The Oklahoma Workman (Guthrie, Okla.), Vol. 10, No. 8, Ed. 1 Tuesday, August 1, 1905 Page: 2 of 8
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TEE OKLAHOMA WORKMAN.
Lodge Rooms.
Meeting rooms are often chosen
with reference to the rental and noth-
ing else, it being considered that al-
most any place is good enough to
meet in so long as the rent is cheap.
It is for this reason that lodges well
able lo afford the expense of a lodge-
room in a good neighborhood are found
meeting in shabby quarters in squalid
localities—often at the top of a build-
ing, in which liquor is sold on the
ground lioor which has a billiard
ujid pool room the next fioor above
and a ball room above that. The en-
trance is most uninviting as to sight
and smell, and is so contrived that
any one so minded can stop and re-
fresh himself by making a half turn
and pushing in the light screen door
that separates the hall-way from the
bar-room. The stairs are bare and not
over clean, and usually consist of one
long llight so narrow and steep that
after surveying them a good many
would feel that they needed a
"bracer" even though they might not
have required one before. By the
time the member or visitor has as-
cended the three llights he will have
done a good deal of hard thinking.
The ante room dour stands wide open,
revealing a dimly lighted, bare and
dingy looking apartment, from which
comes a cold draught that makes him
shiver. Perhaps the lodge room will
be more Inviting, and he quickly
makes his way to it. It is more in-
viting, but very small. Everywhere
there is evidence that the proprietor
of the building is interested in his
tenants only to the extent of collect-
'ng the rent. The room is only half-
warmed, miserably lighted and shab-
bily furnished. It is, moreover, bad
smelling and has evidently not been
swept or ventilated for several weeks.
t> . . - V- noMMxitVftwn r n rl tViu
I iii.ii linn ocLiicu tvv-i i iivi v.. «■«*«•
appearance of the room would drive
a careful housekeeper frantic. The
few members present are walking
about with their overcoats on, appar-
ently undecided whether to leave or
remain and risk getting a bad cold
and probably pneumonia. Some
have already gone and others are
edging toward the door when the
presiding officer sounds the gavel,
and they drop into their seats and try
to forget that the room is so uncom-
fortably chilly. The session is a
short one, yet sufficiently long for
limbs to stiffen and cold chills to find
a lodgement behind closely buttoned
overcoats. Disparaging remarks about
the temperature may be made during
the meeting, but it is felt to be a
waste of breath to make them, for the
landlord has been reminded more than
once that the room is scarcely ever
properly heated. He says that in ex-
tremely cold weather steam condenses
so rapidly that it is difficult to force
enough to the top of the building to
keep the pipes hot, and there the mat-
ter ends. It has been mildly suggest-
ed once or twice that if he used more
fuel more heat would result, but he
never appeared to catch the idea, and
all things considered, it was rather
absurd to suppose he would. The
truth of the matter is that the heat-
ing plan is antiquated and in keeping
with the appointments, and nothing
better need be hoped for. A cheaply
lented lodgeroom like almost anything
that is cheap, is bound to prove un-
satisfactory in many respects. It is
poor economy to engage shabby and
uncomfortable quarters merely for the
purpose of saving a few dollars per
annum. Twice as much will be lost
in initiation fees, providing the lodge
is doing any work at all, for most
persons have a due regard for appear-
ances and would be more likely to pe-
tition a lodge for membership that met
in comfortable and well appointed
rooms in a respectable locality, than
one that met in the shabby quarters
we have described.
By all means have your lodge home
as attractive as possible, it will not.
be necessary to pay an extrava-
gant sum for decent quarters, and
as a matter of fact, if there is good
business management, there need be
no rent at all to pay. In every large
city there is always a demand for
desirable lodge rooms, and so there
is in smaller communities. Why not
lease a building, or part of one, do
your own decorating and furnishing
and sub-let the rooms? Many organi-
zations are doing this very thing and
lint it a protitable Investment.
Bryan on Fraternities
"Most of the trouble in this world,"
says Mr. Bryan, "conies from our not
knowing each other. People live too
much alone, and when they do venture
out into the fraternal world and be-
gin to get acquainted they find that
we are all very much alike; all animat-
ed by the same general aims; all wish-
ing pretty much the same thing for the
welfare and progress of society and
striving to attain the same great ends
for the uplifting of humanity. And
as we become better acquainted we
find that the interests that draw us
together are far more important than
those interests that tend to separate
us.
