--- title: Improvement Era description: Monthly periodical of the Mormon church, 1897 onward. This library holds the issues of November 1897 to December 1930. authors: - Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations collections: - periodicals tags: - magazine - improvement-era periodical: Improvement Era volume: 19 number: 10 published: 1916-08 publisher: Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations publisher_place: Salt Lake City language: en type: magazine reference: 'Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations, "The General M. I. A. Conference," *Improvement Era* 19, no. 10 (August 1916): 911–933.' source: url: https://archive.org/details/improvementera19010unse transcription: Transcribed from the Internet Archive scan of each issue (the item for each issue is named in the issue's own source); unnumbered advertising leaves are omitted, printed page numbers are kept as page markers. identifier: improvementera19010unse start_page: 911 end_page: 933 rights: status: public-domain basis: US publication 1930 or earlier (published 1916-08) source: https://archive.org/details/improvementera19010unse publication_year: 1916 note: The Internet Archive item metadata carries a blanket "© Copyright by Intellectual Reserve, Inc." notice. The library owner judged it inapplicable because this issue was published in 1916, before 1931; a scan-level notice does not restore copyright. --- # The General M. I. A. Conference The General M. I. A. Conference THE SCOUT ACTIVITIES, JUNE 8 On Thursday, 8th, there were three meetings of the Boy Scouts, the first being held in the Bishop's Building at 10 o'clock a. m. Mu- sic by the congregation, "America." Prayer by Nephi Anderson. Music by congregation, "O Ye Mountains High," Elder Heber J. Grant presided, and Elder Lyman R. Martineau conducted the ex- ercises. There were representatives from fifty-four stakes, including many scout masters and others interested in M. I. A. Scout work. Charles H. Spencer, Jr., occupied fifteen minutes with a disserta- tion on "The Tenderfoot Scout." John H. Taylor discussed the "Second Class Scout", including the standard of efficiency and what to do with the new boy just enrolling. T. George Wood spoke on "The First Class Scout," standards of efficiency and scout requirements, and how to teach them. Willard Ashton spoke .on "Additional Programs," including games, socials, and the place of drill exercises. The closing speech was made by Bryant S. Hinckley on "The Daily Good Turn," how to promote it among boys and officers. Each exercise was followed by lively discussion. The exercises closed with singing, "Count Your Blessings," and prayer by President William 11. Smart, of Duchesne stake. At 2 o'clock in the afternoon the Bishop's Building was again crowded with officers and M. I. A. Scout workers. The congregation sang, "Redeemer of Israel," and prayer was offered by Joseph G Wood. Singing, "Sowing." J. Karl Woods spoke on "Hikes," day and ,over-night, preparation, and equipment, the excellent speech will appear in full in the next number of the Era. ,, National Committeeman A. W. Ivins spoke on "Summer Camps, permanent, and one season camps, preparation for them and the super- vision of daily programs, their cost and the co-operation of parents. Claude Cornwall .occupied a short time giving demonstrations of scout songs, yells and signals, taking the congregation as his scout class. CHURCH MERIT CERTIFICATE, OR BADGE Oscar A. Kirkham followed, explaining the Church Merit badge, initiation cere- the relation of the scout troop to the Y. M. M. I. A., work. mony, time of meeting, and the correlation of class and scout Open to all Y. M. M. I. A. Boys from 12 to 20 years inclusive, including M. I. A. Boy Scouts. . is en- _ After having passed the following requirements the boy titled to the Church Merit Badge, or Certificate, or both: 1. complete reading of the Book of Mormon. A 2. A complete reading of the New Testament.M. I. A. meetings^ 3 Attend 75% or more of the regular Y. M. meet- 4. Attend 75% or more of the regular Priesthood quorum ings. 912 IMPROVEMENT ERA Abstain from the use of tobacco in any foi m. 5. Abstain from the use of liquor in any form. 6. The above must be accomplished and adhered to during one year from the time of application. Application blanks for the Merit Badge may be had on request at our general office by stating name and address of boy applying. When requirements are complied with, the application blanks must be signed by the boy, his father, the ward president of Y. M M I. A., and the bishop. A special Church merit certificate will be issued to the successful boy by the General Board. By remitting 50c he may also receive the Church Merit Badge. In case of sickness credit will be given for attendance at meetings. Scout Commissioner, Dr. John H. Taylor, spoke on "The Train- ing of Leaders," dwelling on scout masters' associations, patrol lead- ers, records, examinations, scout promise, troop finances and stand- ards for scout officials. The very interesting and valuable meeting came to a close by the congregation singing "Lend a helping hand." Prayer was offered by President William T. Jack of Cassia Stake. DEMONSTRATION AT GYMNASIUM In the evening a large number of people gathered at the Deseret Gymnasium the evening being devoted to a demonstration of a camp- fire gathering including a program of campfire songs, exercises, stories and talks. The speeches were made by National Committeeman A W. Ivins, Orson F. Whitney, B. H. Roberts and President Joseph F Smith. r CAMP SCENE IN THE DESERET GYMNASIUM Y. M. M. I. A. Demonstration, June, 1916 JOINT OFFICERS' .MEETING AT THE ASSEMBLY HALL ON FRIDAY, JUNE 9, AT 10 A. M. The hall was well filled, both in the gallery and in the audi- torium. Singing, High on the Mountain Top." Invocation by President Francis M. Lyman. Violin solo by Miss May Anderson There were present on the stand a large number of the members of the General Boards of Young Men and Young Ladies. President J ra re lde nd after the opening exercises read the slogan i £ M. ?I. A.-"We ofi the ?J f a,^ stand for State- and Nation-wide Prohi- : 3 THE GENERAL M. I. A. CONFERENCE 913 bition," and spoke upon it. His speech appeared in full in the Jul: number of the Era. SPECIAL ACTIVITIES, 1916-17 BY MISS CLARISSA BEESLEY The General Boards have outlined the following work: I. Public Speaking Contest, for seniors only. This will pass through ward, stake dis- trict, stake,Church district, and final try-outs as heretofore, and will be governed by the same rules as formerly made. (See July Era, 1915.) Stakes and wards are urged to concentrate their efforts in making this event worth while. II. Stake Pennant Contest. Events 1. The reading course, 2 points for the reading of each book, except the New Testament, for the reading of which 7 points are given. (This must be a new reading.) One-half as many points for the hearing of a book read. 2. Prepared public speaking, open to all members except advanced seniors — points for initial appearance. 3. Extemporaneous public speaking, open to advanced seniors only 3 points — initial appearance. The Beatitudes are assigned as the theme for extempo- raneous speaking; stakes are to choose any five. _ _ Declamation or memorized reading, open to all members— 2 points for initial 4. 5. appearance. Drama, open to all members; for plays under one hour in length, 15 points ...,,. initial appearance, 10 points additional appearance; for plays over one hour in length, 25 points for initial appearance, 15 points for additional appearance. 6. Debates, open to all members; 15 points for initial group appearance, 10 points for additional group appearance. Debates must be at least one-half hour in length. Where two wards meet in debate points are to be divided equally. , . ..... 7. Junior boys' chorus (six or more members) 10 points for initial group ap- pearance, 3 points for additional group appearance. 8 Tunior girls' chorus, score same as boys' chorus. _ 9. Male quartet, 5 points for initial group appearance; 2 points for additional group appearance. 10 Ladies' quartet, score same as male quartet. 11. Mixed double quartet, 10 points for initial group appearance; 3 points for each additional group appearance. .... 12 Duets, vocal or instrumental, 3 points for initial appearance. 13* Trios vocal or instrumental, 5 points for initial appearance. appearance; 3 14'. Instrumental groups. (4 or more) 10 points for initial group points for additional appearance. _ . . . , points for appearance. 