The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1901-03-12
CONGREGATIONAL CLUB MET
AT CALTARY BAPTIST CHURCH
LAST EVENING.

Supper Cleared Nearly $500 for Benefit
Of Y. M. G. Affecting Addressed by
Mrs. Sarah j. Bird, of New York,
Founder of Famous Gospel Settlement
For the first time in the history of the
Congregational Club its regular meellhs
was held last night in Il church othef IMAM
h one Of its own denomination; ms was
done at the invitation of the Woman $ AUX
Hilary Of the Y. NJ, G. A., who mad charge
Of the proceeds from the sale OF tne l lin,.
cts, which are to be devoted to furnishing
the new Y. NJ. C. A. building when COM
pleted. o4,, IN
the basement OF the church.. was IN every
way d success. 1t was an 1nterdenomina-
tional affair, twenty-one different churches
being represented, and most OF their pas
tors being present. In courtesy TO the III
rectors of the Y. M. C. A. the two large ta-
bles In the center We're reserved for them
and their wives together with the guests;
there was also special table for the I.
NJ G.. A. glee club. Rev. George Il. Ferris
of the Calvary church invoked the divine
all its appointments was served, each one
81 the tables being in charge of a vice pres
ident OF the Ladies' Auxiliary Music was
4 Furnished throughout by the Y. NJ. z. A. Or
Chestra, under the leadership OF frolessor
IA Mrs. Simeon ]. Fox was chairman of the
committee which made such excellent ar
engagements for the supper :, About 2I9
were at the supper and the ladies' cleared
nearly 5000 from the receipts.
Shortly, after eight O'Clock the company
adjourned to the main body OF the church,
where the meeting was called to order py
President Charles f. Clark Of Whitneyville.
Rev Mr.. Irvine led in prayer, which was
Followed by the reading of the minutes OF
the previous meeting by the secretary, Fro
fessor William T.. Chandler The CLUB was
then treated to a vocal solo by MIS- b.
Howard RUSSELL who was given ,appreci-
alive applause. This was followed by the
election Of the following new members:
William X. Townsend of Center church, 81,
James L. Nesbit Of Dwight Place church.
After the routine business the club was
again favored by musical selection by the
glee club Of the Y. NJ e. A.; aanosaoa -,
II The meeting was then briefly addressed by
President Clark, who said that the gather.
ing was peculiarly suspicious an that they
met as guests of the Ladies' Auxiliary and
under the roof of denomination nearly a..
lied to the Congregational church. He
then introduced as the speaker OF the eve
ming Mrs. Sarah J. Bird of New York city,
who Is the founder of the famous Gospel
settlement in the East Side. district, when
IL the central headquarters for rescue Work
In that city.
b Mrs. Bird is peculiarly sympathetic
SPEAKER and she showed throughout her ad-
dress a pathos that could come only from
the lips Of one who has lived bravely among
conditions of human wretchedness and
whose business it is to bring hope to the
despairing. "About fifteen years ago,
she said sin my mission work | visited
places on the east side so terribly sunk in
misery and shame that l determined here
after to work, not among those about to be
lost, but those who were already lost. A
policeman told me that In order to pursue
my work unmolested / must disguise my
self to go among those people, so, clad
as one Of them, entered life In the
opium dens and lodging houses OF the city
filled with terrible sights of men and wo.
men living together In utter depravity. II
seemed to me as II had gotten a thousand
miles away from Christian influences, into
d veritable hell upon earth"
4 Mrs Bird told Of the growth or her mis-
sion, first from visiting the lodging houses
with her co-workers, to establishing regn-
lar meetings on Madison street, and finally
removing to 55 Bowery, where every Sun
day an audience of five hundred men gath
ers and hundreds are turned away. 1.-THE
class of men," said she, 1--WE have in our
changing audience are many of
them educated. Lately. we had fifteen col
lege bred men there, who were given yari-
Dus things to do, scrubbing, sweeping, doing
anything to make their living The unfor--
tunates in our audience who are educated
make it one of the most intelligent in the
.iBut we do great part Of our work out
side. We have teas and socals in the ten
aments. We have them In the lowest ten
il making those who live there ambitious
to- lead more Clearly lives. We. recently
had three or four of these socials in the |
Red Light district, which is the worst place
IN earth About nine years ago | began
nv work, establishing myself one of the
worst houses that district. But gener- |
ally draw the veil over my work among |
fallen women; I feel that | cannot expose
the vice and misery of it."
In speaking of the anti-vice meeting which |
II to be called in Carnegie hall next Sun |
lay Mrs Bird spoke discouragingly of any
resent reform, saying that she cannot see
Only preventative. not curative i measures ~
ration and in some way meet the condI-
lions there or New York will lbecome a
lie allied with young women who walk up
md down until two and three O'Clock in the |
morning. speak with perfect knowledge |
,otten from daily contact and observation"
Mrs Bird concluded by answering ques-
ions put to her from the audience and de-
cribing her work among the hundreds of
oys who desert their homes to get work in
Jew York and fail. Many "reminiscences
{ the tragedy Of human life, proved to be
{ especial interest. One question put to
Ter was "Do you find JewsT' Find
ews!, she exclaimed, why, We're n,sI right in
,righter and more aspiring than other chill.
Iren, Their love of. knowledge is eating
b their physical and moral life. find
hem everywhere, stunted but alert. utterly
nd eager intellectually. They are eager
) leafn everything particularly if 1t does
It cost anything" Uaughter)
AFTER rising vote of thanks to Mrs. Bird
or her address, a hymn was sung and the
Meeting was dismissed with the benedic-
lon by Rev. Mr.. Luckey.