I. O. O. F. Anniversary

The 77th anniversary of Amerioan Oddfellowship, which occurred Sunday. April 26, vrascelebrated in a most fitting rnanner by Washtenaw Lodge, No. 9, and Otseningo Lodge, No. 295, I. O. O. F. In the morning at IC o'clock, betweeu 50 and 60 ruembers of the two lodges gathered at the lodge room over Casper Einsey's store, and from there ruarched to the Trinity English Lutheran church'for divine worship ou invitation of the pastor, Rev. W. L. Tedrow. The natal day of American Oddfellowship was April 26, 1819. On the evening of-that day Thomas Wildey, John Welsh, Richard Rushworth, John Dancan and John Cheatham, all of whom had been initiated into the order in England, in accordance with the ancient custom, self instituted themselves a lodge which they named "Washington Lodge of Oddfellows." This meeting was held at the Seven Stars inn, Second st., Baltimore, Md. From this small beginning American Oddfellowship has spread throughout all the states and territorios of the ünion, Canada, Manitoba, Chile, Australia, New Sonth Wales, the Sandwich Islands, Germany, Denmark, Sweden, and other European countries. Today its lodges are immbered by thousands and its members by hnndreds of thousands, while its charity and benevolenoe is shown by the expenditure of millions of dollars to the afflioted and distressed. R.ev. W. L. Tedrow 's address to the assembled Oddfellows and congreagtion was made from no special text but was throughout an eloquent and fitting expression of the fatherhood of God and the lirotherhood of mankind. He eaid it afforded him mueh pleasure to welcome them to the service iu which all could worship onr common Lord. A mutual sense of obligation to the divine binds together the hearts of all the children of man. Alike they have all tasted the pleasures and joys of this life and having found theiii insuffiient turned to seek that which gives more abiding comfort and more permanent happiness and joy. This desire of the soul to coininuue with God and this inuate sense of our dependence upon the sovereign ruler of all the eartb, manifests itself in forms of worship and songs of adoration and praise, which makes the hearts of men beat warm in synipatby with each other in the great battle of life and makes them considérate of each other's needs. "To look abroad into the busy scènes of life which this world affords, is to become as deeply conscious of our dependence upon each other as we are of our dependence upon G-od. " And yet the condition of men are widely marked and so diverse in their ruanifestations of life that it sometinies seerns scarcely trne that tbey are members of the same family of beings on earth. He quoted Tennyson's famous words " Better fif ty years of Enrope thau a cycle of Gathay, " and said that when the poet saw the different oonditions that existed in old Cathay, walled in with heathenism, superstition and siu and the higher ambitions and purposes manifested by the people of the various nations of Europe, and how tbey were cemeuting the hearts of men together in the bonds of "Friendship, Love and Truth," he oould not refrain from singing their praises. "And yet," the speaker said, "there are certain principies that uuderline society and that every good, intelligent man and woman will recognize as essential to its well-being And I know of uo on e passage of scripture whioh is more fruitful of thoughts of this kind than that beautiful account of Jonathan and David - a portion of which we read this morning. [t oontains sorne of the very best principies upon which to live and ?ives expression to some of the highest bhoughts of life. "In the first place the reader of that narrative must be impressed with the beautiful example of frieudship, whioh it presents, 'A league of friendsbip' says Dr. Taylor, 'whioh for sincerity, coustancy and romantic pathos, is norivaled in the aunáis of history, whether sacred or profane. ' More wonderfnl and beautiful does it appear when we consider the circumstances under which it was formed and maintained and more impressive does it become when we reflect upon the unselfish and disinterested spirit which it reveals. In this world we ftnd so much in the guise of friendship, 'that provea itself so unvorthy of the name that we often feel that there is a great deal of truth in the inqnir.v of the evidently saddened poet " 'Wliat ia friendship but a name A cliarm that lulls lo sloep, A simde that follows vvealth or fame. And lenves the wretch to weep." ■ 'It is a bitter experience for auy man who finds circumstances arising in a which he is the most iu need of frieads for friendly assistance, but tnrns to those whom he has long regarded as his friends, only to find hiniself forsaken by them. If ever there is a moment in a man's life in which he borders close to despair and in which he is almost foroed to distrust all goodness, it is snch a moment as that. . . . "How different with the