1T was
decided to make March 20, birthday of
General Neal A. Dow, a prohibition
rally day.
There was some more singing and
Miss Willard then made an address.
She said that her annual address was
partly prepared when the call came to
work for the Armenian refugees in Mar
seilles and since that time it has been
impossible for her to complete her mes
sage. She therefore gave a familiar
talk to the delegates. Mention was
made Of the previous convention, held
here in 1884, and Miss Willard added.
I'VE have marched far since then, the
alignment of parties has changed. the
labor movement has taken on proper
tiOns so vast that no one speaks lightly
of it any more, the people are forging
their way to the front misguided often,
making pitiful paths in the Wilderness
following false lights and relegatng the
fight for a clear brain to the Spartan
band of prOhibitiOnists when, if labor
would win it must make the temperance
reform the ark of God to be borne in the
very van of its swift gathering army
In 1892 some of US sat up all night with
the committee on resolutions Of the
great labor convention with its thou
sand delegates, pleading with them to
put a prohibition and home protection
plank in their platform, and they would
not"
The speaker said that prohibition in
politics has been, is now, and is to be,
the embodied protest of the home
against the saloon. When the white
ribbon women pnghted their faith to
the movement it had polled only 10 900
foaV To
900 and has gone on slowly increasing
until $50, 900 had been gathered but ow-
ing to the great controversy concerning
the free coinage of silver, this party like
every other had split in twain in this
memorable year of 1896, and the vote
had fallen off to about 100000 out Of A.,
600 900 ballots.
Miss Willard touched on the work
done for temperance in the several
states, and then spoke of Armenians
and the excellence work done by Mrs.
Stevens, Mrs. Fessenden and Miss
Blackwell of Massachusetts in finding
homes for the refugees sent over by her
self and Lady Henry Somerset. She
praised the Armenian relief committee
and the Salvation Army for the admira-
BILE work done by them SO that nearly
400 friendlesS men had found friends
and occupation She stated that the
worlds w. Q. It. u intended to take up
the work for the Armenians as an inn
pOrtant part of its endeavOr; they would
probably found colony in Cyprus for
the women and children.
This was followed by evengelistfc !
hour, presided over by Rev. Alice Ruth
Palmer OF Minnesota The cOnsidera-
ton of miscellaneous business closed !
the morning session.
AT the afternoon session Mrs. Mary
Garland president of the North Car
olina union, opened the meeting with
prayer after which a letter of Lady
Somerset was read. 1t was addressed |
ITO Ny Comrades of The National w
c. T. u. " and said in part I pro-
fOundly regret that the complications I
here in the enterprises to which I am /
pledged and the duties growing out of I
my sons recent marriage and my /
mothers impaired health, render it inn /
autumn, that L might receive the i'm +
petus and inspiration always impaired I
by association with my American sis +
ters Of the white ribbon. Tit is as Ger
tain as anything in this changing life /
cen be, that t shall attend the worlds /
w. a. IT. U- convention in Canada next /
autumn and am earnestly hoping that I
some city not SO far away but that I
may be able to be present a that great
gathering as well as the biennial
THE cause of Armenia is deeply en-
shrined in all our hearts and feel sure
that YOU will plan broadly and wisely
to comfort those whose unspeaka bic ca
lamities should open to them the door
Of every Christian heart and home"
The report Of Treasurer Helen n. Ba-
ker of Illinois, stated that the receipts
Notwithstanding the hard times had /
been larger than for several previous
years. The total receipts were S27. .O76
and the expenditures s24,115, leaving a
of SS,592
The report of the corresponding secre-