The commercial. (Union City, Tenn.) 190?-193?, 1905-09-08
What is the W. G. T. VI
(By Silena Moore Holman, President
Of Tennessee w. G. T. U.)

Of Tennessee w. G. t. u
AS the w. C. T. u. comes to oul
city soon for their State Conven.
tion we thought it would be well
to give to the readers of the paper
a better idea of what this organi
zation is than most of them have
had before.
The Woman's Christian Temperance
Union is the largest organized body
composed exclusively of women, on
the globe. 1t has been established In
more than fifty different countries,
with hundreds of thousands of mem
bers. In the United States alone
there are ten thousand local unions
with three hundred thousand mem
bers. In Great Britain and Canada
the membership is also very large,
withia rapidly growing constituency
in many other countries.
Its membership is chosen from
among the very best women of every
land-Christian women, womanly,
pure, sweet, gentle; women of culture
and refinement; educated women with
high ideals, which through the organ
ization are evolved into practical re-
suits that make life beautiful.
That the organization stands for
total abstinence for the individual
and the prohibition Of the sale Of in
toXicating liquors in towns, county,
state and nation is well understood;
and that 1T does most effective work
in sentiment making to this end, has
been proven in a thousand hard. fought
dearly won battles to outlaw the IL
quor traffic.
But this work, effective as it is, is
but a small part of the work of the
organization; and when people object
to the organization of Woman's
Christian Temperance Union, or think
an existing one would as well disband,
because the saloons are gone, it shows
how little they know Of the work it
does.
The work Of the organization is
done through its departments, of
which there are about forty There
is one woman at the head Of each de-
partment in the National, the State
and Local Unions who plans for the
work Of the department, and Is re-
sponsible for the carrying out of the
plans. II necessary, III e whole
strength of the organization may be |
evoked in the interest of any depart |
ment. The work being thus system
atized makes it one of the finest or
ganized bodies on the earth; and be-
cause this work Is so magnificently
and so Systematically done,
because its ideals are high and its
methods for carrying them out purely
practical, because the ends aimed at
ire wholly unselfish and altogether
'Or the good Of humanity, 1t has ac-
and is accomplishing won
lerful things along its various lines
If endeavor.
No union undertakes to work In all
,he departments, but does that only
which 1t can best do, and which is
most needful In that locality.
One of its most important DEPART
nents is that of scientific Temper
Ince Instruction. Through this de-
laws have been secured in |
very state and territory In the United
'tates, and In many other countries
that the effects OF alcoholic
liquors and narcotics Including to-
lacco) on the human system shall be
aught to all the children in all the
ublic schools In all these states and
Through the efforts Of its Sunday /,
chool department, the quarterly tenn
erance lessons were introduced fnl !
he international Lesson Course.
Another work they do for the chill !
rem is to organize them into Loyal
Legi0ns, where they are
iven special temperance training.
'hese three departments largely cover