The Magnolia gazette. [volume] (Magnolia, Miss.) 1872-current, 1899-05-20

GlGD44l@al, ana iHEDtEAlS -HEl-
oent. urges u love ot he oasu-
tiial tue beautiful in art ia ma
ture, ia charac Ter. The @o3a,
the pure is held always before its
members, and We are taught and
urged 70 emulate every good and
noble action, and to despise all
that is impure. These flowers,
my friends, which attract and
please the eye, and by their aro-
ma proclaim the fact that they
were distilled by the alchemy Of
God, are not more beautiful and
pure, than the life which Odd
Fellowship inspires and incul-
Gates. Our order is only little
more than eighty years Of age,
established in the city Of Balti-
more in 1918, when Washington
Lodge, No. 1, was organized by
Jno. Wildly and a few others.
Yet so pure its principles, so no.
BILE its objects, so grand its char
ity, so great its friendship, so
true its love and SO loving its
truth, that it has attracted to it,
and encompassed within its folds
hundreds Of thousands Of men Of
every station in life and Of al
most every nation. By some
people, and good people too, we
are condemned, because we are
a secret order, yet you who con-
demn us know not what you do.
Our secrets are such as we are
proud of-secrets which, if writ
ten and heralded as a bulletin,
would receive the commendation
Of the good everywhere. 1t is
permitted that | tell you some
things about the Order. Our
basic principle-the chief corner
stone of our fabric is--"The
fatherhood of God and the broth
erhood of man." This alone is
enough to challenge the admira-
ton of all thinking people.
Founded upon this principle, and
at all times seeking by every ef-
fort to instill a love of humanity
and a desire to do good, Odd Fell
10 Tship has spread until we have
the world for our nation, and
man our brother. He who be-
comes an Odd Fellow loosens no
tie of family or friends; his views
on no subject are disturbed, nc
obligation that he owes the State,
society or religion are in any
manner disturbed. He simply
becomes a member in an Order
where all are his brothers, whC
seek to elevate and purify and
ennoble his character, and make
of him a manly man, who dares
the right for rights sake. Our
secrets are such only as serve tc
protect us from cheats and inn
posters. Without these we could
not dnow each other; with these
each Odd Fellow as he travels
goes armed with a code of signals
the mystic sign-which is a
volapuc language to all who have
passed the threshold of the lodge
room and made the final journey
BY many we are thought to be
purely a charitable organization
That Odd Fellowship inculcates
charity, that this is one of its
chiefest concerns is true, yet it i:
but a 1.-THE OF what it seeks and
does do. To visit the sick, bury
the dead, relieve the distressed
provide for the widow and edu.
cate the orphan is the command
of our Lord, and Of almost daily
ministration, yet this, as I've al.
ready said, is but a small portion
of our work. We look upon the
human family as they come from
the plastic hand of God as oul
brothers and our principles Sc
teach us, and though not bound
to us by the bonds and covenants
OF the Order, yet distress, wher-
ever seen by the true Odd Fellow
excites his strongest compassion
and an appeal to him is not un.
heard, nor is the needy turned
empty away. Yes, my friends,
we are charitable, but in the
highest sense of that term-ir
the sense that the good Samari-
tan was charitable. Like him tht
true Odd Fellow, when he seel
real distress, or a good man gont
wrong, or a youth bright anC
vigorous on the downward roac
to ruin, stops not to ask if he b,
one Of US, but the simple ques,
ton, "Is ne not after all my
brother?' comes to his mind anC
is always answered affirmatively
when he hastens by his means, by
his words of consolation or of en-,
couragement to relieve the dis.
tress or alleviate and prevent tn,