The Topeka state journal., 1908-07-13

Frank H. Foster, the oldest con-
tinuous active member of the club.
MT. Swftzer said in part: This
| bruised and battered token of our
| esteem has been rejected by club
members for over a score of years,
and now at last you in your turn are
to receive it. Why, in Gods name.
you should be tolerated still as a
member after being known intimately
| Tor so long I do not know. Your
| case was once referred to the supreme
court, but that body usual. dis
| sented In opinion. But merely to
show you that the springs of friend
ship are not parchoc and that we
all love you dearly 1 present you with
this cup. 1t is the co-census of mod
ern opinion, however, that love is as
blind as a bat. This cup is large and
deep and should serve you we'll in this
life and still in the hereafter, either
as vessel from which to dip into the
fountains of the shining city, or for
use in moistening lips parched by
eternal fires"
The speakers words were light and
excited much laughter. but all this
did not hide the real feelings of the
club when the oldest member arose
and gave thanks for the gift.
The Dean Speaks.
John Macdonald started to read
his speech on Infancy and Man
hood" when the club members
| threatened to put out the lights.
All were awed, however, by the
speakers solemn words: 'T propose
to deal with man in his concrete form
from the cradle to the grave" The
presiding officer tried 10 stop him. but
Mr.. Macdonald proceeded with un-
disturbed serenity to review the early
history of the club and point out the
self evident fact of its present
degeneracy and decay. He called the
names of the seven founders of the
organization and said: Men were
giants in those days" Gle repeated
this statement three times in the
face of disparaging remarks by some
or the new members.) He compared
the immortal seven to the fathers of
the republic, using the names of
Jefferson, Hamilton. Franklin, Pat
rick Henry, Morris and Adams, and
then when he reached the name of
Washington he paused and declared
that modesty forbade this COM
parison, but he could only say that
of the seven founders of the club the
speaker himself was the only one who
had never told a lie. profound
silence on part of audience.) The
speaker was nothing daunted and
concluded by declaring that the seven
founders above referred to were in
still robust health, and the member
ship of the organization had grown
from to 81.
Mckeever and "Our Victims"
Edwin McKeever. in speaking of
Our Victims" referred to the time
when he was president of the club and
how the members had tried to keep
him in the place, but he had insisted
on giving way to Mr.. Bone, and had
generously continued to perform most
of the latter's official duties. He laid
claim to the authorship of all of Mr..
Bones previous remarks and those yet
to come. CThat explains their dull
ness" commented club member)
The speaker went on to refer to Mr..
Macdonald as the inventor of Scotch
oats, and Mr.. Morgan as "the man
who has the job of making a senator
and as yet has 1t onlv half finished"
He spoke of Mr.. Troutman as the only
person who had been converted by the
articles of William Allen White and
said that Congressman Anthony had
come here to learn how to enforce the
prohibition law in Leavenworth. He
declared that Joe Waters was a neces-
sary factor in local society for the
season that he maintained a circulat-
ing library for the legal profession of
the city, and wound up by announcing
himself as one of Senator Curtis cam
paign managers and predicted that the
junior senator. under such skillful
guidance, would dictate the platform
of his party in 1912 and later the poll
cies of the nation.
Mr.. MOrgan's Sharp Retort.
w. Y. Morgan was introduced as the
man from Hutchinson who would fat
ten his batting average in the Western
league by telling of 1.-The Making of
Senator" Mr.. Morgan started out to
tell of the waves of the Pacific, when
some one told him that all the MEM
bers had read his book. "I wish they
had paid for it, replied the speaker
The Hutchinson editor then started in
on a beautiful description of Cow
creek and the milky way but never
finished it. He switched to a story
and was asked to tell something new.
He referred to w. H. Taft, but on mo-
ton it was voted that this statement
be stricken from the rolls. Mr.. Nor
gan was game and continued: You
want to get a machine and have il
well geared and oiled. Then you must
get platform and put anti-railroad
and antitrust planks in 1T. ("Why
not run on your record ?" asked some
one.) / am nearly through. (Cheers.)
Finally and lastly tremendous ap-
plause) 1 want to say that I have
withstood all your attempts at roasting
me and consider them as puny ef-
forts" Here the speaker wa sinter-
rupted by remarks of a disparaging
nature, but he went on and finished
his speech in triumph.
Troutman and His Stories.
James A. Troutman started in to
speak on the subject "Once and For
ever d SATURDAY I~lSHter, out was IN
terrupted by criticism of his modula-
ton. He came right back however
by telling a story about st. Peter.
After brief remark or two about
Bryan and Taft he started in on sec
ond story and finished it in spite of the
protests of all the club members. The
story was used as an Illustration of the
depth of meaning conveyed by the
word forever in his subject. "Sup-
pose bird should start out to remove
a the grains of from he
shores of the world, a grain at a time.
to the most distant of the stars, and
then bring them all back again, that
job would occupy only the beginning
of the time implied by the word for
ever" Some one asked the speaker
to reneat the story and another menn=