The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1897-01-26
BANQUET OF CALEDONIANS.
Pleasant Affair Held Last Night IN
the Westminster.

For the last quarter of a century the
Scranton Scots have in each successive
year celebrated the anniversary of the
birth of their beloved bard, Robert
Burns. Last night the celebration ives.
as has been it's predecessors. for many
years, in the shape of banquet. 1t was
held at the Westminster hotel and was
attended by over four score of the city's
most prominent sons of Caledonia mem
bers of the Scranton Caledonian club,
and their ladies'. A number OF invited
guests We're also present.
Preceding the dinner there was an
informal reception in the parlors ON the
second floor. At $50 O'Clock to the mu-
sic OF a Scottish air played on the piano
by Miss Lydia Sailor, they filed down
and into the dining room, which Land
lord Mcbride had beautified with a pro-
fusion of tropical plants and flowers,
liags of Scotland and America and por-
traits of Burns. When the guests had
been assigned their plates Chief James
Stein, NJ. D., formally opened the ban
quet and called upon Rev. DR.. Dixon
to ask a blessing.
Then came the discussion of the first
page of the menu card, over which Chef
Eugene Ledat held sway.
dinner and served in a most credtable
manner.
THE SECOND PART.
The second part of the programme
over which Chef Stein presided was
then entered upon. After an overture
by Miss Lydia Sailor on the piano,
Chief Stein made a short Introductory
speech in which he welcomed the guests
al;
such personages as its guests. Then
the song, There Was Born Lad in
Kyle was sung by Third Chieftain r.
w. Rankin in same spirited manner in
which he has rendered it at very Burns
banquet for the last six or seven years,
and was warmly applauded.
The first toast of the evening was
THE Memory of Burns responded to
by William Stein, mine inspector of
Shenandoah. and one of the most
learned and eloquent Scotchman in
Pennsylvania He said:
Mr.. President. Ladies and Gentlemar
] feel proud tonight that | have the
pleasure of minglng with the members
of the Burns club of Scranton and also
to have the honor to respond to the
memory of the pAughman bard of
Scotland.
Mr.. President, although l believe that
the subject Burns" has buked more
largely in the public view, and has been
more repeatedly thrashed out than any
other subject of modern times, not even
excepting those faVorites of debating
societies, the guilt or innocence of Mary
Queen of Scots, and whether Cromwell
was or was not justified in the execu-
tiOn of Charles the First, I shall, how
ever. make no apology for again intro
n oh n11 md
often told, it is a subject which is or
| ought to be ever welcome to Scottish
ears and to Scottish hearts. When it is
remembered, however, that the subject
Burns" has been fully and ably dis
cussed by | might say almost every
man of note of and since his day, in
cluding among others such names as
Scott, Lochart, Mackenzie, Byron,
Woodwork, Allen Cunningham. Currie
and Carlisle, Lords Jeffrey and Hough-
ton, Professors Dugald Stewart and
Sharp, and the Revs. Hadley Waddell
| Gilfillan and Smith.
AN APT STORY.
You will not, presume, be prepared
to expect that l shall be able to throw
| any new light on the subject, nor do
| profess to do so, and should | fail to
| come up to your expectations / hope
| you will bear with me--or do with me
as the old Scotch blacksmith did with
the iron he tried to forge into the shape
of horseshoe, and it NAV not be out
of place for me here to relate the story
The blacksmith thought by adding
horseShoeng to his business it would
| materially add to the profit side of his
balance sheet at the end of the year.
and so he had hand bills printed and
posted up throughout the neighborhood
stating that he was prepared to shoe
horses a afterwards "a ms N 20
| to him to have a shoe put on his horses
| foot. He at once cut off as much iron
as he thought would make shoe put it
into the fire and then hammered some
| time on the anvil and then again put
the iron into the fire, and after making
| a few unsuccessful attempts to make
horse shoe, he pushed the heated iron
| into the water trough, saying: IF
| you II no max shae yOu'll max
| biZZ!' SO II | do not succeed in making
speech, l at least will make noise.
What | propose and attempt to do is
simply and briefly to speak of the char
acter of Burns in its broader features
but still / trust of sufficiently marked
and distinct character to show at least
under which banner my sympathies are
enlisted This, l consider | shall best
do by examining what Burns gives to
the following questions, viz: first
What Is the proper attitude of man to
per attitude of man to creation? Third
What Is the proper attitude of man to
man? No man can read the "Cottars
Saturday Night" his prayers under
great distress and in the prospects of
DEATH" his advice to young friend"
| and several other of his poems and let
ters without being satisfied that Burns
considered the proper attitude of man
to his Creator was that of humble rev.
eIence and praise, implicit trust and
confidence in His love, wisdom, good
ness and mercy, and that amid all his
doubts and difficulties with respect to
the present or the future
THE great Creator to revere
Must sure become the creature"
THE SECOND QUESTION.
His answer to the second question is
that the proper attitude of man to the
animate and inanimate creation is to
place himself in complete sympa thy
and harmony with 1t; that by doing so
he will find nothing too humble or COM
monplace to be beneath his notice and
nothing too great and exalted to be
| above it, and that guided by thought
ful intelligence he has only to cast his