friendship of Jonathan and David ! They were in a position iu which if they had followed the selflsh inclinations of the heart, they would have become bitter rivals if not open and dangerons enemies. Sanl was kiug, but was rejeoted by the Lord - Jonathan was his son and the heir apparent to his throne - while David, a shepherd boy, had been oalled and anointed as king in his stead. Were there ever two men placed in such position as that, iu which there did not appear the bitterest envying, and jealousies of the human heart, and yet when Jonathan discovers the faot that David is to be his father's succesor on the throne, he at once befriends hirn and in every way possible shields him "rom his father's anger and wrath. He forms a league with hirn and in the most solemn mauner pledges himself to be his friend,his helper and his protector. What oan be more beautiful and impressive than that secret sign in whioh his bow and arrow shall teil the story of his security or his danger! As that arrow wings its way on its mission which none but they can know, itbears n its vory flight at message of friendship that could ner have been misaken, and whiohvarns the servant of he Lord of the djjfager to which he was exposed. Could fcavid ever hav liad fears or misgivings of the siucerity of one who naturally would have been his rival, then he must have had them all dislodged by this one act, and henoeforth he rnust have been perfectly at ease. It was so unselfish - so self-sacrifioiug, that it could uot be mistaken. The pledge was realized in its fulfillment, in that noble and generous deed. "Such friendship as that holps njeu o realize the possibilities of their own ature and gives to theheartsoine of its est inspirations and joys. It ruakes ïen feel that it is not a mere name - ot 'a shade to follow wealth or f ame nd leave the wretch to weep. ' It beoiues a írlorious fact in experience and inds men's hearts together in the tronger and sweeter bonds of brotherhood. "That the world needs just snch noble spirited lives today is evident to ns all. That a league of friendship based on this principie rnay be as benificial now as it was in the days of the rejected king of Israel cannot be disputed. That such examples of faithfulness and fidelity to each other's interests may still appear must be conceded by everyone who has faith in humanity, and what it is capable of accomplishing. Of course it is a higher aim, and the society whioh aaopts it as one of its fundamental principies may not always be able to realize it in actnal experience ; but it is always better to aim high even thougli the mark is never reached, beoause there will be a constant striving for better things - a gradual rise to a higher and better social condition. If you, my brethren, should only be instrumental in helpiug each other to realize this one thing it would in no wise be a mean attainiueut and you would accomplish untold good for the world. It presupposes other things which must prepare the way for it and which alone can make possible such conditions. Here again we may go back to Jonathan and David, and we shall there flud its true fouudatiou principie. It is ooutaiued in these words: 'The soul of Jonathan was knit with the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul. ' Love is the fonndation of a true and abiding friendship and without it as the inspiring motive there oan esist none 01 its joys. It cannot abide on what men may cali business principies. There must be other and more endearing bonds to unite the hearts of men. I cannot teil what it was that cansed such a passiouate love to spring up iu the heart of Jonathan for this shepherd boy who was destined to wear the royal robes that he m8t himself have often hoped to wear. "Perhaps it wa that display of moral heroism which in his humility he had shown when he went forth singlehatided and slew the terror and tormentor of the hosts of Israel. Perhaps it was that genial nature which was so unconscious of its own greatness and which never seemed happier than wben out amid the scènes of the natural world, where the hesvens proclaimed to him a supernatural glory and the earth was resonant with the voices of the divine goodness and love. Perhaps he had wituessed 'some flashes of that poetic genius' which was destined to send forth its effusions over the heartchords of the despairing hosts of the people of God and give to them a joy in life which was comforting and sustaining, and whioh has fllled the souls of myriads of people in the hour of death with that peace which the world canuot give nor the world take away. Somethiug there was wbich drew their hearts together in those endearing bonds of friendship and made their (Contiuued on pase 4.) l.O.O.F.NNIVERSARY Fittingly Oelebrated by Ann Arbor Oddfellows Sunday. (Continued from page 1.) ove to and for each other flash and )urn upon the altar of their sovils. It made the life of the other dear to eaoh