The Montgomery advertiser., 1907-04-29
TAFT SPEAKS TO Y. M. (. A. ',ecretary Helps Lay Cor ner Stone. HIS VISIT 10 DAYTON Dwells Upon Service tn Foreign
 Dependencies. Religious Organization of Men Has Brought About Spirit of ToIera-
 ton Among Christians of
 the wsFid.

l Dayton. O.. April 2s.-Secretary of | War William H. Taft, delivered the prin
 cipal address here today at the laying
 of the corner stone of the new build
 ing of the Young Mems Christian As-
 sociation. He also handled the trowel 1 as the stone was lowered into its place
 and smeared the, mortar around like | a master mason. l The secretary in company with his
 brother. Charles F. Taft. left Ciucin-
 natl early today and arrived here at
 noon. His friends had planned a pa- rade of civic societies before the lay ing of the corner stone, but by the
 wish of the secretary, this was dis | pensed with. The secretary was given a fatter-
 ing reception by a throng of about I 5000 people
 | After expressing appreciation of his good fortune in being able to be pres- ent on the occasion of the dedication
 of this great new building in your
 beautiful city to the high purpose of
 the Young Mems Christian Associa- tion.' he said:
 "The advantage of the institution | Is after long experience, 1t has come to be conducted on the most approved business principles and while 1t fur nishes, on the one hand. an opportu- nifty for the contributions of those who love their fellow man. it furnish es. on the other hand. an example of assistance to those who need assist anee which is not extravagant or ex- cessive and which does not discourage self help by creating a spirit of de- pendence in those who enjoy the ben- efits which it offers.
 Religions Are Tolerant. Another characteristic of the asso- citation is non-sectartan religious quality. It believes in the Christian
 religion, is tolerant, liberal in it's scope and knows no race. denomina tinn; no politics The truth is. the growth of the Young Mems Christian Association has been an evidence of. | and at the same time. an assistance 1 to the growth of the spirit of Christ ian tolerance among all denominations We are all more tolerant today than formerly. I never was so fully con-
 scious of this fact as when the ques- ton arose which had become intense ly acute in the Philippine Islands In regard to the continued ownership Of a large body of agricultural lands by certain religious orders of the Roman Catholic Church. By circumstances not really connected with religious conditions at all, but growing out of political conditions, the Catholic peo- ple of the island had been aroused 10 bitter hostility against ownership or these lands by the religious orders and with the restoration of peace and the resort to the courts (to which the orders would have been entitled) for inc collection of rents or the eviction of sixty thousand tenants, the pros- meet of a new instruction was imi- ant and the solution which onered itself was that he government shouIo buv these lands from the 1riars anu then sell them on easy terms to the present tenants.
 ever. if was necessary to secure the consent of the head of the Roman Cath ollie Church and 1t was thought wise' therefore, to send a representauVe to Rome to confer with Leo XIII, upon this question, in order. If possible, 10 brtnr out a friendly and amicable so- Iution. But 1t was seriously objected that the Protestant denominations or Inc church would resent deeply the es- tablishment even temporarily Of what seemed to be diplomatic relations with church.
 "Finally. the President, after con- sultfnR the representatives of the lead ing Protestant denominations, counted upon the good sense and the religious tolerance of the people of the United States and concluded to follow the or dinary business principle that when one wishes to accomplish a result he should deal directly with the person having the power effectually to agree upon the result desired and a repre- sentative was sent.
 The business, after much negotia- ton both at Rome and at Manila, was finally concluded and no persons were more considerate of the difficulties pre- sented and sympathetic with the policy adopted to meet them by the Presi- dent than the Protestant denomfna- tions whose opposition had been feared,
 "I venture to think that fifty years ago. such a result would not have sue ceeded and that the motives of the government and of the President would have been misunderstood or miscon- strued. I regard that as one striking instance of the greater brotherhood that now exists between the great Christian denominations"
 Y. M. c. A. I'm Foreign Lands.
 Secretary Taft said that he had not thought it especially appropriate for him to deliver an address on this oc- casion, as he had not been particularly identified as an individual with Y M. c. A. work.
 "But, when I remembered" he said,
 the opportunities we have for obser- vation of the usefulness of this asso- citation in the army of the United States, in the Philippines. on the Isthmus of Panama and in other foreign depen- dencies, I felt that I should be failing to render testimony which, was due this occasion. if did not say some thing upon the subject of the scope of its operations within my official coRni- zance had to put myself seven thousand miles from home really to know the power for good this associa- tion exerts.,'
 The secretary referred to the great
 work which the association was doing
 for the elevatisS and assistance of
 railroad employees and to the fact that Congress had given authority to the secretary of war to grant permission
 to maintain in all military reserves
 such buildings as the work for the
 promotion of intellectual, physical and
 moral welfare of the garrisons may require.