The Wisconsin weekly blade. [volume] (Madison, Wis.) 1916-1925, 1916-12-21
Pen Picture of the Present Head of
the G.. U. o. of o. F. Grand
Patriarchy, Military Branch

in America.
Morris Lewis, the subject of this
sketch, was born in Chicago H., June
6, 1875, on what was Butterheld Street
afterwards Armour Avenue and now
Federal Street,, near West Thrtieth
Street. He ha sresided in Chicago all
MAI. GENERAL NORRIS LEWIS,
Patriarchies of America.
of his life. Mr.. Lewis first attended
the old Branch School, then part
of Douglas School, on Dearborn Street
between Twenty-ninth and Thrtieth
Streets. When Keith School was OPP
ened in 1884 he was among the first
pupils to enroll therein.
AS part Of his education Mr. Lewis
attended Bryant and Stratton Bust
ness College, the Chicago Athenaeum,
and also the night school classes at
the Old South Division High School,
where he acquired his knowledge of
shorthand. His employment and bust
ness training have been for four years
in the office of Lorenzo l.. Burke, court
reporter, where he was employed as
clerk and typewriter operator; four
years in the office of Attorney Luther
Latin Mills as clerk and stenographer
Mr.. Lewis has been in his present
position since December, 1898, when
he was employed by Hon. Ferdinand
w. Peck, who was United States com
missioner general to the Paris Expo
sition of 1900 With this commission
he was first employed as sergeant-at-
arms in charge of the reception room
of the commission. Later his work
took in typewriting, and still later he
was assigned to stenographic work,
and his proficiency proved of such
merit that when the list of employees
to go with the commission to Paris,
France, was made up Mr.. Lewis found
he was slated as one of the private
stenographers of the commissioner
general, and upon arrival at Paris
served as Mr.. Peck's private secretary,
living for over 10 months at the CAPT
tai of the French Republic.
While abroad Mr.. Lewis visited Liv-
erpool and London, in England; Mu-
Mich, Heidelberg, Strassburg, and
other places in Germany; Brussels and
Antwerp in Belgium. and the famous
battlefield of Waterlo. Mr.. Lewis also
witnessed the great Passion Play at
Ober Ammcrgau, in 1900, as well as
the unveiling in Paris of the Lafayette
Monument on July 4, 1900, this monu~
ment being the gift of the school chill
dren of America To the French Re
public
So general was the satisfaction
given by Mr.. Lewis that when the
commission had finished its labors af-
ter his return to the United States,
Mr.. Peck took him into the private
Offices of his brothers where he has
since remained. In this Office and by
his former connections Mr.. Lewis has
come in contact with affairs of state,
legal matters, real estate. etc.
In 1896 Mr.. Lewis was joined in
marriage to Miss Irene McClclland. a
member and soloist of the old Quinn
Chapel choir. in which church they
both carried membership. Mr. Lewis
was the first of the secretaries Of the
Presbyterian Sunday School mt the
inception of this church in Chicago
about - years ago.
He has served as librarian and see
rotary of Quinn Chapel Sunday School
rs we'll as serving rs member of the
trustee board of the latter church. He
has served in like capacity in the work
of the institutional Church and So
cial Settlement
\ most conspicuous service on the
part Of Mr.. Lewis was as secretary of
the y VI {. A. building campaign,
wherein ne organized The office and
planned its work, handling force Of
3 90 10 stenographers and typIsts; is
0Q0 to 10000 names. which were COM
piled and duplicates eliminated under
his direction. He handled the filing of
over 5000 subscriptions to that fund
and entered over. ....of pledges, of
which pledges he also collected i'm cash
over $4,000.
He enjoys the commentator Of Mr.
J. f. Moorlaud and Mr. L. Wilbur
Messer, ardent Y NJ. c. \. workers
1t was during this " NJ c. a. cam
paign that Mr.. julius RoSenwald was
prompted to make his nationwide Of
fer in behalf of association buildings
for coiored men throughout the United