as his own, and gave its preservation. Where the heart is free from jealousy ; where thé desire to see others happy and prosperous abides ; and where men oan rejoice in the good fortune of their fellows without growing envious, suoh resnlts may still be found. To help men to realize this is a grand and glorious work, for it will send forth its blessings far and wide. Such a love will manifest itself in those benevolent ways in which the poor are fed, the naked clothed, the sorrowing com'orted, the weak strengthened, the livng cheered and the dead borne honora)ly and peaoef ully to their rest. I have, my friends, been much interested in your history in this particular. The jolden fruitage of your charitable deeds ïaDgs in riohest clusters all along your iathway. From 'The Seven Stars' vhere your organization took deflnite :orm in this beloved land of ours, away back in the early years of the present century (1819) down through all the vicissitudes and changes that appear in our national history, you have borne constantly richer and better fruitage in nis particular, and I confesa that it has )een to me a pleasant surprise to learn ofathe thousands and hundreds of thousands of dollars which you are annually expending for the benefit of tbe needy of earth. The homes for the aged in which you seek to make the evening of ifö comfortaWe and happy or those who may have been unfortunate and who are in need. And then those orphanages in which the fatherless are gathered that they may be saved from ;he blighting stornis of sin and they may be trained and eduoated so as to aeoorne honorable men and women, who shall love God and serve their fellow men, bear us small testiniony in favor of yonr good works. They will stand as imperishable monuments of your doctrine to those weak and helpless little ones, for whom onr Savior had snch a passionate interest and who must in their helplessness ever appeal to the better sentiments of the human heart for pioteotion and care." The speaker here mentioned the splendid concerted action of the I. O. O. F. at the time of the great fire in Chicago in 1871 and the manner in which the proceeds of theiv benevolence and oharity were distribnted at that time to the needy and suffering. In looking over the history of the order he said he had found it abounding in many such instanees. "More works of this kind are everywhere needed, and they will help to realize the greater things that may be secured for the world by sending these lives forth on missions of mercy, - not only saving ttaem from the destructivo powers of evil, but also making them instrnnients of righteousness that shall save others. It is a fruitage of that love which knit the soul of Jonathan to the soul of David and made them love eaoh other as their own lives, and this established relations of the utmost frankness and fidelity between them. Their friendship was built on truth and cemented in love, and it so bound their lives together that the sacred vriter oould only say that their souls were knit together, inwoven as it were in all their thoughts and affeotion, twined about eaoh other so that they could not be torn asunder even by the anger and wr'ath of a wioked king and father. . . . "Some peopie are prejndiced against fraternal organizations such as yon represent, because they may have some secret siga such as had Jonathan and David, by which they may be enabled to recognize and befriend eaoh other. In all these inscances and in many more even are blindfid to the truth and prejudiced against even the good which is done. . . . "The virtues which stand so prominent in the lives of Jonathan and David may still be so united in other lives that they may forni the links in tbat chain which cannot be broken. The envy and wrath and wickedness of the rejected king of the olden time could not tear them asunder, and sothey may stiil abide every testo which they are subjeoted in a world where evil dwells. Imbedded iu oharacter and sanctified by the preserice and love of him who died to redeem ns, to cleanse us froin all iniquity by the shedding of his own blood they will form a unión of heart and of lives that shall endnre through all eternity. "I congratúlate yon my brethren npon the sucoessful completion of the seventy-seven years of yonr history. I oongratulate you on the golden works of charity and of love which are strewn all along yonr pathway and I oommend yon to the keeping of him whose eye is ever upon ns, and through whose love and grace we can alone be saved. "O thou, who once didst condescend To choose a mortal for thy friend, Be thou our f rieud aud grant that we In friendship ever may agree. O thou, whose throue is heaven above, Thy footstool earth, thyselt' art love, And love f ulfil thy law, May love to thee our 6pirit draw. O thou, whose word art truth, may we To man be true and true to thee, May peace prevail the earth aronnd, And friendship, love and truth abound."