The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1906-03-04
AMERICA IN LEAD AS
Y.M.C.A. STRONGHOLD
THO BRITISH IN ORIGIN AssocIA,
TON rs GREATEST HERE.
Total Membership Of American Organ
izations Is $4,000 More Than That,
Of All Rest Of World Methods En-.
ployed in United States Are Emu
lated Everywhere.

Altho' British in origin, the Y. NJ.
G. A. now finds it's home in North
America, as represented by this coun-
try and Canada. In membership,
property and ideas the Y. M. G. A. of
North America is acknowledged by the
other branches to lead the world, and
its methods are being so steadily
adopted everywhere that the time does
not seem far distant when the interna-
tional organization will be thoroly
An1ericanized.
The American Y. M. G. A. has $751;
900 members; all the rest Of the world
$4,000 less. The American membership
is sufficient to make city the size of
Cleveland, the seventh city in popula-
ton in this country. It would make
seven Peorias, or a Pittsburg, with
enough young men left over for Sa-
vannah, Ca Let each man stretch out
his arms to their full length, and have
his fingers touching the tips of other
fingers on either side of him, and the
line thus made would reach from New
York to Buffalo, or almost to Pitts
burg, or a hundred miles past Portland,
Me-, or eighty miles to the south Of
Richmond, Va.
Last years expenditures in North
America were sufficient to make sew
enty persons each worth the comfort
able fortunes Of 100000. If its prop
erty were to be distributed in 100000
| lots there would be portions for 300 per-
sons.
Has Great Library.
! One-fourth Of the 5000 associations
are in North America. The combined
libraries of these 1000 associations
would make two libraries as large as
the Yale and Cornell libraries, which
combined top 100000 volumes.
! It's 100000 men and boys in its 500
odd gymnasiums constitute the largest
athletic organization in the world. The
gymnasium feature originated in this
country.
While the educational idea origin
ated in England it owes its develop
ment and present status to American
efforts.
The first educational work in this
country was done in 1866 in the Twen-
ty third street branch of the New York
association. Peculiarly enough, three
or four classes were instructed in
| Greek and Latin. Now almost any
thing that will aid a man to earn d
livelihood can be studied in the Y. M.
G. A. classes and schools. The growth
Of this department is evidenced in the
specialties that it offers.
1 Bible Work Grows.
Bible education-the original Y. M.
G. A. educational :idea-is being ex-
tended beyond the members Of the or
CARNATIONS. A decided innovation is
the organization of Bible classes
among the members Of the college fra
ternities.
J The movement is meeting with great
success at Harvard; 600 Of Yale g stu
dents are studying the Bible under Y.
M. G. A direction. The 720 student as
sociations thruout the country have \
total membership Of $4,000, an increase
Of 10000 in five years.
The American Y. M. G. A. Is the
chief support of the movement in the
so-called mission lands; this is con-
ceded by the European branches. The
, methods that are applied here are used
. abroad. In Korea, for the first time in
that nation Is history, the men are be-
ing taught the value Of physical train
ing, with the result that the Korean
man is fast losing his desire to possess
long fingernails and hands that are soft
and feminine. For Korean to sweat
). is no longer to be disgraced.
. All this and more the American
l. branch Of the Y. M. G. A. has accom-
plished since 1851, the year Of it
founding in Montreal and Boston.