Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-03-13
PRESIDENT At CHURCH
Addresses American Tract
Society and Guests.
LARGE CONGREGATION
TELLS OF NECESSITY FOR GREAT
WORK FOR CHRIST.
Endeavors to Help Immigration-Im-
provements Noted in Half Cen
tury-Secretary's Report.


Grace Reformed Church, 18th street near
Rhode Island avenue northwest, of which
President Roosevelt is member, was
crowded to the doors yesterday morning
when the chief executive delivered an adj
dress at meeting of the American Tract
Society. The devotional services, which pre-
coded the meeting, were conducted by Rev.
DR.. Schick, pastor of the church. Justice
Brewer honorary vice president of the tract
society, presided and made a brief address.
and report was made by Rev. Judson
Swift, field secretary at New York.
The President walked to and from the
church. as is his custom. He was unac-
companied by any of his family, and. one
of the speakers, did not take seat in his
pew, but on a platform back of the pulpit.
Many persons who could not gain admit
tance to the church gathered on the outside
to watch his arrival and departure.
Justice Brewer called attention to the
great work of the American Tract Society
and pointed to the need of such work, espe-
cialy in this day, when, as he SAID the
country is advancing so fast in material
things that there is grave danger OF corrup-
ton like that which came to ancient Rome
He said more was needed of the teachings
of the meek and lowly Jesus
President Roosevelt's Address
Justice Brewer presented President Roose-
welt as the man who is qualified to speak
politically for the nation and who is glad 10
express his aspiration to higher things.
The President said:
Mr.. Justice DR.. Schick and you, my fell
lew members of this congregation, and our
guests who are with us today:
IT am glad on behalf of this church, to
say amen to the appeal that has been made
bv Dr. Swift on behalf of the great soclety'
to the account of whose WORK you nave
been listening. Mr.. Justice, You quoted the
advice of a poet TO be doors rather IMAM
dreamers.' In the book of all BOOKS theie
is a sentence to the same eject, be We
doers of the word and not hearers only.
Let US show ourselves today doors OF Inc
word upholders in fact of what mas eeeh
preached to us by DR.. Swift.
He has set forth the needs of the SO,
cety and he has set forth the great neid
over which it works. l wish to touch only
on a small portion of that Held, but. aitei
all the portion that most concerns us-lhe
need here at home. here In this country, OF
furthering In every way the Work OF tne
eociety the work of all kindred societies,
both among the native born ana among tic
thousands who come to these SHORES IN.
abroad And there Is a peculiar propfie.s
i'm such an appeal being made 10 inns
cburch for as | have said here before, TINS
church more than most others shoulo ever
keep before 1t as part OF Its duty, as one "
the chief parts of Its duty, that OF carllis
in all WAYS but especially in spiritual ways
for the people who come to US from aoIoau'
'''The United States government Goes en-
deavor to do its duty by the lhlthislaiitS
who come to these shores, and was giau'
DR. Swift, to listen 10 what you said as ~
the work that is being done on Ellis Island,
for # is a lust tribute 10 that work bu.
unless people have had some experience
with the dangers and difficulties surround
nd irS,p, itrrn MT
hardly realize how great they are. The I'M
migrant comes here almost unprotected; he
does not, as rule, know our language; ne
is wholly unfamiliar with our INSTITUTIONS
our customs, our habits of life ana ways
of thought; and there are, / am sorry TO
say. great numbers of evil and wicked peo-
pie who hope to make their, livelihood by
preying on him. He is exposed to innumer-
able temptations innumerable petty oppres-
sions on almost every hand,$ and unless
Some one is on hand to help him he liter
ally has no idea where to turn NO greater
work can be done by a philanthropic or re-
lgious society than to stretch out the help
ing hand to the man and the woman VINO
come here to this country to become cltl-
zens and the parents of citizens, and there
fore to do their part in making up for veal
or for woe the future of our land. II we
do not take care of them, if we do not try
to uplift them, then, as sure as fate, our
own children will pay the penalty. Ii we
do not see that the immigrant and the chill
dren of the immigrant are raised up, most
aSSuredly the result will be that our own
children and our children's children are
pulled down Either they will rise or we
shall sink. The level of wellbeing in this
country will be a level for all of us. We
cannot keep that level down for part and
not have it sink more or less for the whole.
If we raise 1t for part We shall raise 1t to
a certain extent for the whole. Therefore,
it means much, not merely to the immi-
grants, but to every good American that
there should be at Ellis Island the colpor-
tours of this society and the representa-
tives of other religious and philanthropic
societies to try to care for the immigrants
body, and. above all, to try to care for the
immigrants soul.
Body Must Be Cared For.
at is, of course, unnecessary to say that
the things of the body must be cared for;
that the first duty of any man, especially
of the man who has others dependent upon
him, is to take care of them, and to take
care Of himself. Nobody can help others If
he begins by being burden upon others.
Each man must be able to pull his own
weight, to carry his own weight; and,
therefore each man must show the capac
ity to earn for himself and his family
enough to secure a certain amount of ma
teral wellbeing. That must be the founda
ton. But on that foundation he must build
as superstructure the spiritual life.
"One of the best things done by this So
ciety, and by kindred religious and benev
olent societies, rs supplying in our Ameri-
can life Of today the proper ideals. 1t is
good thing to have had the extraordinary
material prosperity which has followed so
largely on the extraordinary scientific dis
coveries alluded to by Justice Brewer, if
we use this material prosperity Alright. 1t
is not good thing. it is bad thing, if
we trust it as the be-all and end-all of our
life. If we make ii the only ideal before
this nation, If we permit the people of this
republic to get before their minds the view
that material weli-beinp GA FRIED to an ever
higher degree in the one and only thing to
be strven for, we are laying up for our
selves not merely trouble. but ruin. l, too,
feel the faith and hope that have been ex-
pressed here today by the vice presirent and
the secretary of the society. but so feel be-
cause l believe that we shall not permit
mere material we'll being to become the only
ideal in this nation, because / believe that
more and more we shalt accustom our
selves to looking at the great fortunes ac-
cumulated by certain men as being nothing
in themselves, either to admire. to envy or
to deplore, save as they are used well or
i'll. If the great fortune Is used well, II