The Billings gazette. [volume] (Billings, Mont.) 1896-1919, 1901-06-14
KNIGHTS OF ROYAL ARCH.
Their National Organization Engages
in a Big Fight.

Anaconda Standard: Local liquor
men who went into the Knights of
the Royal Arch about six weeks ago
do not know exactly where they arc
at" The story 4s going about the
country that the knights Of the Royal
Arch, as an4C&ektanization, has gone up
the spout. The Anaconda saloon
keepers w~hogsjoined, organized a local
lodge and putup Sc each do not know
whether this Is true. They have their
local organization, however, and are
not worrying about the money they
paid. The organization was formed
several years ago at Hot Springs,
Ark, and its membership was limit
ed to those connected with the liquor
trade. In most other respects 1t re-
sembled other secret societies.
Recently there have been received
in Anaconda copies of "The Cham
pion of Fair Play" a liquor dealers
organ published at Chicago. This pa
per contained a lengthy article which,
in part, follows:
Greek met Greek in Cincinnati
this week, and the result of the clash
was the breaking down of the Royal
Arch and the organizing of the
knights of Fidelity. Notwithstanding
all the balderdash of the alleged Of
fical organs of the Royal Arch, the
Champion has been correct in it's con-
domination of the inner workings of
the Royal Arch. For months we have
been warning the trade against join
ing the rotten institution, and for
months the so-called official organs
and official organizers have been loud.
ly declaring that we were wrong, and
that all would be right in the spring.
Thousands of Royal Arche7s, re-
presenting the 10000 members, were
to be in Cincinnati this week. The
gathering was not up to the mark.
THE supreme council appointed a
committee on revision of the constitu-
which shows a total membership of
i 1880 quite q falling off from the
It's 900 claimed by the ~organizers).
finance committee, appointed to in
vestigate the books, said:
when the supreme recorder could
not show where the sums of money
he received for annual dues had gone,
except the $4,000 paid to the treas
urer, and only gave the general state
ulcAI IudC IL udu US0H pdlu " OISdl1I
zers by direction of the board of man
ayers, and had nc vouchers here to
show for it, I threw up the sponge.
The annual dues are So for each mem
Der, and first and last there have been
about 10000 members in the order
there are now nearly, 18,000-and l
should think that at least $4,000 or
$4,000 should have been received
from that source, but we were unable
to get a report of the amount, or
where and when paid out. It is claim
ed that all dues were not paid, but 1t
was the duty Of the supreme officers
to see that they were It is a jumbled
up affair.""
One of the local members Of the or
der said yesterday: "We understand
that there has been q scrap and q
split in the national organization Of
the order but we have received no
official advices from the grand lodge
sessions yet. We are not at all anx-
ious about the matter. We propose
to retain our local organization, which
we think will be Of benefit to US, and
II the split in the national organiza-
ton cannot be healed, we will afhliate
with One side or the other"