The record-union., 1897-07-18
THOUGHTS CONCERNING THE
GREAT CONVENTION.
THE

GREAT CONVENTION.
The Cleveland Leader refers TO the
recent Christian Endeavor excursion to
California as an evidence that the peo-
pie have come to regard great distances
as no more to be counted against de
sire to meet in assembly. That is true.
Magnificent distances are losing all the
romance that once attached to them.
1t is no longer a thing out of the COM
mon TO call together a large body of
people from the corners Of the world,
and all intermediate points, to assemble
in confraternal council or meet in con-
sultation and communion, though the
task or duty involves travel over. half
the globe to a larger number of those
who come
At the recent convention in San Fran
cisco there were men and women who
came from Africa, from Australia.
from India and from China and Japan
solely for the purpose of attendance.
From London and Constantinople, from
groups, but the greater bulk Travelled
on the average 1900 miles to attend.
Fully half of these We're young people,
and more than half of all were women,
and of all the women fully one-third
came alone, without male escort, yet
as safely and securely as if riding a
half dozen blocks in street car at
their own homes.
OF the 10000 people who came, of
course, more than nine-tenths We're
from our own States and Territories.
These, as our Cleveland contemporary
remarks, faced distances that in the
most experienced travellers. That is to
say, the people of Europe whom we
speak of as the masses never think of
undertaking any such journey for any
purpose as that accomplished by the
pilgrim Christian Endeavorers. A few
hundred miles at most are all the
masses could be induced to brave in
Europe But here in America we send
ten thousand TO travel from two to
five thousand miles in order to meet at
a common point, and we think nothing
of it.
Yet such journeys are undertaken
in the Old World only by the classes
with much means, the business travel
ers and emigrants who pack UP to leave
their homes and seek permanent resi-
dence in far distant lands. There is not
another land on earth where any such
movement as to numbers and distances
would be at all probable, as that of the
Endeavorer excursionists. Some OF
going. 10.O00'and $4,000 miles. The av-
erage movement for the round trip is
5000 miles per individual. Familiarity
with great distance among our people
thus becomes an important factor in
the unifying Of the citizens OF the re-
public. 1t tells of the essential unity
and Of the solidity of our population, .
says our contemporary. 1t speaks. let
US add, of a great deal more. for it
means better and closer knowledge by
the people of each other. and that in
itself is an element of adhesion.
II is simply impossible that such CON
vocations can be held and the spirit OF
localism and the prejudices of section
and district not be depressed, if not
largely broken up. Here We have over
10000 people Of the East, West, North,
South and eenters of our land, gather
ing after long journeys in a single city.
over one-half of these people, probably
two-thirds, assembled for a common
purpose. that Of counseling with one
another in fraternal communion
for ten days. singing, praying,
rejoicing, enjoying and hoping
together. and finding out If they,
never realized it before, that Americans
are pretty much the same all around,
though the accent may indicate North
or South, East or West nativity, and
discovering that We are in the best