The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1918-12-02

The Benevolent and Protective or
der Of Elks is one OF the greatest
fraternities whose benefactfons have
smoother the pathway Of human life
and is distinctively American--link-
Ing the order with the destiny OF our
country. its flag has been made the
symbol of its browning virtue.
The cardinal principles of the order
are charity, justice. brotherly love and
/ tidelity
And now abIdeth faith. hope,
charity, these three. but the greatest
of these is charity
Charity means kindness, the relief
OF distress sympathy with the afflicted
and love of man for man. 1t ia always
considerate, modest and forgiving. al
ways brave, sincere and true. 1t
speaks no unkind word harbors no
evil thought, bears no malice sup
ports no wrong,
In the Golden rule which is the
foundation and ground work of our
order. hrotherly love finds its most
perfect expression and it is best ex
rmpfified by practising The teachings
OF our motto--"the faults Of our
brothers we write upon the sand,
their virtues upon the tablet of love
and memory"
II softens the stern realities Of life
and manifested itself In good fellow
ship In sym pathy and in kindness of
thought. word and deed. It has smiles
and laughter for us In seasons Of joy
and II sits with lis in the shadow
and weeps In the hour OF hereave-
ment. IT teaches us to scatter flowers
along lies pathway and to speak
words Of Kindness to the living as we'll
MS TO cherish the memory of those
| who have entered tho pastures OF
knowledge and are beside the still
waters of peace.
Our meeting today Is in obedience
/ to cur laws and according 10 custom.
TO pledge anew fidelity to the mem
DRY Of our brothers who have crossed
| over the river and rest under the
shade of the trees.
/ Day Of Tender Sentiment
afsree Fs2s1 Gay witt, W. ks ii day OF
+ tender sentiment, hope dries our
tears and with eyes of faith we may
/ see those whom we have loved and
lost awhile. faring on through a better
| land waiting the day when the chains
of fraternal love shall be reunited
forevermore. II is true that we call
| upon them in vain: they have passed
! through the valley of shadows into
! the sunlight OF eternal morning and
through the places that have known
J tIltf1 Siidii kflttN it}tlll no lflbtt Hltll
upon our tablets Of love and memory
, their names shall endure forever.
Strangers are not lured to the doors
Of our lodges by mercenarv motives
and social pIeasures-true, II Is a. So
cial organization and mutual assis-
lance follows naturally from our fol
lowship but in neither friendly as
sociation nor timely relief do we find
| tho mystic tie which unites us in one
great brotherhood. Far above and be-
yond these is the spirit Of true fra
ternity and It is this which united our
hearts and makes of each Elk a
brother,
Kirkland wrote, 1--WE are accustom-
Cd in these DAYS TO hear manv ancient
things called now-~new thought new
poetry. new religion are terms which
when stripped of their faddist con-
| notation can honestly claim novelty
/, Of approach in regard to these three
oldest OF spiritual activities. BY an
| analogous use of the word, now ono
may direct attention to the change in
every day living by the present con-
structibn upon death No one can for
| got them. no one can get away from
thcm--those boys dead upon the bat
| tie fields of Europe. There Is not one
| of us who has. not thought more
about death within the last three
years than in a whole lifetime before
/ and by their very intensity our
thoughts are new. This preoccupation
| is Il force too fresh TO be easily for
mulated while already it is SO persua-
Sive and SO profound in its effect
upon the Sn1otives and the standards
which must both sustain a world in
agony and rebuild Il for tho future,
| that the psychologist may well term
this naked intimacy with facts as an
| influence la so far. mainly an i'm
mense yearning receptively an I'M
precedented humility of both brain
and heart towards the implications
of the survival.
| Lives of Simple People
/ II is a great intuition entering into
! the lives of tho simple sort of people
who have made the past and will
make the futYfe. IT does not matter
( in the least Whether or not the in
i 'cllectuals share this intuition and It
does not matter whether or not this
! intui. ION is true, or whether future
generations. returned to the lassitude
of peace. shall again deny the pres
ent perceptions, what does matter is
/ the effect upon the emergent public
| life and private OF the fact that every
/ day men and women are believing
/ thai The dead live.
These every day men and women
are no. looking to their former teach
ers the scientist and the theolosians
/ for light upon death
/ In the urgency OF grief we turn
| instinctiveiy to more authoritative
I-sutarr r1an -rttt1er OF rfrese promise
! Before 1914 we have seen the discs
Establishment of the church as an I'M
questioned arbiter. since 1914 we have
4 seen the disestablishment of science