The Montgomery advertiser., 1904-07-20
THE REUNION OF ELKS
FORTIETH MEETING OF THE GRAND
LODGE IN CINCINNATI.


Cincinnati. July 19-While. the
eighteenth annual reunion of the Be-
nevolert and Protective Order Of Elks
has been In progress all this week,
the fortieth meeting of the Grand
Lodge did not begin until today, when
morning, afternoon and night sessions
were held. There has been much said
during the week about the admins
tration favoring certain ones as their
successors in the offices of the Grand
Lodge.
J. w. OBrien, Jr, of Baltimore was
called the administration candidate for
Grand Exalted Ruler. AS there are
but two candidates for Grand Exalted
Ruler, the lines are said to have been
drawn rather distinctly on the ballot,
which resulted as follows: w. j.
O'Brien, Jr., of Baltimore. ITO; Samuel
II. Needs of Cleveland, 379. Majority
| of O'Brien. 331.
So much time was occupied in Sec
onding speeches for O'Brien that a
| limitation was put on them. Nominal
ton speeches were made then for sew
en- candidates for Grand Secretary,
| two for Grand Treasurer, three for
Grand Trustees, two for Esteemed
Leading Knight, one each for Grand
Tiler, for Esteemed Loyal knight and
| for Esteemed Lecturing Knight, when
q icCooS was tdhCl OCiUCh uH-
| til 9 o'clock, for the purpose of having
all of the nominations printed on an
| Australian ballot and avoid the tedi &.
Gus counting of 100 votes for each
office, as was done for Grand Exalted
Ruler.
When the delegates were engaged
in these continuous sessions, there
was much agitation among the visit
| ing Elks over the exposures in the
| travagance In the expenses of certain
general officers and the discrepancies
| between the different reports.
The Secretary reported the expenses
of the Grand Exalted Ruler as S5,704,
and the Treasurer's report of the same
was $S,5SS. The Grand Secretary re-
ported his own expenses for the year
as $6.053, and the Treasurer's report
of the same was for 1854.
Grand Treasurer Needs reported hts
own expenses as s414, while the Sec
rotary records the expenses of Needs
as $97. 1t is explained that these dis.
crepancies are due to the demoralized
and incomplete condition of the rec
ords in the Office of Grand Secretary
Reynolds
No such explanation is given of the
charges of Grand Treasurer Needs of
extravaganza. Needs reports that the
$1,000 at the Baltimore reunion last
year, while the standing committees
and Grand Lodge drew $11,052. He
commends the deputies for not hand
ing in exorbitant expense accounts, and
asks that the Grand Treasurer be given
| more executive power, suggesting a
system of checking expenditures by
combination check and voucher, to be
signed by the Grand Exalted Ruler,
| q M
| Needs also recommends that the Grand
| Secretary be bonded for $4,000, and
| the Grand Treasurer for 100000. The
present bonds are just the reverse. He
reported cash on hand to date, $107,-
| 2S5.
There has been much comment re-
garded woman, Ballard. washington,
securing the secrets of the Elks' in
itiatory services by spying through the
windows Mr.. Tanning said that she
| seemed to have an extravagant desire
for notoriety. This woman was famil
| lar with some of the Elks' ceremonies
| but the newspapers had greatly exag-
gerated the case and the investigation
showed that her knowledge was not
| sufficient for concern and the Ballard
| Lodge was exonerated.
Judge OBrien, the new Grand Ex-
allied Ruler, in an interview tonight
| stated that there was nothing In the
rumors about extravaganza on the part
| of the Past Grand Officers, or members
of the committee. He said that every
| collar had been accounted for by the
Auditing Committee; that the dis
crepancies were due to the incomplete
ness of the records of the Grand Sec
rotary and to lack of details in the an
nual reports. which was explained bY
the itemized accounts that were fully
and carefully examined by the Auditing
| Committee.