Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1902-06-16
HOME FOR THE rRlENpLsss

HOME FOR THE FRtENnLESS
Bismarck, June 12-Gattor Trihanss
AS there are doubtless persons in Bis
marc& who do not understand the
equities OF the Crfteentoa charities L
ask a little space IN Soas valuable
paper in which To eSp}afn> on Behalf Of
our Florence CrittenSon Circle Of BIS
unarck. Charles II, Cr$tteatea @as q
successful merchant III New York
years ago. d man Of mcrel lite bat
devoted wholly to business and ao~
sorbed in the pursuit OF WEALTH. when
suddenly arrested III his career Of
worldliness and converted by means
of the death Of his idolized lfttla &augA-
ter, Florence. He emerged from his
sorrow with his heart filed with the
resolve that he would expend the great
wealth that would have been his lost
daughters inheritance if she had lived,
for the salvation Of the lost but still
living daughters OF his fellow men.
Filled with this resolve, Mr.. C%rittenton
presented to Miss Francis Willard, the
sum of $1,000 to be used to found in
different states homes for fallen
women, to be called by his daughters
name. Miss Willard gave 81 1000 to
the W. C. T. U. of North Dakota, which
NO 11Soa ~, h,,i1Isrr tho frcf L1N,.o,,ao
Crittenton home lat Fargo, the real es-
tate being donated by a Fargo lady.
Mr.. Crittenton subsequently elaborated
his grand system of a National Flor
Ice Crittenton Mission, chartered by
the United States government. with
headquarters in New York, conducting
a chain. of homes, one in each state in
the union. His donation to the Fargo
home having been a gift to the w. C.
T. u, could not be recalled, nor did he
wish to recall it. He made the society
an advantageous offer to place this
home in the chain of homes Under care
of his mission, OF failing in that to re-
sign the name. At the same time lie
with his lady assistant, organized the
circle in Bismarck with the intention
of building a home in case the w. C. T.
declined his offer. This was did the
same year and the circle in Bismarck
began the work Of preparing to build
the home. We have me: many trials
and obstacles in our work but happily
those are things of the past. The
hand of the Lord is perceptibly leading
us. and we feel that his blessing is up
on our work. ~ =
Our circle looks confidently to the
good women of Bismarck for sympathy
and help which we naturally expect.
Our cause is humanity's own and it is
as wide as the world. No woman ever
reared to honorable womanhood fair
young daughters of her own whose
heart does not go out in tenderness
toward the weak and tempted daugh-
ter of other less fortunate mothers
and feel the desire to shield them
equally with her own No mtoher
ever loved a babe of her own who could
look on suffering children without be-
ing moved to try to relieve their dis
tress and make them happy even as
her W little ones. Moreover no par
ents "a be sure that their lives in this
world will be prolonged to bring up
their children to years of maturity.
Neither can they be sure even those
belonging to Jul beneficent fraternal
orders that if called from life their ar
rangements for the maintenance and
education of their children shall not
fail, for life, as most of us have exper-
fenced. is a series of changes and
strange mutations in social conditions
are more often the rule than the ex-
ception. Neither can any father OF
mother feel positively sure that if COM
PEELED to die and to leave their little
daughters behind them, they will grow
to womanhood untouched by the dan
gers and temptations that are insep-
arabic from life in this world, would II
not be a happiness in the last hours
to know that there were homes pro.
vided, where the most unfortunate and
the least Of earth's little ones would
become a loving welcome and homes
be found for the homeless2 The plar
of VI home in Bismarck yilI f;ffe1
materially from the usual order o
homes in the Crittenton chain. Sine,
! have been engaged in this work it n.
been borne in upon my mind that
could be happier in working for Womel
who had always led good lives, tina
for those who had gone astray from
the path of right, although this is mo
in accord with Biblical admonitior
that there is more joy in heaven owe
the recovery Of one lost sheep tina:
over many who went astray. M
companions In the circle sympathize
with this feeling and we petitioned gu