The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1902-08-22
WITH ELKS
IN UTAH
Savannah's Delegate Among
the Mormons.

VIII the Savannah Lodge of Elks be
represented at the Grand Lodge to be
held in Baltimore next July by a spe-
cial band, uniformed or otherwise, as
some OF the Western lodges were at
Salt Lake City this year?
This is a question that has already
begun to be agitated in local circles of
Elkdom. Mr.. T. F. Thomson, local
delegate who has just returned from
the city of the Mormons, says that one
of the principal features of the gather
ing there were the uniformed bodies
from various places that took part in
the great parade, and for the most
unique of which handsome money
prizes were given.
The first honor was taken by a Mon
tana lodge, each member of which
marched in the habiliments, and with
all the accoutrements of a typical min
er. With picks and shovels on their
backs and in their rough clothes, stalk
ing alongside their slow -treading bur
ros, they made a fine showing and
were greeted with loud applause. An
| other of the prize winners was the
Cotton Pickers' from Greenville,
Miss. These went along in black face.
clad in the rags of the cotton field
darhies so familiar to Southerners, but
rarity in the far West, each with
bag of the fleecy staple on his back
And there were others that for orig
inality and expensiveness have never
been excelled. One of the Western
h0F dc i
pletely in leather of a maroonish tone
the facings and trimmings being of fine
white lace, the whole surmounted by
tall sombrero the idea being an i'm
personation of the Mexican vaquero,
so well known to the stage as a type of
cruel brigand. This last was the most
costly outfit in the procession, but
there we're others almost as fetching
In appearance.
Mr.. Thomson said that Salt Lake has
its drawbacks as a convention city.
To begin with ii is only of about So
600 to $4,000 population, and is not we'll
able to handle so large a crowd as
attends the annual assemblies of the
EIks. There We're present from all
parts of the country at least $1,000 Wis
itors and 1t was pretty hard to find
accommodation in some cases. Then,
too, some of the hotels felt that 1t was
up to them to make the most of their
opportunity, and rates We're run up
to almost prohibitive figures. Private
houses, on the contrary, were open to
guests at reasonable prices, due Mr..
Thomson said, to the advise of some
of the Mormon priests who had adj
vised their followers not to be exorbi-
tant In their dealing with the visitors.
In one case the occupants of a resi-
dence had encamped in the yard un-
der tent in order that a party of
Elks might find room in the house it.
self
Mr.. Thomson says that it is a mis-
take to say that the Grand Lodge met
in the Mormon temple, for that is a
building off to itself surrounded by a
double fence and into which none but
Latter Day Saint has ever been ad-
mitted. The meetings were held in
| what Is called the Tabernacle, the
| place SO renowned for its acoustic prop
critics. Standing in the rear of that
| vast hall" said Mr.. Thomson. IF there
| is perfect quiet one cas-. hear the noise
made by rubbing the palms together,
though the one who does it is standing
on the dais at the other end. The fall
of a pin can also plainly be heard at
the same distance"
| Salt Lake City is laid out In squares,
each $50 feet by $50, the orientation be-
ing perfect. The church structures oc-
cupy one of these squares.
The crowds were not as large as
| they have been at some of the past
| sessions of the grand lodge. While
Milwaukee last year had the largest
gathering that Elkdom has perhaps
ever known, that at Atlantic City two
years ago was better attended than
this. 1t has been demonstrated that
to go beyond the Mississippi river does
not add to the attendance, and it is
possible that it will be some years be-
fore the horned TRIBE goes so far West
again, though Frisco is endeavoring
to get one of the nearby years meet
ings.
OF course Baltimore, where the
crowds will go next year, is easy for
| the Georgia lodges, and that is why
| the Savannah members are already
| looking ahead. 1t will not be surpris-
ing If the locals capture a prize then.