The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1913-05-19
MRS. STEVENS LECTURE
Prominent w. c. T. L. Leader Adj
dressed "a Large Gathering at the
Temple sunday Evening

! Mrs Mabel H. stevens. who Sunday
might at the Temple theater was greet
led by an audience that completely
IfHed the lower part of the house. ranks
as state evangelist of the Woman's
IChristian Temperance Union, and prov
TO be a splendid elocutionist and the
/ ipOssessOr Of a fine voice, the faintest
whisper of which could be heard in
! the farthest corner Of the house. \
jsplendid orchestra rendered several
! beautiful selections which added much
Ito the pleasure of the occasion. Mrs.
! w. T. Gary. the president of the local
union, was in charge of the cere-
monies and introduced the speaker,
while the Rev w II. Coleman invoked
1.-The divine blessing
/ Mrs. Stevens began by reading the
18th chapter of Hosea, and gave an out
/ line Of his unfortunate matrimonial
career, and then delivered an address
on Christian citizenship, dividing her
!subject into three sections: knowledge,
| lLoyalty and Work. She said it was the
duty of every well meaning citizen Of
any town to have a thorough knowI-
! edge of all matters tending to the up
/ building of that town. to be filled with
an earnest loyalty to the town. ana 10
| be always busy in promoting its best
/ Interest and along this line she paid
/ her respects to a knOcker and inti-
mated that if one of that fraternity
had a spark Of manhood or decency
left he would fold his tents and hunt
lup a new pasture. She drew vivid
ipicture of a man who devoted all of
lhis energies to his business and home
but none for the public good and said
h1 I, II
of some church, and that while he con-
tributed to the necessary expenses of
said church he was governed not by
what he could afford or as a full return
for the blessings received, but entirely
ed, which was a selfish proceeding al
together.
She explained her position on the
suffrage question, that while she was
not advocating the cause vet if the
fright to vote was given to women she
twould always be found depositing
ballot for every reform that tended to
the saving of boys and girls She gave
the words of a Floridian whom she
termed cracker woman who in speak
ling of men doing all the voting said
IF the men have found something they
lean do without the help of the women,
for goodness sake let them do il"
She told of the work being done by
the w. c. 7. L. in receiving and assist
ling emigrants as they first set foot on
t.\merican soil and said that those who
IObject to the numbers who land here
IeYeTy week forget that il is but a
few generations hack since their own
ancestors left their native land and
lcame to this country to better their
condition even as the emgirants of to-
Iday are doing; the difference, however,
being that a very large percentage of
; those now landing stay in large cities
and drift into sweat shOps. OF the
horrors of these shops and factories
and the slums in which these people
live, and the way they are crowding
back other homes and places of busi-
mess she gave graphic description
and said that in the city of BQston tive
churches had been pushed out of their
2 original neigh borhood and We're now
fused as saloons.
= In most dramatic manner Mrs
: Stevens described the scenes she had
: witnessed in her visits to various pris,
IONS and insane asylums, and while
: lmuch of it was the work Of the saloon
,yet she charged that the neglect OF
IhlOtHtiS III the care anu oversight
a her children was responsible for
!, great deal of it; children are allowed
= on the streets at all hours, they arr
n permitted to read any kind of book
e and TO sing rag-time ribaId songs o
a the most vicious kind while thei
p mothers are busy with their clubs
r bridge parties and social functions gen
s Ierally. Children demand recreation bu
mothers should see 10 1t that it is no
lturped iatq a vicious indulgence.
. \ remarkable fact stated hy IN
e speaker was that f5 per cent Of the ha,
e women of the country We're from ESQ
e Icalledl respectable homes, where the
v had been given all the advantages .
3 our schools and churches. bur had no
X been advised or controlled by parents
e but allowed 10 spend their time an
a choose their companions as their ow-
d pleasures might dictate, and the resul
was as stated that they had give
- their lives to depreciation and vicious
ness. Speaking as a mother ana re