The Montgomery advertiser., 1902-09-16
CELEBRATION
Of Fiftieth Anniversary of Rebekah
 Degree by Olive Branch Lodge.


 Of Fiftieth Anniversary of Rebekah
 Degree by Olive Branch Lodge.
 Olive Branch Lodge, No. i, of the Re- bekah Degree. IndependeiftS Order Odd Fellows. celebrated last night the fif- teenth anniversary of the organization of the order. The meeting was held at To-. max Hall, which is the regular lodge room. The hall was tastefully decorat cd with sprays of madeira vines with their dropping blossoms tn, nantcl was bank ed with cenn. leaves and brilliant cuEs flowers. and vases of flowers adorned the tables. The members of the lodge wore pink aprons relievel ty green pink. and. green Icing the . ,lors of the order which mean everlasting friendship Mrs~ George A. Thomas, Treasurer of the lodge was master of ceremonies. x : !,
 At o'clock Mrs. Lulu Hurfbert, Noble Grand. called the assembly to order and introduced Mir. Thomas. The exercises were opened by singing the ode. MT. Thomas's Address.
 MT. Tn )mas then made the. address of welcome. On September %, 1851 he said. the Order of the Rebekah Degree was given birth. It had been opposed by the Sovereign Grand Lodge who believed that a womans lodge would not redound to
 
 well these women had done, he said the whole world knew. The Rebekah De- gree was the most wonderful on the face of the earth, and the members spread friendship, love and truth.
 He told of the strength of the order, how the Rebekahs hastened. to the re- lief of the distressed of their members, and spoke especially of their work at the time of the Johnstown flood and the Galveston storm. Their work said Mir. Thomas show that the Rebekahs do not sleep-they are up and doing. They go into homes and do good that men can not do and are indeed 8 blessing to the Order of odd Fellows. In Alabama the Rebekshs have fewer members than in other States, but their work has been greater in proportion.
 Rev. Walter A. Crawford followed MT. Thomas
 MT. Crawford's Address.
 Mir. Crawford spoke on the Biblical meaning of the order. The teachings of the order. he said, are founded on the inspiration of the Word of God. He was frequently asked why he took such an interest in Odd Fellowship and the Re bekah Degree. His answer was that 1t was not because of the teaching of the orher but what 1t was founded on-the Bible.
 The Biblical teaching of the branch was first, Supreme Being. No one is ever admitted who does not believe in God. It is impossible for a skeptic or an inf1del to become a member. The second teaching is to relieve dis tress. The third Is to visit the sick. The fourth was to educate the orphan. There is no class of people to whom their hearts go out as to the motherless and father less children. The fifth teaching is the Christian burial of their members. This is practiced and when a member dies. she Is followed to her last resting place by the sisters. The sixth is industry. The seventh is peace. No order can exist. without perfect peace and harmony. The eighth is purity. The ninth is charity. This is the greatest truth of all that is. taught by the Odd Fellows They ha'e done more than all orders put together along the lines Of charity.
 Mir. Crawford spoke eloquenty of this great teaching of love and closed by say ing that this was the greatest teaching of all in love to God, and love to fallen race and. especially the distressed.
 Mrs. George R. ,Doran, one of the nov ing spirits and brilliant lights in the or der in Alabama, then spoke the Pounding of the Rebekah Degree ami It's Growth"
 Mrs. Doran's Address.
 Mrs Dodon spoke as follows:
 Brothers, Sisters and Friends :--Th,s night marks the end of the fif- tieth year of the continued ex- istence of the Rebekah Degree. Schuy- Ter Colfax, the author of the new and popular Degree of Rebekah. at the ses- sion of the Grand Lodge of the United States held in Cincinnati, O.. September, 1850, suggested his idea of the Ladies Degree" as it was then termed. After a hard struggle Brother Coifax established the Rebekah Degree. Brother Colfax deserves. as he has re- ceived. the sincere thanks of the frater- nifty for his ornament to the building which our fathers framed.
 The first Rebekah lodge was instituted in the city of Rochester. N. Y. The early history of this lodge is most remark able one; will hardly find q parallel in that fraternal organzation. It is the first lodge so far as our researches have been able to discover. ever organized upon secret world especially designed for women. That ritual was first issued on the 9th day of December 1851, by the Sovereign Grand Lodge of l. o. o. F. It was then called the Grand Lodge of the United States" Only eleven days thereafter, to wit, on the 17th day of De cember. 1851. the degree was conferred out of that in full form upon thirty scar let degree members residing in the city of Rochester. and the wives of seven teen of them.
 The first to have the degree was Mrs. Mary w. Bradstreet, wife of the Mayor of Rochester
 Think what has been gained in fifty years Today there are over 353, ,166 Re- bekahs in the United States. You cannot travel in any part of the United States and foreign lands without finding a Re- bekah. Look at the orphans homes, homes for aged Odd Fellows and Re- bekahs-each has gained by allowing the