"I believe in fraternity because 1
have been on both sides, and I think
it is the only public question of which
I can say this. At all events, I was
once prejudiced against fraternal or-
ganizations because I believed they
had a tendency to circumscribe the in-
dividual limits that did him more harm
than good. But 1 am happy to say that
upon this question my mind has com-
pletely changed and I am in full ac-
cord with the spirit and progress of
fraternal societies. Among the ad-
vantages of such societies I wish to
place insurance first. I had never tak-
en out a cent of insurance until 1
joined a fraternal society after I was
married. Now I believe that these so-
cieties make a better husband, father
and citizen of the man who joins. The
importance of life insurance cannot be
overestimated. When I was not a
member of a fraternal organization
I was in somewhat the same situation
■. o ♦ jia Irishman who said that whsu
he came to this country he had nothing
and had held his own ever since. 1
hold that it is better for the young
man when he enters business life and
tries to win his way in the world to
choose his partner for life and for
husband and wife to make their for-
tunes together rather than for them
to remain single until the man has
succeeded in amassing a fortune. That
fraternal societies will help him to suc-
cess when he has made his start is not
to be questioned.
"Through fraternal societies thou-
sands of women and children are
saved from becoming a care to the
state, and are able to secure for them-
selves some of the comforts of life
which otherwise they would not pos-
sess. When you consider how much
good a single individual can do In this
world, and how much better fitted to
do good is that boy or girl who goes
into life prepared, you will begin to
realize the importance to the istate
and to society itself of fraternal or-
ganizations. We are too apt nowadays
to measure the importance of men by
the wealth they have achieved, but I
believe the day is coming when a new
standard will prevail; when men will
be measured by the worth of their
moral character, the nobility of their
thoughts and the good they do In the
world. The longer 1 live the more I
become convinced that the he irt is
more than the mind. I have seen
many men of good minds go wrong,
but I do not think that a man who has
a good heart goes wrong very often.
And it is in the cultivation of the sen-
timents of the heart that the fraternal
society finds its chief work."
Supervision of Insurance.
The factor of insurance is so great
in the life of today that there ought to
be some way to assure and secure the
public against such gross mismanage-
ment, such grafting, as that disclosed
in the affairs of the Equitable Com-
pany. These disclosures have raise t
doubts as to some of the other con-
i erns. It is inevitable that they should
make the masses more or less skepti-
cal about all great financial institu-
tions.
President Roosevelt has recommend-
ed that life insurance companies be
made subject to federal control. That
proposition seems to be sound. While
it is more essential to the business in-
terests of the country that banks
should be safeguarded than that the
insurance companies should be super-
vised by disinterested authorities, yet
a bank betrayal is not comparable in
degradation to that of an insurance
trust. As a rule money in the bank,
even when it has been hard-earned,
represents something "to the good," a
margin over and above the actual re-
quirements of life. In the case of in-
surance, receipts for premiums often
represent great sacrifices on the part
of those making payments. Men have
come to regard life insurance as a ne-
cessity, to be had at almost any cost
to themselves if it is essential to the
reasonable protection of their wives
and children and other dependents. It
is held a sacred duty, almost akin to
a religion, to make provision against
death or incapacity for the dependent
members of the family. The betrayal
of a life insurance trust, therefore, is
about the worst of which a man can be
guilty. It is true that there are many
laws to safeguard the policy holders,
but it has been shown that laws them-
selves are insufficient. They must be
accompanied by regular inspections
and reports'. If it is essential to the
safety of the public that banks be ex-
amined, it would seem to be equally es-
sential that insurance methods and
conditions be reviewed and reported pe-
riodically.
But laws nor examinations nor re-
ports nor accountings will have the full
desired effect unless the betrayers of
the people are held personally respon-
sible and made subject to imprison-
mnt for graft and theft.
One of the most satisfactory feature-!
of a beneficiary certificate in a well
founded fraternal insurance order is
the fact that the small payments de-
posited each month will act as a
savings bank with a high rate of in-
terest just at the time when your fam-
ily most needs the money. If you did
not deposit that money each month
you would no doubt spend it for things
that you did not need. And, although
you had possessed the money for a
time, when your death came along
those separate dollars spent for trifles
would fail utterly in bringing returns.
The amount of a certificate is a
mighty solid account when it is con-
sidered that not one' penny has been
invested excepting the monthly pay-
ments.
True to the End.
Brothers, why don't you spend as
much time talking for the Order and
trying to get new members as you do
complaining about the payment of your
assessment? Possibly the result would
be different. At least it is worth try-
ing. Has the Order ever treated you
wrong? It has never asked you to pay-
more than was necessary to meet its
obligations, and this you expected to
pay when you joined. Has not the
Order paid the certificate of every
brother who has died? Of course it
has. Then why is it not the same old
Order that it was when you joined. It
is. The trouble is, you have changed,
not the Order. It has been true to
every obligation; have you? Oh, yes,
I know you have paid every assessment
that has been levied and kicked pretty
hard sometimes, but you had to pay
them. But say, my brother, can you
recall a single instance where the Or-
der has kicked when it had to pay
the $1,000 or ..2,000 due upon a cer-
tificate? No, of course you can't. And
say, did you hear the Order kick when
it was struggling to get that $1,000 or
$2,000, and you, one of its members,
was around knocking it as hard as
jou could? Why no, of course not. But
then you died and the good old strug-
gling Order bent still harder to the t isk
and produced the $1,000 to $2,000 to pay
your claim. Did it kick then? No,
brother, the Order never kicks. It is
true to the end. It forgives and for-
gets. So, from now on, if you have
been a kicker, resolve to kick no more,
but stretch forth your strong arm as
of yore and say to the Order: "I love
y«iu for what you have done. 1 love
you for what you are doing. I love you
for what you are going to do in the fu-
ture, and 1 will carry my share to
lighten the load you carry."
