Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1919-12-28
TRUE HOSPITALITY
 SECRET OF LODGE
Visiting Brother Elks Should Not Be Left to Roam Alone When Away
 From Home.

The Elkian year begins in April, as the color of your lodge card l will tell you, and the exhortatlons l of the secretaries thruout the or i der fer dues will apprise you.
 But actually the year of Elk ( dom, as far as the social part ot ] our organization is concerned, be- ( gins about October, for about thls ! time the house committees are planning the things that will make ' for pleasure and enjoyment of the members of their respective lodges,
 In some, perhaps in many in
 stances, the plans are made tor the
 season; in others only from month
 to month and now and then only
 upon motion by some member who
 has become impatient as to what
 he considers the dereliction of the
 committee. Sometimes the house
 committee and the trustees clash;
 sometimes the board of governors
 and the entertainment committee disagree, and where a lodge has
 all of these different committees on the roster, it takes an exalted ruler with some ability to keep < them harmonious. It is pleasant to note, however, that in by far the large maJorl- ty of cases every one labors to a common end, to do the very best they can with what they have ln z hand. Of course, house committee, board of governors, entertainment committee, trustees or whatever \ the committee is titled that, at ; tends to the functions, always IS criticised chiefly by members who don't know the problems that have
 to be solved, and if asked to work | on any of the projects, in the
 words of Davy Crockett,
 "Wouldn't if they could and
 couldn't if they would."
 There is, however, a large duty, duty most vital to Elkdom that is the concern of these commit $ tees and much more the duty of
 the members of every lodge ana T especially those members who : chiefly enjoy the privileges of the
 club connected with ghe lodge. 4 This is the hospitality they should
 show to the visiting brother.
 The greatest offender along 8 those lines is the membership of
 the larger lodges, especially those ' of the large cities.
 Nothing is more pathetic and
 nothing can be worse arralgn-
 ment of the vaunted hospitality of
 a lodge than to see visiting ELK
 wandering aimlessly thru the mag
 nificent and expensive home of a N leading lodge with his hands be- = hind him and the look of 'I am
 lost in the wilds of big city, on i his face. ! He may be just waiting to ] catch a train and is trying to ! while away few hours, or he < may be stopping off or vlsltlne ! few days, and being an enthu- i hiastic Elk, thinks of the home : first and goes around there eX- ! pecting to be greeted as they greet | strange Elks when they visit his S lodge in the small city from which ] he halls. After the first half he 1 has read all the papers known S every intricate design of the rugs ! and carpet, has counted the chairs | guessed the weight of all the pin : ochle players as far as he coul( | judging from their backs, flgur s ed the age of the rum players iron ! the bald spots on top of then heads, and noted how supple al S the pool and billiard players were , when they jumped on the table { He did try to break thru the ict i once, when he said, "Hello, Bill : to some fellow reading, and tho 5 Bill" never raising his eyes from ! the box score, grunted "Howdy { way down in his throat, as if h' , had been insulted.
 ! If you are regular" Elk, fo s goodness sake help your lodge t , get a reputation for the hospitall 1T ty. Quit everything you are do 1 oing for few minutes and frater ! size. Grab the strangers hand $ as if he was your salary on pa. ] night, smile at him as if he wa the winning ticket in an auotmo ! bile drawing, then introduce hin | to everybody, saying in a clea 7 voice that everybody can hear dis ! tinctly, Meet Brother-fror { Blanktown, Alasippi," or wherev CT he comes from. Be sure ; t name his town; he is proud ofstha place and wants it known that h halls from there. His name doe ynot matter so much, but his lodg does. After that the othe sA brothers will take hold of him, c