Daily inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1881-1901, 1899-04-26

blue laws, hoop skirts and dolly vardens.
down to the Fourth of July n Washing
toms birthday celebrations, the church
s~ocials, select circles, p tens, four
hundreds, holiday railroad n steam
boat excursions, state fairs, racing
events, drinking habits, national and IN
ternational expeditions, religious, social,
political and fraternal conventions, hlgn
heeled and impossible toed shoes, dudes
big-headed canes and ndescrlpaDle
make-ups, the aping of foreign manners,
the theater hats, swell and blooded dress
suits, tandem turn-outs, back to back
buggies and hats decorated with live and
tortured lizards, or Ornamented with
heads and feet n wings and feathers
of murdered birds. that hav been and
are in vogue in this glad decade in which
we live.
I am happy that upon this interesting
occasion it is my privilege to talk to you
about an organization, which, though
carrying on it's work in many lands and
seeking through it's benevolent ministra-
tions to bless all nations, owns II Ian
and our age as the place and time of its
birth. The date and place Of it's begin
ming are among the historic certainties
of our country. The Independent Order
of Odd Fellows is a modern n an
American institution. 1t is the product
of the century and of the country in
which we live. The principles of friend
ship, love and truth upon which Odd
Fellowship is founded are not new nor
are they peculiar to any age or people.
They were implanted in the heart of man
by mans Creator. Though often disre-
garded by nations and individuals, they
have, since man first held fellowship
with man, been priceless possessions of
the human race, cheering it in times of
adversely, restraining it in days of law
lessness and refining and ennobling 1T In
all its progress through the ages. His
tory is not without evidence that as early
as 1745 there was in England what was
called a lodge of Odd Fellows. There is,
however. no basis for a belief that this
society bore either in it's form of organ
%ization, it's ritual, if it had any, or it's
plans, or objects, any resemblance to the
great fraternity Of Odd Fellowship With
whose work and aims we are acquainted.
In the latter part of the eighteenth CEN
fury there were in England several diff
ferent societies whose teachings and
methods of work were in some particulars
similar to those that characterize the IN
dependent Order of Odd Fellows. A por-
ton of these societies finally confeder-
ated under the name of Manchester Unity.
The Manchester Unity became and is to-
day one of the leading benevolent secret
societies Of the world. Notwithstanding
all that may be said as to the similarity
between the Manchester Unity ana
American Odd Fellowship, their origin,
purpose. principles and methods, it re
mains true that American Odd Fellow
ship is, as it's name indicates, an indie
pendent society and that at the date OF
its organization it was not dependent
upon and did not owe allegiance to any
other order.
1t is among the historic certainties that
the first lodge of Odd Fellows organized
on the A american continent came into be-
ing by the ancient process Known as self
institution, in the City of New York on
December %, 1865. We are indebted to
our distinguished Brother, Past Grand
Sire John w Stebbins of New York for
bringing this historic fact, heretofore but
little known, to the attention OF the ira
ternity. But the lodge that formed the
nucleus, the center of the development
and essential existence of American ODD
Fellowship; that gave practical begin
ming to it's history and from whose incep-
ton the era of the order is reckOned,
is Washington Lodge No. l, which was
organized at Baltimore, Maryland, April
26, 1919, by Thomas Widely and four as
sociates. Because of the connm nding in
fuence welded by Thomas Wildey in the
inception and early development of
American Odd Fellowship, and because
of the fact that the method of work in
augurated by him and his associates, in
the lodge organized by them, became the
model after which subsequent lodges
were formed, Washington Lodge No. 1,
was and is by common consent, recognize
ed and hOnOred as the first regular lodge
of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows.
The anniversary of it's institution is
celebrated as the anniversary of the en-
tire fraternity. This day is, therefore,
the S0th anniversary of American Odd
Fellowship. During the short time at our
this afternoon, we will discuss
some of the salient features that have
brought our order to the position 1t now
occupies as the largest fraternal secret
/ society in the world.
American q Fellowship was organ
lied by humble men. Thomas Widely
the recognized leader, was a maker OF
coach springs, and all Of his original as
sOciajes in the organization of the first
lodge were men who earned their living
by the sweat of their brows. When we
contemplate the greatness of a nation we
are apt to attribute the position it holds
among the powers of the earth to the
WISDOM the foresight, the valor of a few
men who hold conspicuous and disting-
uished places in the nation's history
and forget that the nations greatness is
founded upon and has been made posi-.
BILE ny, the virtue, the courage and tht
loyalty of its common people. We lool
at a ~connuering army and credit the vic.
tories it has achieved to the generals whs
have led the victorious hosts, and forge
that it is the hosts rather than the gen.
erals that have been victorious. No gen.
eral, however wise he may be in ~plannins
a campaign or ordering a battle. can tri
umph over a courageous foe if the sol.
diers under his command are weakling:
or towards. Upon the valor of the me1
under command more than upon any
other factor depends the success of ar
army. Since April 26, 1919, many dislin.