The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1899-04-20
CHURCH LOYALTY.
WorcCster's Unita-
rian Women Dis
cuss It.
CLEARLY DEFINED.
Mrs. Warren Pays High
Tribute to Clara
Barton.

Personal allegiance to our church, -"
the subject of the Worcester League of
Unitarian Women at its April meeting
yesterday at the Church of the Unity,
was treated Interestingly by three
speakers. Mrs. Alexander F. Chamber
lain discussed the question, What does
personal allegiance mean?' Among
other things she said that the spring of
any allegiance worth having must be
within the Individual himself, BY
church she meant not an edifice, but
sanctuary. and in this connection she
quoted Lowell's beautiful conception of
a church. The noblest examples of per-
sonal allegiance to the church in this,
its true meaning, were Jesus among the
ancients and Browning among the
moderns.
She was followed by Miss Sarah Z.
Cheney upon DO our young people feel
this allegiance ?" Miss Cheney thought
that they did and she cited her own eX-
perience as typical of others. Out of
desire to love and to express personal
allegiance to the echurch she had
Joined a c. E. society, although herself
y
should unite with the old in church
work and that a creed or formula that
should give a definite notion of what
Unitarians believed would be an assist
ance to the UNCONVENTIONAL life.
Miss Clara Billings answered the
question conveyed by the title of her
paper, Would further organization be
helpful?" in the affirmative but she
said that it must consist not in mechan-
ical machinery but in freer use of eX-
listing forces. Larger church member
ship and more faithful attendance,
definite creed that should express sim
ply and concisely the belief of the in
dividual and the church organization,
heartier response in the service, more
of the old hymns, and better know
ledge of church history and church
work, We're among her suggestions
along these lines.
The debate that followed emphasized
the idea that the interest of the young
people as expressed by those who had
presented the program was in itself
sign of increasing vitality in the
church.
Prior to the literary exercises Mrs.
Everett H. Warren gave a very inter
esting account of the Red Cross So
ciety and its work in the Spanish war
She described the organization and
work of the sanitary commission in
the civil war, and spoke in Warmest
commentator of Clara Barton and
the splendid work she accomplished
even under the Heterogeneous and
obstacles which Cuba presented.
This was the annual meeting. The
chief business was the election of Of
ficers which resulted as follows: Pres
ident, Mrs. A. B. R. Sprague; vice pres
idents. Mrs. w. H. Bliss and Mrs. B.
T. Rice; secretary, Mrs George A. Slo-
h faTa avn n h
F. Cheney; treasurer, Mrs. NJ. H. Cow
dem auditor, Mrs. George D. Clifford.
These ladies were elected to serve on
the executive committee; Mrs. Nathan
lei Seaver Leicester, chairman; Miss
Ellen Williams, Northboro; Miss Lucy
Patrick, Hopedale; Mrs. Austin S.
Carver, Mrs. H. L. Chandler. Mrs. Will
liam H. Hackett, Mrs. George W. Kent,
Mrs. Edward Cummings, Mrs. Charles
S. Bottomly, Mrs. Alexander Bigalow,
Mrs. Charles E. Richardson and Miss
Helen E. Fletcher.
Following are the other committees:
Religious and philanthropic news
Mrs. Benjamin T. Rice, Miss Francis
A. Hill committee on cheerful letters
Miss Jennie E. Stone committee on
current events, Mrs. Gardner C. Whit
ing Mrs. Alexander F. Chamberlaia
and Miss Florence E. Rice; fellowship
committee, Mrs. George Willard, Mrs.
Frances Carr, Mrs. A W. Conant Miss
Belle Cushman. Mrs. Charles E Bige-
low: Mrs. A. NJ. S. Butler, Miss Fannie
Bigelow, Miss May C. Butler. Mrs
John H. Jewett, Mrs. James H Wall,
Mrs. William S. French, Miss Clara
Billings.
A rising vote of thanks was given the
retiring officers. Mrs. Nathaniel Sea-
yer of Leicester, the retiring president,
presented a gavel to the league, and
Mrs. Sprague, in taking the chair, made
happy speech in which she said that
she had only accepted the position be-
cause the supply of minister's wives
was getting short and that she was the
first president not a clergymans wife.