The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1899-04-04
SHALL FABIOLA
HAVE A RACE
TRACK BENEFIT2
T. II. Williams Has
Made the Offer.
QUESTION UNDER DEBATE
DAN BURNS POLITICS is A BIG
FACTOR.
Acquisition of Funds Said to Be an
Urgent Necessity for the Treas
ury of the Great Insti-
tuition.
QUESTION UNDER DEBATE
DAN BURNS POLITICS Is a BIG
FACTOR.
Oakland Office San Francisco Call,
QnS RrnadWaN Anril 8


Shall Fabiola have for its annual benefit
q May day fete, an equine parade, bene-
fit at the race track, or nothing? This is
the question with which the directors of
the hospital find themselves face TO face.
For four years past the greatest social
event of the year has been Fabiola day.
May day is less than month off, and as
yet no notice has been given of what may
be expected.
Last year the racetrack management
gave Fabiola the entire proceeds Of one
day at the track, and hung up splendid
purse for a race known as the Fablola
derby On this occasion I. H. Williams
and his friends forbade any one from en-
tering the track without paying their dol
lar. He was SO interested in Fabiola that
he personally declined the offer OF pass
to enter his own property, and on the
eventful day Mr.. Williams and the officers
of the track passed through the gates,
accidentally, of course, Just at the mo-
ment when several of the lady directors
of Fabioa were entering. The ladies were
more than gratihed to see Mr.. Williams
and his friends contribute their dollars
and attached the tickets to their coat
buttons with as much humility as the
hJmbleSt tout about the place.
AS a result OF FabiOla day at the race
track a sum exceeding $4,000 was Melted
for the hospital. There was, however,
some opposition 10 the benefit. Many min
listers denounced the scheme from their
pulpits as being unworthy of such a no
bic institution. This charge was ably
defended by the ladies, who declared that
they were working for the most unself-
ish Of motives and We're giving all their
time and energy toward building up the
benevolent institution, and were, there
fore, entitled to immunity from criticism
One of the lady managers put forward
the argument that there is somewhere in
the Scriptures a story telling how the
Nazarene. advocated even the breaking
of the sabbath TO pull sheep out Of the
pit, because II was deed of charity. The
deduction from this was very simple, and
In spite OF the opposition the ladies went
ahead.
few days ago Thomas H. Williams
in letter very cordially reminded the
ladies that May day was again approach
ing and rendered them the use of the
track on the same conditions as last year
The letter was discussed at a meeting of
the lady managers, but as il was de-
sired TO obtain the expression of the full
board before taking decisive action the
matter was laid over until the next meet
ing, which occurs next Tuesday.
Many of the ladies are of the same opin-
ion as they were last year and believed
that in this case the end justifies the
means, while others doubt the propriety
OF accepting benefit from the track
managers.
The recent bitter fight over Colonel
Burns IN the Legislature and the bitter
ness with which Burns and his gambling
fraternity were denounced by the Minis
ters' Association of Oakland are not for
gotten, and the action the minister's
from the racetrack management is hard
~ problematica1. Last year. when the
opposition was engendered, very little was
known generally of the connection of Col
onel Burns with the Oakland track, and
the ministers were more general than
specific in their denunciation. This year
the associations of Burns and his outfit
are prominent in the minds of everybody,
especially in this county, and one of the
ministers, who would not assume to speak
with authority for his brethren. said to-
day that there is no doubt that their opin-
ion of the racetrack benefits is the same
as 1t was last year.
Fahola. like all other institutions Of
Its character, has suffered financially be-
cause of the general closeness of money
during the past few years, and it needs
all the help it can command. It would
be a great hardship for it to be deprived
of four or five thousand dollars at this
time, according to the managers, who
deeply feel the responsibility Of their
trust.
The question Of the Fabiola benefit Is
the most prominent of the hour in Oak
land, lot II interests the management. So
ciety at large, the church folks and the
racetrack management, all to a great de-