Passing Events
Improvement Era, vol. 23, no. 1, November 1919, pp. 87 to 92
Young Men's Mutual Improvement Associations
China declared peace with Germany, September 15, without signing the Versailles treaty.
Senator Reed of Missouri mas mobbed, October 1, at Admore, Okla- homa, where he attempted to deliver an address against the ratification of the peace treaty.
The Industrial Congress, called by President Wilson, convened October 6, atWashington. The object is to establish harmonious relations between labor and capital. The sugar factory near Gunnison, Sanpete county, was formally opened September 29, in the presence of 2,500 visitors. The plant has been erected at the cost of about $956,000. The peace treaty with Austria was signed by the Austrian plenipotenti- ary, Dr. Karl Renner, September 10. By the treaty, Austria is reduced to ihe German speaking part of the empire.
In a race riot at Elaine, near Helena, Arkansas, October 1, five white men and eleven negroes were killed, as a result of clashes between a posse searching for the persons who fired upon and killed W. D. Adkins, a railroad special agent.
The First Ward Chapel, Salt Lake City, was dedicated September 21. President Heber J. Grant offered the dedicatory prayer. Bishop John C. Duncan conducted the dedicatory exercises. The chapel was erected four years ago at a cost of about $40,000.
Commentary on the Doctrine and Covenants. This is a work of 1100 pages just received from the Millennial Star press at Liverpool. It contains historical and explanatory notes on the revelations in the Doctrine and Cove- nants, with a complete subject index, by the late Elder Hyrum M. Smith, of the Council of the Twelve, and Elder J. M. Sjodahl.
German peace treaty was ratified, October 7, by Victor Emmanuel, king of Italy, subject to approval by the Italian parliament. This makes the peace treaty operative as far as Germany, Great Britain, France, and Italy are concerned. The French Chamber of Deputies had ratified the treaty just five days before, October 2, by a vote of 372 to 53.
Cardinal Mercier, primate of the Roman Catholic church in Belgium, arrived in New York, September 9. He came to this country, to thank the American people for the part they took in the liberation of Belgium. The aged cardinal was one of the conspicuous figures in the heroic strug- gle of his country against the fate decreed by her eastern neighbor.
War with Jugo-Slavia was declared by Gabriele d' Annunzio, the ec- centric Italian poet and novelist warrior, who, with Italian troops, holds Fiume for Italy. Fiume is not yet an indepndent state and is not recog- nized as a belligerent. The uncertainty of the Fiume affair was compli- cated by a strike of metal workers that affected all factories, and made a general strike imminent.
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The American Expeditionary Force was finally dissolved, after a last victory parade, in Washington, September 17, when General Pershing was the central figure at the head of the First Division in the last military spectacle. General Pershing landed in New York, September 8, and there had a welcome of extraordinary warmth and enthusiasm, and also there led the First Division in a parade.
A hurricane that swept the costal region of Texas, September 14, de- stroyed the town of Port Aransas, on the upper end of Mustang island. Considerable damage was done in other places. At Corpus Christi from 15 to 25 persons were reported killed, and 4,000 rendered homeless. The number of dead altogether were said to exceed 200, and the damage done to property was estimated at $15,000,000.
In the police strike in Boston, seven persons were reported dead and fifty hurt, on September 12, as a result of a clash between soldiers and law- less gangs. The police strike, the attempt at the formation of a police union in Washington, and the disclosure that steps are being taken to unionize the police in fifty other large cities, have aroused fears in Congress of a concerted radical movement to sovietize the American gov- ernment. Robert S. Bult, pioneer locomotive engineer of the Utah Central rail- road who ran the first railway train into Salt Lake City, January 10, 1870, died in St. Anthony, Idaho, October 8, 1919. He was born in England, March 19, 1842, came to Utah in 1863, residing in Slaterville and Harrisville, Weber county, until 1869, when Brigham Young secured him for the con- struction of the Utah Central between Ogden and Salt Lake, now the O. S. L. Friederich Ebert, the former saddle maker, took the oath of office as the first president of the German Imperial Republic, on August 21, 1919, with impressive ceremony. The seat of Government was transferred from Weimar to Berlin. The Bavarian Government which, during the revolu- tion, took control of its own army, was turned over on October 1, to President Ebert and Minister of Defense Noske, of the new German republic.
The railroad strike in England and Scotland assumed such propor- tions that the government placed the population under strict food ra- tioning. The strike was regarded as political, indicating the existence of tendencies akin to Russian Bolshevism, but it was settled temporarily, October 15, by a compromise, by which the government guaranteed to keep up wages for a year, and the men promised to return to work, pending further development.
