Los Angeles herald., 1909-12-06

at 2:45 inctead of 2:30. Long before
the doors were closed there was not a
vacant seat in the house. The lower
floor was reserved for members of the
lodge and visiting brothers. Just be =
fore the curtain rose the Elks marched
in body to their seats, to the accom-
paniment of "The Marche Heroique," +"
by Du Rois, played on an organ hid
den behind a bank of palms. William
Edison Strobridge presided at the
organ.
Three taps of the exalted rulers
gavel brought the lodge to order. The
opening ceremonies consisted in. the
explanation by each Of the officers Of
what the duties of Elks consist. Once
more the gavel was tapped, this time
four times. Every Elk in the theater
arose The lights were eXtinguished
and a drop curtain at the back of the
stage was raised revealing a huge
cross to which was clinging the white
robbed figure of a woman, Miss Ethel
Stoddard of the Morosco dramatic
school.
Calls Roll of Those Dead
Slowly and impressively the roll Of
honored dead was called by Secretary
Conway. AS each name was called a
tiny electric light flashed until when
the last of the seVenty-nine names had
been spoken the cross was in blaze
fade, growing DINNER and DINNER
until all had been eXtinguished, leaving
only the outline of the woman and the
cross to the view. The drop curtain
was lowered and the lodge once more
resumed seats, while the Scottish Rite
quartet, composed of Jack Stuart
Gregg, first tenor; John Douglas
Walker, second tenor; William James
Chick, baritone, and f. b. McComas,
basso, sang Ambrose-Spicker' beauti-
full anthem, zone Sweetly Solemn
Thought"
The opening ode of the lodge was
sung by all Elks
Invocation was said by Brother w.
A, Woods, after which Mr.. McComas
rendered a bass solo entitled "Oh, Love
Divine"
Webster Davis was the orator OF the
day. He said in part:
To-day as we mourn the loss of our
sleeping brothers let us beseech the
kind winds to carry our sweetest mes
sages of love and fraternal aHection
for those of our brothers who, from
duty, misfortune. sickness or other
causes, are unable to attend these eX-
ercises as they are held today all over
this broad land.
Much Happens in One Year
"On this occasion we are impressed
with the fact that much may happen
in one short year. Gladness and sad
ness mingle. New faces appear in our
midst, while some that are familiar
have disappeared, never to appear
again until we cross over that mystic
river to pitch our tents in the shade
of the trees on the boundless plains
of tn spirit world.
"It is as natural to die as to be
born, and yet men fear death as chill
dren fear to go into the dark. The
fact of death does not so much i'm
press me as the fact of life. 1t does
not seem to be a hard thing to die
Any one may die in a short moment, II
he will; but to live is an achievement.
Human life seems like a pathway
that leads up a great mountain, and
all mankind are travellers along that
path The youth stands at the bottom
and his eyes are fixed on the summit
all his hopes and dreams of future
years are centered there. His entire
view is forWard-to the future. By
and by the weary traveller, after many
hardships, after overcoming many OBJ
stacles, reaches the top of the noun
tains and surveys the landscape over.
He looks backward over the path of
years, and he looks forward over the
path which slopes ever gently down
ward toward the west Finally, in the
rays of the setting sun there remains
for him but the glorious, golden view
of the close of lifes beautiful day,
when the clouds are tinged with their
glory of color, until the night closes
in soft and slow.
To-day we should not mourn for
those who have passed away; they
are victors; they rest in peace. We
| must not think of our losses because