New Officers.
The month of July is generally
known as installation month. During
July all Lodges thaL meet weekly will
install a lull set of new officers. U
is to he hoped that all Lodges have
selected their best men to seW< dur
ing the coming term and thai me
honor that lias been conferred will lie
appreciated by these Brothers and thai
they will hee-' well the obligations ad-
minislertti ti thei.i upon the night ofin-
stallaiion. They should be i r in mind
thai the duties of no office in a sub-
ordinate Lodge are complicated, but
on the other hand are simple; but two
things must exist to make the per-
lormance of their duties a success.
First, the Knowledge of how to per-
form them; second, the will and de-
termination to perlorm them in ac-
cordance with the laws of the Order.
There is no one thing which has u
greater tendency to injure the growth
of a Dodge than the neglect of the
officersto perform their several duties,
inattention to duties is without an
excuse, and the member who solemnly
obligates himself to do his duty when
accepting an office should keep his
obligation or resign and let some one
be elected to fill the position who wni
periorni the duties required oi him.
.so oftice in a subordinate Dodge is un-
important, each was created for the
purpose of accomplishing certain
things; and it should be the aim of
the occupant ot every office to iuumi
to the fullest extent Hie duties required
of him, that lie may not only faithfully
serve those who have honored htm in
electing him to the o ce. but thereby
deserves the continued contidence ot
the members in advancing him to fill
luriiier iionuia oi &i eatCr reapou-Jib;
bility.
i ae most important officers in the
subordinate Dodge and who have the
greatest influence over its members,
are me Master Workman, ilecordcr
and financier, and especially the two
last named. These officers should
tnoroughiy intorm themselves as to
uie laws pertaining to the Order and
endeavor lo enioi'ce the same. The
Master workman should see that the
law is morally applied in every in-
stance. witnout fear or favor, and un-
dtr these conditions the Dodge will not
only grow in memnership, but will at-
tain a nigner standard among the
tne fraternal orders oi this country.
A rew fdcts About the Hag.
Tne rea in our nag stands lor valor,
Uie wnue lor purity, tne uiue tor jus
lice. our nrsi revolutionary nag
genuiauy iiseu was called the Grand
union nag. in uiis tne coiouists, wno.
>ve must rouiemoer, were sail iiaigiish-
ineu, Kept uie grounu ot tne oiu mig-
imii nag, Lift stripped it witn wnue
uars, ao thai mere snouid be thirteen
iiata, or stripes, as an einoiem oi the
inirtcen coiouies. Also, mey Kept me
uiue neld ol me Dngiisii union Jacii,
out louk ohl ine crosses oi st. George
aui o.. undrew, and put iusteau unr
teen aiars in a cu me. This iiag was
iiiac.bi.raLeu uy washington at his
camp .11 uainuriuge, iviass., in Janu-
ary, inn, inougii a was not adopted by
GoiiHress until tne lourleenth ot June
Lilt.
oome oi our Hags ot about this time
suuws me aLaia aii aii^eu in the uiue in
iiiu aiiUpe oi ne ui£, aiar, anu some
siiuv* mem aii'uii&eu in a circle. the
i,ei.i.nucui picaem lasuion was adopt-
eu aiier jflio, wiien Congress passed a
reaoixuon iiiat a new star siiouul be
auueu iO the biue Held lor every new
.-mi naiuii ten t.o ilie union.
System is the all-essential for pro-
ducing results. The larger a business
the more indispensable it becomes
Without system, ami with each
acting independently, nothing but
chaos would result. System is the
waichword of success.
There is no let up to the strenuous
lile. it is necessary to keep pounding
away constantly, or lose out. It is tile
same with the lodge as it is with bus-
iness. it is necessary to keep the thing
noing by work where it is needed, and
. il in tiie time. It is up to every mem-
ber to lend a helping hand. It is lo his
nivaiitage for the matter of that, for
l lie larger the membership and the
better the health of those who are se-
lected the more economically will it
be possible to secure mutual protection.
There is no wisdom or fraternity >n
bewailing tne difficulties of readjust-
ment. Every brave and loyal mem-
,ber will assist in overcoming the dif-
ficulties instead of magnifying them.
\
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Johnson, S. L. The Oklahoma Workman (Guthrie, Okla.), Vol. 10, No. 8, Ed. 1 Tuesday, August 1, 1905, newspaper, August 1, 1905; Guthrie, Oklahoma. (https://gateway.okhistory.org/ark:/67531/metadc273739/m1/2/: accessed March 19, 2024), The Gateway to Oklahoma History, https://gateway.okhistory.org; crediting Oklahoma Historical Society.