The Washington herald., 1909-02-21
One Organization Pays Inter-
est on Borrowed Time.
SOME as AID TO MARRIAGE
Others Formed 60 Prevent Unions.
CiBdercIIas in the stock Yards Dis
trict OrEanize-Pretty Sentiment in
the Rose CIub-SOme Wear Green
the Year Round-SuicIde Clubs.

WINDY City lS tne nome OF the Usual
fraternaI and benefit organizations, Sc
cret and open. But il also has. probably.
more than its share Of freak societies.
4 dingy harness shop, all hung about
with straps and shining trappings for
horses and redolent Of oak tanned leath-
Ct and black wax. is the headquarters
Of one Of these that has no prototype.
Al the members are spare faced, solemn
graybeards- The oldest is more than
ninety-two and the youngest is seventy
nine years Of age The aggregation is
living refutation Of the Osler theory, for
these old men are comrades in clubdom
only because each believes in work and
Is sworn te labor TO the end OF his days.
Their guiding principle is that every hour
Of mans life after 1he is seventy years
old Is borrowed time, on which ne must
pay interest Their organization IS named
the Borrowed Time Club
For thirteen years the Borrowed Time
Cub has held councils al regular inter-
vals in the harness shop where by day
z. T. Robbins. now beyond niuety-twO.
stitcheS on enough buckles to keep his
interest paid on borrowed time. AiT.
Robbins owns the shop and Is president
Of the club, as well as its oldest member,
says the New York Tribune.
Although only forty residents Of that
part OF Chicago in which Mr.. Robbins
home is situated are enrolled on the club
register. and thereby pledged TO pay in
teTest on time, al who know him and his
boy chums' honor them and their the
ory Even the children look UP 20 these
men as the sases Of the neighborhood-
When Mr. Robbins was ninety-two
crowd Of boys and girls tripped caroIing
l.
and big bouquets. He didn't biacken his
fingers with the harness needle that day.
but told his merry visitors he would have
70 work overtime the next day 10 make
I'D lost interest on the time he spent in
having fun For several years the non
agenarian had l00 associates IN his odd
society Death reduced the ranks but
left no record Of a broken pledge; every
man who has succumbed kept his inter
est paid almost 70 his last breath
The Rose Their Emblem.
The Rose Club contrasts strikingly with
the organization Of silver hairs Il is
composed Of young. vivacious, and pretty
women It's president was known in her
teens as the Dresden china girl because
Of the daintiness Of her beauty. Although
= originated when its charter members
were schoolgirls. IL is no less Solomon
esque than the poStseptUag genarian So
cieJy OF men. Its motto is: Emulate
the rose in its wisdom. Just charm and be
silent" There is more in this than the
words themselves indicate. The motto is
= commandment against gossiping. When
Mrs Raymond Pitt. one Of the younger
set on Chicago's South Side, was the
Dresden china girl AT school. she and
her intimate companions observed that
much i'll feeling was engendered by sto-
Ties that both girls and boys peddled
about one another II gossip caused Tn
happiness IN school. they argued. il must
do greater harm in The older and larger
world. They resolved that they would
never gossip, and the better 70 maintain
their determination they formed the Rose
Club
Obey1nE their bylaws. these young WO-
men sleep on pillows embroidered with
rose leaves. IN the rose season they
bathe their faces with dew from the
roses They drink tea STEPPED from rose
leaves. saying L gives them health and
enhances the freshness Of their complex
ions Their perfume IS the sweet scent
OF roses. They never gossip. Their lin
gerie is adorned with rosebuds and bios
SONS. Their society IS a secret one II
you happen 10 see a rose daintily wrought
into the instep Of a silk stocking Just
above The tie Of an Oxford, on a summer
day. you VIII have discovered the So
ciety's emblem But II YOU ask the wear
er 10 lend YOU the. constitution OF the
Rose Club. she viii smile naively and re-
ply, "Oh. no. that is a sub-rosa affair"
Readers may recall the Cupid Club, form
ed by Chicago girls about the begin
ming Of leap year 10 extend their &C
quaintance with young men and afford
them q larger opportunity TO find their
soul mates. Since those courageous girls
began defying the accepted decree that
women should not WOO. a galaxy Of i'm
itatOTs has appeared in the Windy CITY
Ostensiby these had for their object the
founding Of happy homes By means Of
effecting marriages between persons
whose love for each seemed real and
might he made everlasting Mrs. CIoa
A Parker originated one Of these So
cieties naming il the Order Of Devotees
Of the Mystic Shrine She had little
faith that "lOve in a cottage could ripen
if, as she, said. the wolf howled at the
door Hence, when men and women
focked around her in a rush TO become
devOtees. there was massacre Of
names before the charter membership
was signed These were some of the in
violable rules adopted by the Shrine:
A member must be over twenty years
elor- The man must possess real estate
on which u build a home and in addi-
tion must have Sl.0o9 on which 10 begin
housekeeping when he marries. he must
prove his ability TO earn living for two
Both the man and the woman must be Of
good character and in excellent health 70
be eligible 10 membership. Divorced ap-
plicauts must prove that they were not
al fault when the divorce was granted"
Happiness for Divorces
When the Shrine met. the environment
harmOnized with the object Of encour-
aging love making In the Vendome. a
fashionable hotel in Columbian Worlds
Fair time. but now the home Of tenants
who pay high rents for fats and suites.
Mrs Parker's apar5ments-the man she
married had not bailt her a hOme-were
furnished with rich tapestries and silken
rugs. and scented with the spices OF the
Orient The number Of happy marriages
arranged there, however, has not been re-
vealed
A rival 10 the devotees was the Twink
ling Star Club It's principal aim. in
stead of being TO maintain the happiness
OF wives, was 10 insure unhappy ones
who procured divorces against want. A
marriage settlement on the wife was
required Of all men who Joined the
IWlnkllng stars and FOUND aff1nitleS
among them The founder and star Of
the first magnitude OF this club is a di-
vOTcee herself She was formerly the
wife Of f. H. Carpenter. 2 broker on the
Chicago Board Of Trade. To give the
organization eclat she calls herself the
Countess Frances de Caroux. prefxing
the title 10 the maiden name she had
when a girl in France
II is a good thing that men are not
all alike" said an old neighbor OF Sam
ueI J Tildens father
why so2" asked Mr.. Tilden. accord
ing % surElEing nlaxmate- who related