The Forty-first Annual State Fair of the State of Utah was opened Oct. 6, continuing for the week under most favorable circumstances. The weather was beautiful and the attendance exceeded all previous records. The government exhibition, showing what equipment is used by the army, was a notable feature. Star shells and signal rockets were sent up from the race track. The largest attendance was recorded on Oct. 9, when festiv- ities were given in honor of the service men.
Madame Adelina Patti (Baroness Cederstrom) died, •September 27, at Craig-y-Nos castle, South Wales, aged 76 years. She made her debut in opera in New York, in 1850, when sixteen years old. She was born in Ma- drid, Spain, of Italian parents, and was brought up in New York. Since her appearance in Royal Italian opera, in London, in 1861, in La Som- nambula, she has sung in nearly every European capital. Her voice was a rich soprano, and her technical facility was extraordinary.
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The death of Mrs. Avera Hardy, eldest daughter of Elizabeth Smoot Hardy, and the late Milton H. Hardy, at her home in Salt Lake City, was announced recently. She was born February 26, 1882, and is sur- vived by three children, Milton W., Ruth A., and L. LaMonte, aged four- teen, twelve, and ten years, respectively; one sister, Mrs. Ben C. Rich, of Salt Lake, three brothers, M. O. Hardy, M. S. Hardy, both of Salt Lake, and Dr. LeGrande H. Hardy of New York. The remains were taken to Provo and there laid to their final rest.
Moving Pictures to be exhibited in churches. According to re- ports, screens and projecting machines are to be installed in 21,000 Meth- odist Episcopal places of worship. For week nights, dramatic, comedy, travelogue, news, industrial, educational, and entertaining subjects will be exhibited; for Sundays, sacred history, Biblical drama, and material bearing on Sunday School lessons. The Social Advisory Committee of the Latter-day Saint Church is considering the advisability of arranging for a regular series of films to be shown in the amusement halls throughout the Church.
For the fourteenth national census, which will be taken in 1920, Utah has been divided into two districts. The First District comprises the fol- lowing counties: Box Elder, Cache, Carbon, Daggett, Davis, Duchesne, Emery, Garfield, Grant, Kane, Morgan, Piute, Rich, San Juan, Sanpete, Se- vier, Summit. Uintah, Wasatch, Wayne, and Weber: Twenty-one counties; population 1910, 165,466. — Second District. Beaver, Iron, Juab, Millard. Salt Lake, Tooele, Utah, and Washington: Eight counties; population, 1910, 207,885. George Romney, Jr., Smithfield, Cache Co., and Austin P. Miller, Salt Lake City, have been appointed supervisors for the First and Second district respectively.
A great strike began September 22, when laborers belonging to the steel workers unions in the United States laid down their tocls. On the third day of the strike, one of the strike leaders announced that 342,000 men were out. From various parts of the country came reports of acts of violence. At Buffalo, one man was killed and four persons injured. At Farrell, Pennsylvania, two were killed and two wounded. At New Castle, a woman was shot and died in the hospital. The demands of the strikers include recognition of collective bargaining, the eight-hour day, reinstate- ment with pay of all men discharged for union activities, and adoption of the "check-off," a system by which the companies would collect union dues from the men. Mob rule in Omaha was in evidence Sunday, September 28, when an attempt was made to murder Mayor E. P. Smith, by a crowd that after- wards took a negro from jail and lynched him. The mayor, it is said, pleaded for law and order, when someone shouted, "lynch him!" where- upon a rope was thrown round his neck and half a dozen men dragged him half a block to a trolley pole. He was unconscious when rescued by the police. The mob then killed the negro, who was under arrest charged with assault on a white woman. The court house was set on fire, and the sheriff and his deputies, with about a hundred prisoners, were for a time in danger of suffocation in the upper story of the jail building. Soldiers were, finally, called out to quell the mob riots.
King Albert of Belgium, Queen Elizabeth and Prince Leopold, spent about an hour and a half in Salt Lake City, October 9, on their way to the coast. They were welcomed by the Governor and the Mayor. Thou- .
sands of citizens lined the streets. The royal party attended an organ recital in the Tabernacle, which was opened by prayer by President Heber J. Grant. The Royal party were much pleased with the music, passing be-
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fore the crowded galleries to the further end, to witness the effect of the music in that part of the building. The king made a speech of appreciation, thanking the people for their welcome to him and his party, and he was heartily applauded by the great audience which comfortably filled the whole auditorium. He referred feelingly to the boys of the 91st division who helped to free Belgium. The Utah branch of the American Legion met in its first state-wide con- vention in the Assembly Hall, Salt Lake City, Oct. 7. Chaplain Calvin S. Smith, of 362nd Infantry, Ninety-first Division, offered the invocation. Chairman Wesley E. King outlined the work of the Legion in the State, and an address of welcome was made by Governor Bamberger. The key-note was sounded by Mr. Hamilton Gardner, who condemned "radicalism" and stated that the Legion stood for one hundred per cent "Americanism." He advo- cated the deportation of all aliens who were disloyal to the American govern- ment, and recommended that American citizens who were disloyal be sent to prison. At the closing session of the convention, Mr. Gardner was elected chairman of the Legion. Three vice chairmen, Harry R. Fletcher, of Provo; Peter Cassius, of Ogden; and E. Hatch, of Logan; were elected.
Junior Audubon ClassesThe National Associations of Audubon So- cieties advantages to teachers and others in the United States and offer Canada, for the school year 1919-20, on the subject of "birds and their use- fulness," worthy of close consideration. Every teacher who forms a class of twenty or more students receives a free subscription to the magazine Bird Lore, containing many valuable suggestions for teachers. To form a class for bird-study, a teacher should explain to the pupils of her grade that their subject will be to learn all they can about the wild birds, and that every one who becomes a member will be expected to be kind to the birds and protect them. Every member will be required to pay a fee of ten cents. Each member will receive a beautiful Audubon button, of the red-wing black bird and a set of ten colored pictures of common birds, to- gether with educational leaflets, in color work, containing accounts of the habits of the birds.
The Utah Legislature met in extra session, September 29, 1919, to lake action on the proposed amendment to the constitution of the United Slates giving the franchise to women, and to transact other business that might come before it. John E. Heppler, of Richfield, was elected speaker of the house to succeed Charles C. Richards. The legislative body adjourned October 6, sine die. Some important bills were passed. The woman suffrage amendment to the Constitution of the United States was ratified. Aresolution was adopted urging the United States Senate to ratify the peace treaty with Germany without reservations or amendments. No new laws were enacted regarding profiteering, but "picketing" was by a legal enactment made unlawful. The Senate voted for the appropriation of $10,000 to enable the attorney general to prosecute "profiteers," as asked for by the Governor, but this measure was opposed in the House on the ground that such a small amount would be wasted and would pro- duce no results. An effort to increase the appropriation to $15,000 was defeated.
Elias Conway Ashton, prominent Salt Lake attorney, died, October accident at the Utah Apex mine, Bingham. The 14, 1919, as the result of an tram in which he was riding, collided with cars carrying ore. His tragic death is a cause of great sorrow to a large circle of relatives, business asso- ciates, and friends. In 1909, Mr. Ashton married Miss Rosabell Hall, daughter of Professor and Mrs. Mosiah Hall. There are four children, Orvada, Margaret, Allen and Carlyle. His parents; three brothers, Bishop
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Edward M. Ashton, Bishop M. 0. Ashton, and R. J. Ashton; two sisters, Mrs. Joseph E. Kjar and Miss Jane Ashton, and his grandmother, Mrs. Mary L. Morris, also survive him. He was born in Salt Lake City, Febru- ary 15, 1880, a son of Edward T. and Effie Morris Ashton. He graduated from the University of Chicago law school in 1907, and was admitted to the bar of the Supreme Court of Utah the same year, and later to the United States District Courts of Utah, Idaho and Montana. He was counsel for many leading great local corporations, and in Church work was a member of the Deseret Sunday School Union Board, and had taken great interest in class teaching in the Y. II. M. I. A.
Two aviators met death at Castle Rock, Echo Canyon, October 15, Lieutenant French Kirby and Lieutenant Stanley C. Miller, who were speed- ing toward Salt Lake City, in the transcontinental race. This makes seven fatalities since the start on October 8, or one a day. Fifty-one men started from Roosevelt Field, Mineola, New York, and 47 men from the Rock- well Field, San Francisco. Four of these met their death in Utah, the two above named, and Major Dana H. Crissy and Sergeant Virgil Thomas who were killed at Buena Vista, Salt Lake City, on the evening of Oc- tober 8 as their machine fell 150 feet when they were trying to land. The contest, which was limited to military aviators, was for the purpose of testing the reliability of the planes and stimulating interest in recruiting for the air service. A return flight also will be made. Ten different types of machines were repesented in the entries, and some of them had seen pctive service on the battle front. