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I". S. OMelal Paper tor 0rt.
SATURDAY, MAY 19, 1874.
Z-2-'- '
ODD FELLOWSHIP.
AN ORATION PELIVSSED BrBEV. D. K.
NESMT. AT A MUST. OBBGON, Al'RIt
27, 1874, ON THE OCCASION OP TOE
CELEBBATtON OF THE FtFTV-FIFTH
ANNIVERSARY OK 01)1) FILLOWSJUT
IS THE UNITED STATT-3.
The celebration of great armt
tersaries is an old and honored
custom. Great men and little chil
dren celebrate their birthdays.
Possibly it is because being born is
one of the most important events in
a person's lite.
The English were accustomed to
celebrate' the 15th of June, because
on that day, in the year 1215, they
forced Kins John tosign the Great
Cutrter on the plains of Ilunimede.
THE PURITANS
And their decendauts have long
celebrated the landing of the May
Flower. We, too, have our "30th
ot May," on which we go forth to
strew flowers on the graves of our
departed ones.
Then there is our Ath of July.
Ou that day we are wont to meet
and congratulate ourselves and
commiserate the rest ot mankind.
We declare that onr ancestors were
much better than ourselves, and
that we, in turn, are infinitely su
perior to them. We then picture
the effect ot all this on future gen
erations. We think it a pity our
ancestors could not have seen what
big tfuiitj they, fere doing. We
bewail our misfortune. We feel
that we. are entirely too reeent.
We are sorry we could not have
done up our living in the days of
those good, old men like Benedict
Arnold and Aarop Burr. Halcyon
days, those, wheu there was no
Cruwik to disturb the "public
peace," except just a little small
fry affair called the Pennsylvania
Whisky Insurrection.
Halcyon days! when Corn wallis
retired from public service and
Washington's body servants had
not even begun to die, and there
was no money to inflate, and no
treasury, and ildtbing in It, and no.
body was irregular.
Halcyon but 1 digress: This is
not the 4th of July. I was speak
ing of Anniversaries.
Why, we ever celebrate our wed
ding days, and we have our "iron,"
"wooden," tih,'i'silver," "golden"
and "diamond" weddings and
we enjoy them ; and our friends
congratulate us, and we thank them
for it, and we tell lies to each other,
and are happy just as when we
were first married,
It is oven related ot a oertian
bachelor, that he celebrated a cer
tain day each year as a day of
thanksgiving and merry-making,
because on that day, years ago,
the! sweetest day in all his memory,
(so he said), on that day years
ago on a sunny morning, about 10
o'clock, he did not get married,
But I digress.
Even those heathen Sandwich
Islanders have a holiday, when
they celebrate the advent of the
missionaries. And the missionaries
and foreigners go out with them
like brothers to their pic-nics and eat
their pies, and drink coffee, and
eat sandwiches, and feet, happier
than they mod to feel 'when the
Sandwiches ate the missionaries.
But I digress,
We arq nt Sandwich Wanders, j no power to drive machinery until t judge. Odd Fellowship would be
In the year 1819,on;tbe 2Gth day it Is "pit 'aider 'restraint! ubey your earthly friend in earthly trouble
ot AiiVin tbe city ot Balthxore without restraint is only licen- .She would teed you when you ere
M. IX, was organized the first tionsness ; this is the universal law. 1 hungry, watch beside you when yon
permanent Lodge of Odd Fellows It applies to benevo'.ence. We j are sick, sympathise in your bereave
in the In ted States. The Organi- j restrict and govern our1 benefactions ; ments, bury you when you are dead,
ters were Thomas Wildey, John 'by certain condition. Otherwise ' and care for your widow and edu
Welch, Jno. Duncan, John j our benevolence would bo mere ! cate your orphan children; but
Cheathem and Richard Hushworth. j prodigality and the prodigal is ! trom those questions that concern
They had passed the various , as heartless as the miser. j the holy relation between yourself
degrees in the old country, and j If a member is sick, unable to I and God, from those questions that
here over the soil of a young repub- j attend his business, he receives a concern the hiliuitc and Eternal,
lie they put their banner out, in-1
scribed with their motto, "FVieod -
ship, Love and Truth." It is this
event we ce'ebrate today.
If you will listen but a little
while I will say something about
I , The nature of Odd Fellowship,
I meoojeci m uua reuowsnip, i
rail. L t r 1.1 T.i. II !
loooojecuons w uau renow-
Look at the prospect before us,
and bid you all a hearty welcome
to the festivities of the day.
.VATURB OP THE ORDKR.
In detference to the prolble
wishes of many present Who are
not members of the order, I will
endeavor briefly to answer a ques
tion so often anxiously asked
"what is it?"
In general terms I reply by say-
ing that from any good Odd Fellow ;
you can borrow a copy ot the very
constitution and by-laws used iu
the Lodge, and trom that you can !
get nearly all necessary information.
I assure you, too, it will be. genu-!
ine. )
Tlie order is composed of both
male aud female members the
male ones are men, the female ones
women. A lady member must bo j
the wife ot an Odd Fellow, and '
can be present at lodge only in
company with her husband. So,
girts, if you don't get marred you
can't come. This order is
NOT POLITICAL.
So far from this is it that it dare
not interfere with any political
duties. Thus you see frequently in
a political canvass Odd Fellows
represeiitii g the most widely dif.
ferent political views, and leading
political parties directly opposed to
eah other. It is.
NOT RELIGIOUS.
There is nothing like a church
in it. It is not intended so to be
a church. If it be a church you
... , . J .
want to join, go elsewhere. It is
not here,
It has been said, sometimes, "if
you are a right good Odd Fellow
you will be a ohristiau." It is not
true ; you can be a very good Odd
Fellow, and not be a christian at
allyou can beone either one or the
other, or you can be both.
Odd Fellowship is purely seculas
and temporal ; "she looks after sec
ular affairs and sees to temporal
wants. It seeks not to provide
tor your spiritual wants here nor
your eternal interests yonder but
it is
BENKVOLKST AND SOCIAL.
Benevolent It seeks to help you.
Your brother helps you when that
help is consistent with other duties.
Duty never can contradict itself.
No Odd Fellow dare wound his
own conscience to save another.
It helps to equalize the. burdens ot.
life. It often calls many to help
bear the miifortunea ot one. "Bear
ye oneanother's burdens," is the law
ot her benevolence. We vitit the
rick, bury the dead, and educate the
orphan. This benevolence is under
attain restrictions, otherwise it
would not be effective. Restraint
the law of power. Steam baa
ALBANY REGHS.TER.
weekly benefit, varying in different
! lodges and degress from two dollars
j to twenty.fi ve per week. In case of
j death there are funeral dues. Tn.
; mme places there are libraries for
j the use of Odd Fellows and their
families, where all kinds of good,
. ..... .
pure literature can be oDtamea. j
i cannot go elaborately through all ;
these benefits but refer you for
ininutia to the text-books and
constitution, which you can easily :
obtain.
It is also social not a mere in
surance company. Its., members
meet and mingle together in the
lodge-room, and there, while learn
ing and practicing parliamentary
law in the transaction ot lodge
bnsiness, they also cultivate their
social qualities. The faces and lives
of each becomes familiar to the rest,
and they learn to be interested in
oneanother; and aS we dislike
those we injure, sc we learn to love
those whom we help; and as Odd
Fellows help each other, so their
hearts are bound together by these
strong ties ot kindness. They
cumuine uieory auu practice pot
one without the other. They are
hound together by both interest
and love. ThisBenevoleucewithm
its realm is impartial. There is
no distinction of race, or party, or
sect, within the precincts of the
oder ; the rich and the poor meet
together without insolaiice or envy,
and by a law that is older than all
human societies, they are all "knit
togetlter in love,-in honor preferring
oneanother."
This much for the nature of the
order. It is not political, not re
ligious, but it is benevolent and
social.
OBJSCTIOJJS.
But there are those whose good
opinion we highly value, and whose
mnt i van urn A a ra nut imnaonri arltrt
, , , . . . ,
doubt the propriety ot such organi-
zations as this. Here are some of
their objections :
Objection first "It usurps the
prerogative; of the church."
To a sincere believer, this is per-
haps the strongest of obiections, and
true t would be a sufficient rea-
son why he should stand apart from
Odd Fellowship. I think it not
well founded.
One fundamental idea ot the
Church is the public worship of
God. This is not one of the objects
of Odd Fellowship. The Church
claims diviue authority. Odd Fel- the time. They know not how that
lowship does not, The Church has promise will be tried when they
to do with preparation for another ! come to tack carpet, or clean house,
lite, Odd Fellowship deals solely j She has never met her mother-in-with
this world. It does not as- 'aw ' He knows nothing ot getting
snme to regulate its relations to
God ; it deals only with your rela
tion to your fellow men. The
Church has to do with spiritual and
eternal wants, Odd Fellowship with
physical, moral, temporal wants.
So reverently does Odd FeltowShip
regard your tonsoiece, that she ex.
PW tipuh'liat nphieg shall
sto require t your bands that con
science declares to conflict with
your doty to year God end of
that doty she leaves you the sole
she turns aside and leaves them
where they properly belong in the
consecrated temple of your own soul.
Objection second "Some make
it their religion, and trust for salva
tion to its forms and ceremonies."
Does not this sabre ctit too far ?
t cutf! ap eeplv into nearly every
6the- Imman etv M into Odd
Fellowship. There are those who
trust to their membership inachris.
tia associatiou for their soul's sal:
vation. Some trust in a Good
Templar's lodge, liut more than
this the blow cuts into the church
itself, for are then' not many who
misunderstand the character, ordin
ances and forms, and attribute vir
tue to the letter that is claimed only
to belong to the spirit. The fault
is not in Odd Fellowship, nor iu
Christian Associations, nor Temp
lars, nor Church, but in the blind
ness that makes men stumb'e. Mo
sincere christian will neglect his re.
ligion for his business or his shop,
and no christian worthy of the name
will neglect his prayer-meeting lor
hu MgQ
Objection third "You Odd Fel
lows, in taking an obligation, prom
ise to perform duties that are yet
unknown yoii promise to comply
with unknown requirements."
Answer Who does not? Are
not such promises, covering un
known requirements, given in enter
ing on many ot the relations of life,
acknowledged to be legitimate?
The soldier enters the army. On
entering he takes an oath of obedi
ence to his officers and of allegiance
to his country. That promise in
cludes long marches, hunger and
hardship, and -tramps through
swamps, and over mountains, and
down through rocky chasms, and a
hundred other vicissitudes and con
tingencies of war, of the details of
which he does not and can not know
anything until the moment they are
met ; and many 8 time he is called
on to perform duties of which he
never dreamed.
The blushing bride and-proud
bridegroom at the hymenial altar
stand aud make their solemn prom
ise to be firm and faithful and kind,
through evil and good report, in
sickness and health, for better for
worse till separated by death. Now,
there is a promise that includes a
thousand duties they know nothing
of. A great many of the coming
specifications are unthought of at
up at midnight and lighting match
es that "won't go," knocking over
the lamp-chimney, the ohild crying
and the cork hopelessly fastened in
the soothing syrup bottle, and a
tender voice whispering from the
comfortable couch, "My dear, why
don't you hurry the ohikPU be
dead ?" Who ever thought of all
that before it came?
When the marriage promise it
taken, its fulfillment is totally un.
known to (lie earnest promise rs.
The minutia of its requirements lie
veiled in the future from present
sight, and more impenatrably hid
den than are the most secret cham
bers of Odd Fellowship from the
young initiate.
Thus the argument that would
put aside our order biatuts of iu
oNiiatiou, would destroy some ot
the best relations of life. After all
what can vitiate an obligation that
declares nothing shall le required
that conflicts with your duty to
yonrself, your family, your country
or your God. ,
Objection fourth Secrecy "If
it be good why is it secret ?" "Do
not put your candle under a bushel
but on a candlestick."
This is a good and true maxim.
Shed a good influence around you.
What does Odd Fellowship hide
which, if Known, would do good ?
But it is urged that the idea of
sweet vitiates an order that else
would bo good. W here is the es
sential harm iu secrecy ? Two
men have business together which
they agree shall be kept secret. Is
that sinful ? No. A third is let
iu does that make the secrecy bad ?
Xo. Then another is admitted to
the firm, and another; if not wrong
for one man to know what he does
not tell, why is it wrong for two ;
if not for two, why tor three ;4( not
for three, why fur four ? Will some
one tell us the exact number when
the secrecy becomes sinful and
wrong ?
Yes, but why don't you reveal
all to the public ? I ask why do
you not admit every stranger to
your private family councils ? Be
cause you do not allow listening
ears at your window, or admit every
stranger to press into your private
chamber; or because you do not
proclaim upon the street your bill
of fare, or tell the mysteries ot the
kitchen to every calling friend, are
you therefore to be set down as one
who is concocting schemes of danger
or preparing schemes infernal to
fling at the heads of innocence ?
I find nothing in the Order, then,
unworthy, neither in her peculiar
mission, her obligation or her secre
cy, aud I bid her go forward and
do good, while the "shafts of her
foes fall harmless from the polished
armor of her spotless purity."
In this land of onrs, so prolific ot
good things, Odd Fellowship has
extended into nearly every hamlet
and village from the white hills of
Maine to the sunny waters of the
Gulf ; from the rocky coast of New
England to the green slope of the
Pacific, and from the slopy lakes ot
.Minnesota to the everglades of
Florida. In the princely palaces of
crowded cities and in the modest
village hall she is found, mingling
her voice of sympathy, answering
the sigh of sorrow, wiping the or
phan's tear, chafing the fevered
temple, and preaching by the uni
versal language of deeds, the gospel
of peace on earth and good will to
men.
In Canada and British America
her staudard is lifted, and in the
islands of the seaaway down among
orange groves and pomegranates of
the Indies. Come down across the
equator, too, and in the streets of
the quaint old capital of Peru, right
uuder the towering glides, we find
Odd Fellows of North America and
South America shanking hands.
And over iu the Australian land of
gold she puts her latchJtring out,
and bids her friends come in to her
quiet fireside, and talk of