The Belding banner-news. (Belding, Mich.) 1918-1973, 1918-09-25
IONA MAYOR
LAUDS WORK OF
BD. or COMMERCE
GEN. FRED GREEN GAVE GOOD
PATRIOTIC TALK AT MEETING
LAST FRIDAY NIGHT.

board OF commerce luncheon given in
the city hall auditorium Friday even
ing. The affair as far as the eats
were concerned was in the nature Of
a serve-self affair and started off
about $50 o'clock with everyone TAX
ing plate and going to the table
and helping themselves. Escalloped
potatoes, fine green corn, bread, but
ter, coffee, doughnuts, pickles, etc.,
and the feed was splendid and took
the place Of the regular supper ordin-
'arily eaten at home by the members
gathered. This was the first regular
meeting since Secretary Byron f.
Brown took his office and the corn
which was part of the meal. was
furnished by him from his farm west
and north of the city. Mr.. Brown is
undecided just what he will donate to
the next luncheon but it may be chick
ems. There are several members Of
the board who will volunteer along
with Mr.. Brown to make several
raids on neighboring hen coops. in or
der to accomplish this and make a
success of the next luncheon.
President r. Howard Hall called,
the meeting to order and then Sec.
B. F. Brown made a fine speech set
ting forth the aims and objects which
he had and which he would like to
see achieved by the board of COM
merce. He believed that every per-
son in the city ought to be member
of the organization and that good
stiff membership campaign would be
very beneficial to the city and all
concerned. His talk was very en-
thusiastic and showed him to be a
man big enough for the work con-
nected with his office. and people in
this city can rest assured that he
will boost for Belding at every given
opportunity and that if the chance ev-
er offers for boom here, Mr.. Brown
will be there ready to manage it.
Mr.. Brown would like TO see perma-
nent memorial to soldiers and sail
ors in the national service erected
in their honor and suggested that the
famous flag fund unknown its where
'abouts and elusive though it seems to
be, be corralled and used for this or
some other good patriotic purpose.
His ideas met with the approval OF
the members and guests gathered.
President Hall then introduced
Tonia. Gen. Green complimented the
city of Belding on its splendid board
of commerce and stated that its ac-
tions were a credit to- the place. He
tcld of the splendid patriotic spirit
which the people of this country had
shown in the previous Liberty loan
drives and that there had as yet
been no disagreeable features crept
into any of the drives. He praised
our bankers for the noble and pat
riotic manner in which they had un-
der written the Liberty loan sub
scription for this county and said that
he pitied the person who though able,
took no part in financing the war. He
said that the greatest joy in life is
service, whether it be the soldier who
lays down his life onf fthe battlefield
for the cause of his country, or wheth-
er it be the person who does service
for the good of his community or his
Nneighbor He praised our home
town loyalists and said that the per-
son who had not good word for his
own city. had better more.
! Mayor Green said that the board of
commerce had big duty to perform
in the aising of the quota for the
Fourth Liberty Loan and he spoke of
the great cause for which this money
was being raised. He told of the
sacrifices which must be made. He
told of one young man. a foreman in
his employ at Ionia before the war,
who had glorious prospects for the
future, but who when duty called,
enlisted and after time was SER.
iously wounded and while he was ly-
ing in the hospital he wrote fine
letter home telling Mr.. Green how
glad he was to have been Of service
to his country and that while he was
of. no more use to the nation as a
ever for reed work. And then, ccm-
plicationsf set in and the young sol
der succumbed and his body is buried
somewhere in France. He said that
Just as this young man had freely
given of his services in the same
manner should everyone give towards
the Fourth Liberty Loan.
Mayor Green stated that there
were no flaws to pick with the pres
ent winning the war program and
said that the thing to do was to
boost and not notice the few and
scattering derogatory remarks which
would from time to time be heard.
He closed by calling on every person
in Belding to lend every effort to aid
the men who are pushino on the war
to successful conclusion and holy
peace. 1u
Alfred r. Locke, former prosecut-
ing attorney cf Ionia county, was al
so present. Mr.. Locke when a boy
lived here and he said that it was al
ways a great pleasure for him to
come here. He went back over a
long time and recalled some pleasant
incidents and good times which he
had here in his younger days. He
thought that the people Of the nation
were more than 80 per cent loyal and
that they would do any amount Of
to further the cause for
which the nation is fighting. He
also urged united support for the
Fourth Liberty Lean drive.
The board of commerce members
voted unanimously to defray the
costs of the expenses of the coming
drives out of the treasury of the as
sociation, which is in better condi-
ton at the present time than at any