15 Retold story, open to all members, 3 initial will be prepared by *he Note: For Nos. 4, 5, 6, lists of selections and subjects r.noral T5nard<; Scoring will be limited to these lists. points will be given for each enrolled member at the In addition to the above 2 time f h points scored per joint enroll- T h e basis JftSH^ffi stand as heretofore, viz., ment is limited to regular weekly and monthly M. =corine in M I. A. special activities A* ^Tt;™ mtWiiies In the regular class association meetings, scoring must be t limbed to PpreliS program J sclis not to interfere with lessons Special A MI g"herings cain and presided over by M. I. A officers may be held for scoring in for no other events. drama, debates, and reading course, but THE JOINT READING COURSE, 1916-17 BY MRS. JANE BALLANTYNE ANDERSON Some years since the General Boards began recommending a number of books for each season for the members of the A. ML some eight or ten books The idea became popular, and in recent years this reading In our membership each year have been suggested for From the of some 80,000, thousands have read the books each season lortsths year we learn that morereading books than ever before have one or more rising to Wn read the number of members months last past, and 7,809 young men, 12 260 young ladies, in the six for the eleven months, totaling over ^U,UUU. varies with local Methods of inducing the young people to read Course supervisor In a general way, we have a Reading condition? 728 stakes; and then in each ward of the ?n each of the seventy-six young man and a young lady to look after the n the Church a — 914 IMPROVEMENT ERA interests of the reading, provide the public books, and check up the work. As a special inducement to get the young people to read, a credit system was introduced by which two points were given in the special activity contest for each book read. The great increase in the number of young people reading the books is proo.f of the success of the new methods. Those in charge of this part of our work should be very careful, however, to see that the gaining of points is not made the main object. Our aim is to get the young people to read, and to direct their reading towards inspiration and culture. Inspire boys and girls with the love of reading and they will find far greater pleas- ure at home with a good book than at picture shows or on the street. List of books for year 1916-17: The New Testament, 7 points. — Shakespeare's Plays "Hamlet," "Mid Summer Night's Dream," "Henry VIII," "King Lear," "Romeo and Juliet," 2 points for each — play only one is required to be read, and it is left to the discretion of the reader whether he reads only one or all. — "Tales from Shakespeare," by Lamb 2 points. — "Little Women" Alcott, 2 points. "How We — Got Our Bible" J. Patterson Smyth, 2 points. — "Sandsy's Pal" Gardner Hunting, 2 points. — "Wild Animals at Home" E. Thompson Seton, 2 points. — "Jacob Hamblin" James A. Little, 2 points. "Wild Roses, A Tale of the Rockies," by Prof. Howard R. Driggs, 2 points. Ready in October. "Under the Country Sky," Grace Richmond, 2 points. "Speeches of the Flying Squadron," 2 points. To Christians, the New Testament is the book of books embody- ing the greatest religious and ehtical teachings the world has known. You should read the Bible as the foundation for all your other read- ing. One author says: "No man is ignorant who knows the Bible: and no man is educated who does not know it." And so, there should be a systematic and earnest effort made this year to get every boy and girl to read the New Testament. As an extra inducement to do so, seven points in special activities are to be given for its reading. Not only should we make a special effort to get the young people to read it, but we should try to get each to buy a pocket edition to carry with him and read whenever he has a few minutes leisure time. Copies of the New Testament can be obtained from 10c up. A good size for the pocket or library, printed on India paper, in good-sized, clear type, with limp leather cover, can be purchased for 50c, a larger size, with references, $1.00. "How We Got Our Bible," by J. Patterson Smyth, is a book which traces the story of the Bible from the early manuscripts of apostolic days down to the latest version in our hands today, and is brim full of useful information which will prove of invaluable service to all Bible readers. It will also show us the wisdom of the declara- tion in one of our Articles of Faith that: "We believe the Bible to be the word of God as far as it is translated correctly." "Tales from Shakespeare," by Charles and Mary Lamb is an in- spirational book which, it is hoped, will make every student anxious to read the works of Shakespeare. With this belief in mind the reading committee recommended five plays from Shakespeare "Romeo and Juliet," "A Midsummer Night's Dream," "Henry the Eighth," '"King Lear," and "Hamlet," leaving it to the discretion of the reader to choose anyone or all of them. Two points are to be given for each. Shakespearean plays can be had in the school edition for 25c each, nr a good volume of all Shakespeares' plays for 60c to $1. "Little Women," by Louise May Alcott, is a book which every THE GENERAL M. I. A. CONFERENCE 915 girl loves, and because of its beautiful, wholesome spirit is acceptable to adults also, and is as interesting for boys as for girls. Price, $1.20. "Sandsy's Pal," is the story of two boys, one who had everything, the other nothing. They became fast friends, and went through a variety of beneficial and inspirational experiences together, their friendship was brought about by the kindness of one boy to the other boy's dog. Price $1.25. "Wild Animals at Home." is our nature book. Tt describes vividly the life of wild animals in their native haunts, as seen by the eyes of that lover of all animals, Ernest Thompson Seton. Its price is 50c. "Jacob Hamblin," a thrilling pioneer historical and biographical exposition of early life among the Indians in Utah and the West, price 25c. "Wild Roses, A Tale of the Rockies," a thrilling frontier story by Howard R. Driggs, showing strikingly the ethics and social conditions of early western life. Points for reading will be awarded only on books read between June 1, 1916, and April 1, 1917. If the New Testament has been read, it must be reread in order to score points. As another inducement to get the young people to read, these books, the Deseret News Book Store and the Deseret Sunday School Union Book Store, each has given a set of books to be awarded to the two stakes having the greatest number of points in reading. FALL CONVENTIONS, 1916 BY BRYANT S. HINCKLEY SCHEDULE OF MEETINGS I. Where conventions are held in connection with quarterly confer- ences: — Saturday, 4:15 p. m. Joint stake officers' meeting. a. — — b. Saturday, 7:30 p. m. Joint stake and ward officers' meeting. c. Sunday, 9. a. m. Separate officers' meeting. d. By permission of the Stake Presidency, part of the time of the Sunday morning session of the conference. e. The Sunday evening session of the conference. II. Where conventions are held separate from quarterly conferences: a. 9 a. m. — Joint stake officers' meeting. b. 10 a. m. — Joint stake and ward officers' meeting. c. 2 p. m. —— Joint stake and ward officers' meeting. Separate officers' meeting. d. 2:45 p. m. e. 7:30 p. — m. General meeting. Where stakes desire to hold conventions separate from quarterly conferences, they must secure the permission of the stake president and his signature to the same and send to Moroni Snow, General Secretary Y. M. M. I. A., before August 1st. Where conventions are held separate from the conference M. I. A. stake officers are urged to seek permission of the Stake Presidency to present at the quarterly conference falling on the date nearest to the convention, topics of vital interest to Mutual Improvement work. Officers are also urged to see that members of stake presidencies, high councils, and bishoprics are made familiar with the convention work and invited to all the meetings. DEMONSTRATION OF A WARD MEETING BY OSCAR A. KIRKHAM After these opening exercises, one of the most interesting parts of the program followed, being a demonstration of an M. I. A. ward asso- 916 IMPROVEMENT ERA ciation meeting, which was conducted by Elder Oscar A. Kirkham. We include his remarks and the exercises which follow as a sample of the method desired by the General Boards to be adopted by the M. I. A. organizations of the Church in.the conduct of their association meetings. It is expected that in the conventions in the fall each stake will be required to conduct in like manner a demonstration of the regular work of an association using the officers of the convention for tins purpose and having their program thoroughly prepared which program will be suggested in the convention circular. The very in- teresting gathering closed with singing "Now Let Us Rejoice" and benediction by Ruth May Fox. DEMONSTRATION OF AN M. A. WARD ASSOCIATION I. MEETING Including Officers' Meeting, Preliminary Program, Class Exercises, and Remarks by Visiting Stake Officer BY OSCAR A. KIRKHAM It is designed that at our coming fall conventions a demonstration be given of an association meeting. In the past we have talked about things, and how things ought to be done. Now we want a demonstra- tion of how things are really being done, at the convention. We are attempting to do so this morning, just as near as we can, under the conditions that you see. I am giving a demonstration of a real asso- ciation meeting from now on to the close of this service. I will first show you through the preliminary officers' meeting, after which will come our preliminary program. Then, following that will come, as in the association, the class work; and then, finally, a few words from the visiting officers representing the stake officers to the ward. officers' meeting It is possibly 7:30 p. m. in the great majority of the wards in the Church when they start their association work. We make the earnest request of you, good association officers, from experience, that if you wish to increase the efficiency of your association meetings, from 50 per cent to 100 per cent, then kindly take serious notice of the things that I am about to say. It is this, that if your association meets at 7:30, then you as officers should meet promptly at 7 o'clock. Now the majority of you probably have heard that before. We wish to hear it many, many times again, until we can get it working throughout the Church everywhere, for we feel the necessity of it. Its value comes to us from splendid testimonies of the success of preliminary officers' meetings. The program is found on page 15 of the hand-book. It runs like this: At 7 o'clock you meet. It is 7 o'clock now. You meet. Prob- ably the superintendent is there, one counselor; may be the class leader is there: but begin at 7 o'clock. Have your prayer. Pray for the things that you need that night, a short, brief prayer, an outpour- ing of the Spirit of God. expressing your desires as officers: "Help us, tonight, Father, to win that Junior class where we have failed so long, with the discipline that we need there. Help us, tonight, to be thoughtful. Help us, tonight, to ?ee the right way. Inspire the teachers, tonight, to do their work well." That should be the thought and burden of the praver that should be prayed in that officers' meeting. Then the silent roll, so as not to take the time we need for discussion. For instance, here is our asso- ciation, this morning. Are our members present here. Is Sister Cald- THE GENERAL M. I. A. CONFERENCE 917 well present to give her "Talk on Shakespeare?" Yes. I have been looking oyer the audience to see if these people are present. Sister Caldwell is here. Let's see, is the sister here appointed to give the "Reading from Shakespeare," Sister Lovesey? Yes, she is here. Then this program is going to come off. Is the music here? Up to one minute ago, I worried very much about it. May be you saw me leave the building. I went across the road to where Brother Andelin lives to see whether he would be here or not. He had promised to be here. I have been wondering if he was going to live up to his promise. He is. I repeat these details; why? Because this is the kind of thing, good people, that you have to meet with all the while. I was prepared to give a substitute number, if Prof. Andelin had failed. I repeat these details, because it means so much to the success of your asso- ciation meetings throughout the wards to have no failures of your program. And we suggest to you, when there is a possibility of fail- ure, that an officer be prepared with a retold story, with a five- or ten- minute address, with a musical number, to put on the program, so that it will be finished in splendid dispatch. No excuses will then be made by our splendid officers, and everything will go off as it should go, in an ideal association. Now, the next step. Who is to conduct the meeting? The young men always preside, the young women may conduct. Tonight, perhaps, we decide in favor of one or the other. It may be the occa- sion of a visit of a superintendent of our stake. Then it would be the right thing for the young ladies to say, although it may not be your turn, "We will be delighted to let you conduct the meeting tonight; or, vice versa, if the president of the young ladies' stake officer, is present, "we will be delighted to have you conduct the program to- night." Then a written program is placed into his or her hands. All the details are there, in order that no more may be said about the program. The musical numbers are selected by the organist; every- thing is ready. The next step: report on joint work. We take up joint work. However, preceding this is a very important step. We selected the reception committee, some one to be there at the door, and some one to go early. It is now about 7:15. Weask two officers, not the same all the time, to go and receive the guests, visitors to the association. This will add materially to the discipline, to the order of the association, if a splendid reception committee is there. And, perhaps, there may be a mother coming in. It may be snowing; it may be cold. The reception committee is there. This can be done in the most humble ward: "Why, good evening, Sister Jones, how de- lightful. Why, you brought baby. Let me hold the baby. Just hand the wraps over there. Isn't he a splendid fellow. Look at those splendid, large eyes." Then that mother will say, more than likely: "Yes, Mary is on the preliminary program tonight; I wanted to come and hear her take her part." "Mary is doing such splendid work in our association. We are so delighted." When are men and women impressed most to do good? When hearts are stirred to do splendid things, then our resolves are made for great things in life. You touched that mother's spirit; a splendid service has been rendered. That is a reception committee doing its duty. Then the next step; joint work. We take up our committee work, do things that will improve our work. Weare goingto increase our membership. We are going to do it in splendid fashion. It may be a play we are going to put on, or it may be that we are goingto give a dance. If there is much work involved, we make an appointment 918 IMPROVEMENT ERA for another evening, when we can all go over the details more thor- oughly, but it is talked of and checked on at this meeting. Next step. The preliminary music. A few strains of music are given as the audience is coming in, while the reception committee is bringing them up to the front. And it is a splendid thing to get Junior members up to the front. The organ is being played. It is only three minutes now before half-past-seven. If there is time, separate work is being checked over. Then, at the appointed time, half-past-seven, or a minute before, out from that officers' room come the officers, take their places on the stand; nothing need be said, only by the brother or sister who is conducting the exercises. Good people, I am radical in the sentence I shall say, but I believe sincerely that 50 to 75 per cent of the order in the audience is meas- ured and conditioned by the order on the stand. Here is an opposite example: A brother got up who was presid- ing in an association, and said: "Will you fellows down there in the corner keep quiet, for don't you know that this is a place of worship?" Then turning around to me, he said: "Why, we haven't got a pre- liminary program tonight; can't you help us out?" "Have you found that hymn?" "Say, if you fellows don't behave, tonight, out you go! Just re- member that you are in a place of worship." And there we go. "How can I believe what you say when what you are is thundering in my ears?" said Emerson. If the officers will do their duty, and this preliminary officers' meeting makes it possible, the audience is seated very quietly, the numbers are called, and the preliminary program goes off in splendid order. PRELIMINARY PROGRAM We will now ask Brother Grant to kindly conduct the program and read the numbers. Notice that the preliminary program is all on one theme, Shakespeare, including the music, "Sylvia," the words of which were written by Shakespeare. Brother Grant: We have first a talk on Shakespeare, by Sister Margaret Caldwell. (This will appear in the next number of the Era.) A reading, "Shakespeare's Advice to the Actors," was explained and given by Mrs. Edith R. Lovesey. Prof. Willard Andelin sang, "Who is Sylvia?" accompanied on the organ by Arvilla Clark Andelin. Then followed class work by Dr. Geo. H. Brimhall who took a lesson from the Y. M. M. I. A. Senior manual, 1916, and used the (jeneral Board members on the stand as his class. Brother Kirkham said at the close of the class exercise: The association is now coming to a close. A wise officer will have had an opportunity to call some boy to the side, or some girl, and have said to him or to her, privately, "Now, we would like to have you dismiss the association tonight." The boy or girl then has an opportunity to express themselves whether they would like to do so or not. They are not called out from the audience unexpectedly, sometimes refus- ing, and other times embarrassed so that they will never come back again; but the officer has very tactfully gone, and very quietly invited the boy or girl to dismiss the association, and it is done in splendid fashion. STAKE OFFICERS AND THEIR RELATION TO THE WARD ASSOCIATIONS After the meeting, the visiting stake worker calls the ward officers together for a moment. If the stake worker is efficient, he has a definite message to give to that association. Probably he has come some fifteen or twenty miles to visit this ward tonight. He has THE GENERAL M. I. A. CONFERENCE 919 brought a definite message. This message was decided upon by the stake workers, as the big thought that ought to be carried to the wards during this month. The ward officers are now given that thought. They are also checked on the work of the association. Sug- gestions are made, here and there, on how the association work might be Improved. Encouragement is given to the local officers for the splendid work that they are doing. I like to draw this illustration: Many, many stake officers, if you will pardon me to be so bold as to say it, for I have seen it, 'merely g.o and watch through the session. Perhaps when they return' to their board meeting, they have a big list of things that went wrong, at that ward meeting. They proceed to lay them bare before the stake board. What would you think of the doctor who came to you and said: 'Why, Brother — , you have a very bad case of small pox, and, my goodness! it is terrible; it is simply awful! Good-bye." What would you think of a physician who did that kind of work? The real — physician can not only diagnose the case that is fine and splendid. It really does need thought to properly diagnose the case, but the efficient doctor has a bigger duty, and that is to create a cure, to build that man up. He should leave with him several remedies for him to use. The stake worker ought to leave with the ward association a lot of fine things that they can do, to build them up in their work and aid them where they find difficulties existing. The stake worker ought to have a little satchel filled with a lot of fine pills and ointments to give to the ward association. Another thought, and this is the big thought, after all. If the stake worker has been thoughtful, he has prayed in his or her heart before entering that association: "O Lord, help me tonight. I am going to visit this ward. They are having their difficulties. The officers do not get along together. The young men and young ladies do not hitch up very well. There are a lot of difficulties here. Now, help me, tonight, to get these people together that they afterwards willdo their work better." Now, good people, here is my testimony to you; you don't need to say much. You don't need to say many words, if in your heart, in your very being and soul, abides the Spirit of God. It will shine out through your eyes, through your countenance, from everything that you say and do. The young people will say: "O my, how we enjoyed the visit of that stake officer!" It wasn't particularly what you said; but in their hearts they go back home that night and say: "I tell you, I am going to work to make this association become a splendid one, and to accomplish the mission that it should in this ward." May God help us, is my humble prayer, in the name of Jesus. Amen. LITERARY AND MUSICAL CONTESTS At 2 o'clock in the afternoon the final try-outs were held and the officers' attention was divided between the music section in the As- sembly Hall under the supervision of Oscar A. Kirkham and Mabel M. Cooper, and the public speaking section which was held in the Bishop's Building under the superivsion of John F. Bowman and Emily C. Adams. The entrants in the try-outs in the musical contests were: ladies' quartets Farley, Amy Timpanogos ward, Utah stake— Minnie Farley, Lorna Booth, Louie MeC R d dU r fc ; - to71 feeo nd Wa°rd On e ida stake-Mae Reid, Myrtle Tolman, Hazel Monson, P.ertha Montague; Leona Farnsworth, conductor. 920 IMPROVEMENT ERA — Ogden stake Elizabeth Norseth, Julia Maddock, Bernice Burk, Annie Blair; Emily Maddock, conductor. — Mt. Pleasant South ward, North Sanpete stake Ruby Larsen, Elmira Barton, Ruth Monsen, Winona Cherry; Mrs. Tressa L. Erickson, conductor. Parley's ward, Granite stake— Florence Gustaveson, Mary Bertagnoli, Rhea Malin, Sylvia Savage; Henry Taylor, conductor. Pratt Ward, Teton stake — Irma Wilson, Luella Dalley, Grace Green, Ida Aesch- bacher Durtschi; F. W. Morgan, conductor. MALE QUARTETS Naff ward, Raft River stake Manwill; John Bowen, conductor. —John Bowen, Ray Bowen, Loren Manwill, Ferrin Timpanogos ward, Utah stake — Ivern Pyne, C. E. Watson, John Shepherd, Robert Hills; C. E. Watson, conductor. RAFT RIVER MALE WINNING QUARTET John Bovver, Ray BoWen, Loren Manwill, Ferrin Manwill, John Bowen, Conductor. [These young men are pioneers in a new Idaho district, and while at present they live in log houses with dirt roofs, their ambition and energy are sure soon to provide them with modern homes, as their musical ability and efforts brought them to the front.] — Logan Seventh ward, Cache stake J. L. Montrose, Lyman Gabrielson, Edmund Bailey,Conway Spackman; J. L. Montrose, conductor. — Ogden Ninth ward, Weber stake W. E. Bingham, Joseph P. Fernilius, Tom Van Drumelin, Harland Bingham; Joseph P. Fernilius, conductor. Salt Lake City, Tenth ward, Liberty stake — Irvin T. Poll, Albert G. Dangerfield, Joseph B. Standing, Alvin Keddington, Brother Pullham, conductor. — Rigby ward, Rigby stake Z. Ballantyne, Jr., J. E. Hoyle, George A. Waters, James Brown; Z. Ballantyne, Jr., conductor. The entrants in the public speaking contest were: CONTESTANTS IN PUBLIC SPEAKING A. Porter Clark, Auburn, Wyo., Star \ alley stake— "Authority." — Ben Young, 2527 Iowa Ave., Ogden, Weber stake "World-wide Peace." Lauretta Nielsen, American Fork, Alpine stake, "The Measure and Destiny of Women." THE GENERAL M. I. A. CONFERENCE 921 Fred McGrew, Idaho Falls, Bingham stake, "The Ideals of the American." Lutzen Buma, Twenty-ninth ward, Salt Lake stake, "The Man with a Purpose." Esther Packard, Glenwoodville, Canada, Alberta stake, "Character." John E. Palmer, Taylor, Arizona, Snowflake stake, "Mental Clothing." Ferd. Erickson, Monroe, Utah, South ward, "Intelligent Patriotism." J.B. Alexander, Marion, Idaho, Cassia stake, "Faith the Foundation of an Empire." The officers and quartets of the Timpanogos ward Mutual Improvement Associa- tions, left to back row: Martha Pyne, Estella Cook, Lilly Wentz, Abbie Carter, right, Lizzie Cook, Mary J. — Terry, George Loveless, and the male quartet Ivern Pyne, Charles E. Watson, John Shepherd, Robert Hills. Front row: Irving Jones, Otto J. Poulsen, Robert Souter; president of the Young Men's Association James A. Loveless, Jr.; president of the Young Ladies Association Hazel Loveless, Olive Cardner, and the ladies' quartet, Louie Farley, Lorna Booth, Minnie Farley, Amy Mecham. These asso- ciations won up to the finals and are the only Mutual Improvement Associations in the Church that sent two numbers through to the final contest. The winners were Ben Young, Ogden, Weber stake, "World-wide Peace;" and Lauretta Nielsen, American Fork, Alpine stake, "The Measure and Destiny of Woman." The papers appear in this number of the Era. The finals were held on Saturday evening at 8 o'clock at which a great congregation gathered. The winning chorus was from Teton stake. In addition to the contests "The Daughter of Jairus" was beauti- fully rendered by the combined mixed double quartets of the Pioneer stake M. I. A. under direction of Tracy Y. Cannon, conductor. The exercises closed after the presentation .of gold medals to the winners of the contests; and also the presentation of the Church pennant to the stake winning in special activities. Cassia stake won, their stake having obtained 9,823 points in the special activities. RECEPTION AND SOCIAL A reception and social for visiting stake officers, a most interesting and attractive function, was held in the Hotel Utah at 8 o'clock, Friday evening in which at least a thousand people took part. President Smith and the General Boards of M. I. A. received the visiting officers. A program of vocal and instrumental music was given, and dancing followed. All enjoyed themselves. 922 IMPROVEMENT ERA SATURDAY MEETINGS Separate meeting of the officers of the Y. M. M. I. A. was held Sat- urday morning, June 10, at 10 o'clock in the Bishop's Building. Sing- ing, "Count Your Blessings." Prayer by President Joseph E. Rob- inson, of the California mission. Singing, "Love's Old Sweet Song," by Raft River stake quartet. The roll call of stakes showed there were 71 stakes represented. During the conference every stake in the Church except Kanab was represented at some of the meetings, and that stake sent. good excuse for its non-representation. Preston D. Richards spoke upon "Membership and Organization.'' Roscoe W. Eardley treated "Vocations and Industries," and Dr. George H. Brimhall spoke on "Class Study and Manuals for 1916-17." LADIES' QUARTET, PRATT WARD, TETON STAKE Winners in M. I. A. Contest, 1916. THE CHURCH AS A MEDIUM OF SOCIAL SERVICE The above is the title of the new Senior Manual for 1916-17. It will be divided so that each lesson will present the following divisions: (1) Facts; (2) Reference to facts; (3) Arranging facts which will require the drawing .of conclusions to life and to the Church; (4) The vitalizing force of the Church as a social service instrument, is the divinity in it; (5) Individual application. It has been tentatively suggested by the Committee on Class Study that the following be the titles of the lessons: 1. The Social Service Value of Missionaries. 2. Ward 'Teach- ing. 5. 3. — The Sacrament. 4. Prayer, private, public and ordinance. Temple Marriages. 6. Word of Wisdom. 7. Fast Day. 8. Tith- ing 9. The Bishopric and Make Presid^nces and High Councils. 10. The General Authorities and the Priesthood. 11. The Relief Society. 12. Sunday School and Primary Associations. 13. The Mutual Improvement Associations. 14. The Publications. 15. Fos- tering Education — Schools and Religion Class. 16. The Social Service Spirit. 17. The Church in Industries. 18. Pioneering. THE GENERAL M. I. A. CONFERENCE 923 Secretary Moroni Snow gave report of the Era and Fund from which it appears that the Era has a paid-up circulation in the various stakes of 10,341, and that the following stakes have 5 per cent of the Church population subscribers for the magazine: Stakes having five per cent or more in Era subscriptions, Volume 19: 1. Snow- flake, 5.59;2. Bingham, 5.01; 3. Deseret, 5; 4. St. Johns, 5; 5. Box Elder, 5. Stakes having four per cent or more in Era subscriptions, Volume 19: 1. Ban- nock, 4.90; 2. Curlew, 4.76; 3. San Juan, 4.76; 4. Wasatch, 4.70; 5. Oneida, 4.62; 6. Kanab, 4.43; 7. Fremont, 4.34; 8. Taylor, 4.33- 9. Bear River, 4.11; 10. Pioneer, 4.07; 11. Blackfoot, 4; 12. Raft River, 4. The M. I. A. Fund collections for 1915-16 amounted to $5,427.20, and the disbursements to $5,163.69. There was a deficit last year of $1,940.45, leaving this year's deficit at $1,676.94. Stakes having paid 100 per cent or more on General Fund : 1. Beaver, 112.29; 2. Snowflake, 107.40; 3. Cassia, 106.06; 4. Bingham, 101.64; 5. Davis South, 100.92; 6. Bannock, 100.83; 7. Blackfoot, 100.29; 8. Box Elder, 100.14; 9. Ensign, 100; 10. Pioneer, 100; 11. Yellowstone, 100; 12. Raft River, 100; 13. Davis North, 100. "EFFICIENCY IN M. I. A. WORK" BY OSCAR A. KIRKHAM This is a new movement in the associations which it is believed will greatly tend to order and efficient serivce in which each par- ticular division of our work will receive its proper attention and in which no one item shall be given greater attention than another. It is explained as follows: GENERAL EFFICIENCY REPORT OF Y. M. M. I. A. FOR 1916-17 Ftake Month Membership Average Attendance Special Activities Scout Work Social Work Era 1 Fund | Vocations | Stake Board Meetings Ward Officers' Meetings 1 DIRECTIONS 1. If the membership in each ward of your stake is 10 per cent of its ward popu- lation, place 10 in the space under Membership. 2. If the average attendance in each ward of your stake in class work is two- thirds or more of the membership, place 10 in proper siace. 3. If you have a stake pennant contest in which all wards are taking part, place 10 in the proper space. 4. If you have Scout work in 50 per cent or more, of your wards, place 10 in the proper space. 5. When each ward has held one or more successful socials (not necessarily a dance) under the direction of M. I. A. officers, place 10 in the proper space. 6. When all heads of families in each ward of your stake have been visited by a spirited officer or member in the interest of the Era, place 10 in the proper space. 7: When 100 per cent of the annual fund has been collected in each ward of your stake, place 10 in the proper space. 8. If you have an organization on Vocations and Industries in your stake and 50 per cent or more of your wards are participating, place 10 in proper space. 9. If you are holding monthly stake board meetings and monthly stake and ward officers' meetings place 10 in proper space. 10. If each ward in your stake is holding weekly officers' meetings, place 10 in proper space. Please send this report to the General Board by the 10th of each month. It will be published monthly in the Era. When no report is received, it will be so stated in the report published. When the report shows that requirements in general efficiency have been reached, it will be indicated by placing 10 in the proper space. When stakes are below the general efficiency requirement, it will be indicated by a blank. Further explanation, with Secretary Kirkham's speech at conference, on the sub- ject, will appear in the September Era. The meeting closed with singing, "Come, -Come Ye Saints" and prayer was offered by Junius F. Wells. 924 IMPROVEMENT ERA A NOON LUNCHEON At Committee had provided a luncheon for 12 o'clock the Social the General Board and stake superintendents only, at the Lion House. Here problems in M. I. A. stake supervision and work were discussed by Board members and by the stake superintendents. President Smith was present and spoke to the officers. His remarks will follow in a future number of the Era. The social question and other points relating to the government of the associations and their management were freely discussed and many new items were presented relating to the M. I. A. work. SATURDAY AFTERNOON MEETING At the Bishop's Building at 2:30 p. m., Elder Heber J. Grant pre- sided at the meeting. Singing, "O Say What Is Truth," by the con- gregation. Prayer by J. Golden Kimball. Singing, "Far Away," by the Utah stake male quartet, after which the problem, "Overcoming Difficulties in M. I. A. Work," was introduced by Elder B. S. Hinckley and was followed by three-minute speeches by officers and members of the General Board. Many took part and much valuable information was gathered from the reports. The meeting closed by singing "True to the Faith;" the benedic- tion was offered by President Orvil L. Thompson of Millard stake. SUNDAY MORNING TESTIMONY MEETING On Sunday morning, June 11, at 8:30 o'clock, in the Assembly Hall, a fast and testimony meeting of the officers of the association was held. President Joseph F. Smith presided at the meeting. This was one of the most valuable meetings of the conference. Many bore strong testimonies concerning the work of the Lord, and the spirit of the gospel was greatly enjoyed by those present, the Holy Ghost being poured out in great measure upon those who spoke as well as upon those who listened. GENERAL MEETING IN THE TABERNACLE At the 10:30 meeting in the Tabernacle, President Joseph F. Smith presided. Singing by Junior Girls' Chorus, Liberty stake, William Salt, conductor. Prayer by President Anthon H. Lund. Singing, Granite Stake Boys' Chorus, William Vorkink, conductor. Dr. George H. Brimhall spoke on the M. I. A. Slogan, "We Stand for State- and Nation-wide Prohibition." The M. I. A. Slogan DR. GEORGE H. BRIMHALL BY I need your faith and prayers; and I ask that the spirit of shall this occasion may be with me sufficiently that I may be directed to say something in keeping with what has already been said this morning in our testimony meeting, and what should be said in this meeting. We need the spirit not only to prompt us as to what to say, but also, on some occasions, as to what not to say. I have before me, on our program, these words: Slogan, and then, in quotation marks, "We stand for State- and Nation-wide Pro- hibition." "We," what does that word stand for? It stands for the General Superintendency; you know who they are. It stands for the General Board. It stands for every stake and ward officer. It stands for every member, in the Mutual Improvement organization, young men and young ladies. It stands for one of the divisions of the great helps in government in the Church. Again, it stands for me, as a part of that great association through which the Lord is carrying on his work. My part of it cannot be done by him without my help. THE GENERAL M. I. A. CONFERENCE 925 He cannot give me heaven without my help. I have my agency and each of has his. On one occasion, it is said, the evils and sins of the world met in convention. The subject for consideration was the election ,of a prime minister for Death. Consumption made her claim, then came the long category of Diseases and Pestilences, then came War and put in his claim for this position. Presently there entered one with stately tread, a look of haughtiness on his face. He swept down the aisle, looking with contempt upon the candidates, and the inquiry was made! "Who are you, and where are you from?" "Where am I not from?" he answered. "As to who I am, I am the prince of darkness, my appellation is Intemperance, and my head- quarters are legalized saloons." And so he has been leading in this great pathway of destruction. Now we have our slogan to say to him: "Thou shalt not, by the hand o! social force, press the cup of poison to the lips of our brother." The battle that we must make to preserve our standard, that we plant upon the hill, "State- and Nation-wide Prohibition," must be provided for, and these are the lines of attack that will be made upon us: First, personal liberty. That is a point of attack that is almost impregnable, a vantage ground that is planted in the very sub-soil of human nature. Tt is not to be despised; it must be reckoned with. We have had in our government, as shown by the history of our na- tion, two rebellions. One, because of its small territory, has been denominated an insurrection. It happened, I believe, in the eighteenth year of our independence, in the year 1794, when western Pennsyl- vania and part of Virginia were marshaled against the federal gov- ernment. Why? Because the Federal government, through the Con- gress, had interfered with what these men thought was personal liberty, the liberty to distil liquor without paying an excise on it to the government. "The government should not interfere with this manufacture." So said these men, and they marshaled themselves; they defied the federal officers, they set fire to the home of the in- spector. And now go back with me to that time, some 122 years ago, and we shallgo to a powwow in a grove of trees, a convention of two hundred delegates, all of whom but two were from Pennsylvania. Those two were from Virginia. You will see a liberty bell there, as well as the stars and stripes. They said, banner unfurled, "Liberty, not exile; no asvlum for cowards or traitors." And who presided at that convention? Col. Crook, one of the veterans of the Revolution, who was secretary to Mr. Goutre who afterwards became secretary of the treasury and minister to France and England. I bring these up to show you that men have deep-seated convic- t ons along these lines, and we must meet that issue; we cannot despise : it, and we must do something more than agitate. We must educate, we must legislate, and we must execute. Tt sometimes happens, how- ever, that execution must precede education, and men have to have an interest even couched in power before they can comprehend the truth. Well, this rebellion or insurrection of the liquor traffic cost our government $800,000 at that period of its life. And then we pass on down to the other one, that great rebellion that cost our government one million lives. That was over the same issue, personal liberty, a kind of personal liberty that prompted men conscientiously to buy and sell human beings. But execution, edu- cation, legislation have brought us up to where no one thinks th-i there is anv right in that kind of might. There, as a rule, the human family, and God's children, the majority of them, will see aright with- out being forced into the light. Now we are standing on that ground, 926 IMPROVEMENT ERA and we cannot say to this man, to that man, "Thou fool," because he does not see just as we see, or because he does not always do just as we do. Do you think I have any sympathy with whiskey or booze? I have no more sympathy with it than I have with a rattlesnake. To me it is the twin brother to the brothel. To me it is one of the most deadly vices that humanity has. But we call attention to the history of our race, of our nation, and so to the man who stands upon this ground of personal liberty. Mark you, it is but a matter of time when the pressure of the forces of agi- tation and legislation and execution will move him from that. The in- consistency of it is apparent to me. I want to make my brother come around and look at it from my point of view. Now the next thing that we have to deal with is business, that the licensed saloon promotes business. I want to call your attention to about half a dozen words on this question. Whenever there is waste, or whenever there is want, the business men organize to look and see where the waste is. When there was want in Russia, where did the statesmen of Russia look for the great source of the waste? You all know. To my mind, from beginning to end, whiskey, with .all its concomitants, all the things that belong with it, — alcoholism, alco- hol, whiskey, — spells waste, whether it is in the life of the individual or whether it is in the life of a city, or in a county, or in a state, or in a nation. It is the same problem, so far as I am concerned. On a train, the other day, in speaking of this matter, a lady said: "O I hope that before my boy gets big enough to go out for himself, that we shall have state-wide prohibition." And I looked into her ej'-es, looked at her face, beaming with all the innocence of a girl, a mother to a beautiful family, in her heart yearning, longing for a con- dition of society that would remove from her boy, precious and pure, the temptations that had caused so many in the neighborhood to go dcwn. And I said (not loud), as this problem of business came up in my mind: "Who wants business at the price of our boys?" When the boys are sold, the girls are thrown in as a part of the bargain, because they go together. There is another point of attack that our slogan will meet, will have to guard against, and that is safety. Why, one of the great themes upon which the defenders of the saloon orate is, "You must have the saloon or have something worse." That is a specious argu- — ment. There is just one thing wrong about it it is not true! I have heard that some classes of people argue, that "we must have the brothel to preserve the virtue of our daughters, and make it safe for our wives." Do you believe that? You no more believe that than you believe that the legal ban against opium is an infringement upon the right of a person to make opium and become crazed by it. You know that each individual is society, and that society is each individ- ual. Now what are we going to do about this argument? Simply say it is sophistry. I hold, and I have ever held, since I was twenty-one years of age, when I had a right to speak, that for every saloon there is a dive somewhere. So the argument that we need saloons to keep our boys from being sneaks, and the argument that we need saloons in order that worse things may not come, are fallacious. You know that. I never saw a saloon till I was eighteen years of age. A saloon was opened in the town of my boyhood, and on the day that that saloon was opened, I saw more intoxication than I had ever seen in all my life. Youth, middle age, manhood, womanhood, ours is the business to carry this standard of prohibition on, on to victory. We stand, our — slogan says stand, not waver, not oscillate, but stand, for state-wide prohibition, first; nation-wide prohibition, next. And let us not be THE GENERAL M. I. A. CONFERENCE 927 coaxed from our post of duty. Let us not be scared from the guar- dianship with which we stand charged, but let us stand on the firing line. Let every one of us feel like the Greek: "Today's victory de- pends upon this arm of mine." It is, to my mind, the sacred duty of every Mutual Improvement member and officer to equip himself and herself with the arguments in favor of this movement, and help to bring about that cause, couched in that hymn concerning Zion, "On the necks of thy foes thou shalt tread." "Mormonism" never had a human foe that it would desire to destroy. The foes of this people, the foes of the youth, and all of Zion, are the evils of the earth. In speaking of Zion, I commend you to read what Brother — Ivins has said, and it found its place in the Era there is one part of that discourse that strikes me very forcibly; the heading is this: "The Church Wants Prohibition." And then he goes on to show where the Church has always been. O my beloved brethren and sisters, speak- ing of Zion— Zion, the abode of God forever, the city of Enoch, Zion the pure in heart, Zion the land of America, Zion, this Church, the — bride of the Redeemer has she not come across the mountains as a fugitive? Has she not sought a home in these peaceful vales? Has she. not on her right sandal the word revelation, and on the left the word science? As she has advanced, has she not had on her right hand the priesthood, and on the left the auxiliaries? And by these she cares for her children, garnishes her home; and we, as her children, we lcve her. I have but to refer to our beloved President's utterances. To me, all the time, he has clung to a yearning that bursts forth in pleading for the consummation of the thing that we are expected to be instrumental in accomplishing. To me our president's word is of more importance than the word of any of the ancient prophets, be- cause it is in my day and for me. Here is President Lyman, what he says to me is of more importance than what Peter said in his dav. Tt is alive. These men in my mind are the constitution of this insti- tution, and I have felt and I still feel, and I hope that I can bear this testimony to the last, that what the man at the helm says to Israel, "Stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord," that is of more importance to me than the words of Moses at the shores of the sea. And now, my brethren and sisters, authorized as we are by our Americanshio, bv the counsel and advice of our brethren, by the rev- elations of the Lord, and by the spirit and the special mission of our M. I. A. work, let us go on and carry this slogan to its legitimate destiny, and let us not'forget what we read in the book of Revelation: "And it was shown, the hosts of the glory of the Father, and it was said of them. These are they that were valiant." God helo us to be in these ranks, as officers and members, is my prayer, in the name of Jesus. Amen. Singing, "Roses and Lilies," Junior Girls' Chorus, Liberty stake. SOCIAL WORK BY LUCY W. SMITH Following a splendid introduction to the subiect. Mrs. Smith read these printed rules and regulations governing M. I. A. social work which are approved and adopted by the General Boards of Y. M. and Y. L. M. I. A.: I. Organization. In stakes and wards M. I. A. social committees shall be appointed whose duty it shall be to take charge of all M. I. A. social activities. Where stake and ward social or amusement committees are already aopointed and acting under direction of stake presidents or bishops, our officers are instructed to solicit representation on those commit- tees; and where there are no stake or ward social or amusement com- 928 IMPROVEMENT ERA mittees our officers are instructed to tender their services to stake presidencies and bishops to conduct these activities. II. Preparation. All M. I. A. committees controlling social work should have definite times of meeting when problems relating to the social life of M. I. A. members shall be discussed and united decisions reached and ways and means provided for their execution. III. Education. All decisions reached by the M. I. A. social committee should be first approved by the Priesthood authorities in the stakes and wards and then brought before the general public with a view of creating sentiment in their favor. Where possible special instructions should be provided for social dances, dramatic perform- ances and other entertainments. IV. Supervision. All M. I. A. social gatherings, either stake or ward, should be properly supervised by persons appointed by the com- mittee. These supervisors should be thoroughly prepared to conduct these gatherings in an orderly and enjoyable manner. The following special instructions are given on dancing and ball room management: (a) The committee shall see that the hall is clean, comfortable, well lighted, and when occasion requires, simply and appropriately decorated. Where possible separate dressing rooms for ladies and gentlemen should be provided. (b) All M. I. A. parties should be opened and closed by a brief, appropriate prayer. (c) A competent man should be appointed who represents the committee as Director of the Dance, and as such he has supervision of hall, orchestra and program, and is the duly constituted judge as to what is proper and what is improper in dancing and deportment. Among the duties of the director are these: 1. To follow the program, preserving the identity of the dance called for. 2. To insist upon correct position and to encourage the use of standard figures or steps. 3. To tactfully but courageously exclude undesirable persons, and to see that tobacco, liquor, and bad language be not permitted in or about the building. 4. To consult with the orchestra upon the fitness of the music prior to the evening of the dance, and arrange that only proper music shall be played. Where conditions require, the director of the dance should have such competent assistants as may be necessary. (d) Director, orchestra and reception committee should be on hand promptly at 8 o'clock. Guests should be instructed also to be prompt in gathering. Dance should close at 11 o'clock. Dance up to the hour of closing and then dismiss by prayer, dispensing with the frequent practice of playing the "Home Sweet Home" medley. (e) Patrons and chaperones lend "tone" and atmosphere of con- servatism much to be desired, as well as adding an element of real safety. Young ladies who have no invitations from young men may come ifproperly chaperoned, but should not accept company home other than that with which they came. Young men should bring partners and their coming without should be strongly discouraged if not forbidden. Parents, members of the social committee, class leaders or other M. I. A. officers or friends should see that all lady guests are accom- panied by partners or chaoerones. Young people should be instructed that chaperonage is rather for protection than for restraint. THE GENERAL M. I. A. CONFERENCE 929 (f) High class music is conducive to good deportment and re- fined dancing. Great care should be exercised in the choice of music for the dance and orchestra should not be permitted to play objection- able selections. Music with broken rhythm should be forbidden. A suggestive list of ball room music is published in the February, 1916, Era. (g) All M. I. A. members should see that their escorts and friends receive proper introductions. Great care should be exercised by our young people in accepting introductions to strangers. No young man nor young lady should be introduced to friends unless the person making the introduction can stand sponser for his or her worthiness. Much harm has resulted from careless introductions. (h) In the olden days the ball room furnished an exhibition of stately, dignified bearing and courtesy. Most of the recent criticism of dancing is occasioned by the improper positions assumed in the mod- ern dance. M. I. A. members should avoid any position in the dance which encroaches in the slightest degree upon modesty and refine- ment. Showing Good Position Showing Good Position for Gentleman's Arm Elmina Taylor, Head of Department of Dancing, Deseret Gymnasium; Fred A. Jackson, President of Utah Dancing Masters' Association. 5)30 IMPROVEMENT ERA Position should be easy and graceful. There should be no contact other than the necessary contact of hands and arms. Keep the move- ment down in the feet, not up in the hips, shoulders and arms. The accompanying photographs illustrate the good position. Square and line dances are becoming very popular again and should be encouraged. They give variety to the dance, and develop the spirit of sociability. Many have the idea that these dances are to be engaged in with much noise and stamping, and at a whirlwind rate. This is far from the truth. Just as much grace and dignity are re- quired in these dances as in any round dance, and young people should be required to dance them correctly. M. I. A. Social committees should make it their special duty to see that bishops and other leading members of the Priesthood, as well as the parents, receive personal invitations to and are encouraged to attend all the social functions of our young people. Where this is done many of the problems connected with our social life will be solved. Remarks and suggestions made on pages 105 to 107 of the 1915 edition of the "Y. M. M. I. A. Hand Book" are recommended for the careful study of M. I. A. officers and members. V. Summer Amusements. 1Excursions. Excursions should be discouraged unless older people or parents accompany our young people but when so ac- companied many opportunities for delightful and instructive recrea- tion may be enjoyed. Boy Scouts or Bee Hive girls may conduct outings when properly chaperoned along lines which will meet the approval of their local authorities. Hikes and summer camps by these organizations should be carefully planned and supervised. 2. Resorts. There are numerous pleasure resorts at which our young people may enjoy themselves, but in attending such places they should always carry with them the true spirit of Mutual Improve- ment and should be careful of their deportment and avoid participation in any objectionable practice. Our young people may arrange to go in groups thus providing an opportunity for enjoying all the social pleasures of the resort while keeping themselves free from association with strangers and objectionable characters. 3. Sports and Athletics. We — renew our slogan of 1914 "We stand for a sacred Sabbath and a weekly half holiday," and urge our young people to co-operate with the local authorities in obtaining a half holiday each week and to provide interesting and wholesome sports for these occasions and thereby discourage baseball and other amusements on the Sabbath day. M. I. A. members should not be found patronizing field sports, theatres or moving picture shows on the Sabbath day. The following editorial from the Era, by President Joseph F. Smith, fittingly summarizes these instructions: "Even in the days of Paul it was needful to caution the Saints to be moderate. In his letter to the Philippians, the aoostle particularly admonishes the brethren in these words: 'Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand.' While this, perhaps, is the only instance in the Bible where the word occurs, the idea of wis- dom and moderation being essential in all things, is freely expressed in many other exhortations to the people. Thus Peter, the apostle, calling attention to the example of Christ, exhorts them to cease from sin, which is named as lasciviousness, lusts, excess of wine, revellings, banquetings, and other lusts of men. And again, Paul to the Ephesians instructs the saints 'to walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is. And THE GENERAL M. I. A. CONFERENCE 931 be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the spirit.' It was Jesus himself who denounced the Pharisees because within they were full of 'extortion and excess.' "And so instances might be multiplied in which the Saints anciently were not only cautioned against sin, but were also instructed to avoid excesses. I believe there is need of a word of caution to the young people of the Latter-day Saints in this respect, and no better text canbe impressed upon them than the words of Paul: 'Let your moderation be known unto all men.' Moderation in what? Well, for instance in amusements and pleasures. It is generally conceded that no religious body places as few restrictions upon its members as the Latter-day Saints. We believe in legitimate amusements, and have, therefore, sanctioned both the theater and the dance among our young people. But President Young was particular to make it plain that all our diversions were to be conducted in the spirit of the gospel. The balls and dances were to be opened and closed by prayer, and they were to commence early and close early. In all these respects, the young people are beginning to depart from the example and modera- tion set before them by the authorities of the Church. It has not only become a custom in some places to neglect to open and close parties — by prayer, but it has become a fashion to begin at very late hours say — between 9 and 10 o'clock or even later and to continue till long after midnight. This is immoderate, untimely, and contrary to the counsel of the priesthood. Dances, social parties, evening entertainments, and other amusements, should begin early, and never extend beyond mid- night. Time limits must be observed, and, as Latter-day Saints, we must not neglect to thank God at all times, and to ask his blessings upon all we do, for that should be the spirit of every Saint, who should ever act, even in his amusements, as if he realized that the 'Lord is at hand.' "One other item in which some of the young people do not let their 'moderation be known before men,' is the practice of excessive automobile and buggy-riding. Ordinarily, there is no evil in riding in buggies or other vehicles. But it has become a custom or habit in some of the stakes of Zion to ride on Sundays, and very late at night, and to speed over the road at a rate that rather suggests a race track than a peaceful, public highway. Buggy and automobile riding on Sundays should be discouraged when it is engaged in merely for sport, or excessive pleasure. It should never be permitted late at night, for great evils may grow out of it, under such conditions; while at all times, reasonable and becoming conduct should guide the par- ticipants. There are many instances where it is necessary to ride on Sundays; in the case of invalids whose guardians have no other time; missionaries who fill their appointments; people who come long dis- tances to meetings; sick children, etc., but no young man is justified in quoting these to excuse his sporting on the Sabbath day, and he who does so certainly displays neither wisdom nor moderation. "We may make evil of all amusements, but the Saints should not be unwise, but rather understand what the will of the Lord is, and practice moderation in all things. They should avoid excesses and cease from sin, putting far from them 'the lusts of man,' and in their amusements and pastimes adopt a course that looks to the spirit as well as the letter, the intention and not the act alone, the whole and not the part, which is the meaning of moderation. In this way their conduct will be reasonable and becoming, and they shall find no trouble in understanding the will of the Lord. "Let me exhort the young people particularly, and the Saints gen- erally, to weigh well the value of moderation in all their actions and amusements. Remember, too, that excessive feasting is not good; 932 IMPROVEMENT ERA neither is excessive labor, but idleness and waste of precious time is infinitely worse. 'Let your moderation be known to all men.'" Joseph F. Smith. Ernest P. Horsley, superintendent of Box Elder stake, presented tbe following resolution and moved its adoption: Resolved, that we, the members of the General Boards and stake and ward officers of Y. M., and Y. L. M. I. A. in general conference assembled adopt the rules and regulations governing the M. I. A. social work and pledge ourselves to observe them and do all in our power to get the members of our associations to do likewise. The motion carried unanimously. The Junior Boys' Chorus of Granite Stake sang "I Salute Thee, Old Glory," President Joseph F. Smith delivered an address on, "What Shall We do on the Sabbath Day?" printed as the leading article in this number of the Era. The combined junior girls' and junior boys' choruses sang, "True to the Faith," and Mrs. Alice K. Smith offered the benediction. SUNDAY AFTERNOON MEETING Another general meeting was held in the Tabernacle at 2 p. m. at which the Tabernacle Choir rendered the music, Professor Evan Stephens conducting and Prof. J. J. McClellan at the organ. Opening selection, "The Palms," by the choir, and prayer was offered by President Charles W. Penrose, after which the choir sang, "Loyal to the Truth and the Right." Elder Heber J. Grant presided at the meeting. An address, "How the Gospel Can be Taught Through Pioneer Experiences," was delivered by President Nephi L. Morris for the Primary Associations. This was followed by a vocal s.olo, "The Lord is the Strength of My Life," by Miss Ethelyn Walker. Ruth May Fox, representing the Presidency of the Y. L. M. I. A., delivered an address followed by Elder Heber J. Grant who spoke for the Y. M. M. I. A., preceding his remarks with the request that the congregation arise and sing, "Come, Come Ye Saints," his favorite hymn. The general officers .of the Y. M. and Y. L. M. I. A. were presented to the conference at this meeting and unanimously sustained. The Taber- nacle Choir sang, "Judge Me, O God," and the benediction was pro- nounced by President Louie B. Felt, of the Primary Assoications. EVENING SESSION In the evening, at 7 o'clock the Male Chorus of the Ensign stake, Henry E. Giles conducting, sang, "Awake, O Voice of Harmony," and prayer was offered by President Emmeline B. Wells, of the Relief Society. President Joseph F. Smith presided at the meeting. The Ogden Stake Ladies' Chorus, Emily Maddock conducting, sang, "The Good Shepherd." This was followed by an address by Marian Belnap Kerr, representing the Primary Association, after which Prof. J. J. McClellan rendered, "Nearer My God to Thee," on the enlarged organ, thus giving the conference visitors an opportunity to hear this wonder- ful instrument, for the first time, since it has been enlarged and im- proved. The Ogden Stake Ladies' Chorus sang, "Voice of the Woods," which was followed by the address of the evening, delivered by Elder Brigham H. Roberts and which is found in this number of the Era. The male chorus of the Ensign stake sang, "Youth of Zion," and the benediction was pronounced by President Joseph F. Smith. The conference adjourned for one year. ELDER GEORGE F. RICHARDS, OF THEQUORUM OF THE TWELVE Recently called to preside over the European mission, to suc- ceed President Hyrum M. Smith, who is to be released. Born February 23, 1861, at Farmington, Utah; baptized and confirmed October 12, 1873; ordained an Elder, June 5, 1876; a Seventy February 1893; and 3 1884- a High Priest, June 29, 1890; a patriarch, July 23, F. Smith oVdaine'd an apostle April 9, 1906, by President Joseph and Elder Richards is a son of the late Apostle Franklin D. Richards and Nannie Longstroth. He graduated from the class in language em- literature of theUniversity of Deseret, June, 1881; and was later carpenter ployed at the Utah Central railway as a clerk in the lumber, farm in Ply- and carbuilding department. In 1885, he purchased a until Jan- mouth, now Fielding, Box Elder county, where he resided uary 31, 1888, when he removed to Tooele county where he acted as of the Tooele second counselor to Hugh S. Gowans in the. presidency stake of Zion, being appointed to that position January 29, 189U. lie filled many important, civil, business and ecclesiastical Positions, in- 1899-1900. Elder cluding representative in the state legislature of and has a family Richards married Alice A. Robinson, March 9, 1882 of fifteen children, two of whom are dead. He has thirteen grand children living, and two dead. Elder Richards and wife take great pride and joy in their family, both in their numbers and in their de- votion to the work of the Lord. Three of his sons and three of his daughters have been married in the temple of the Lord.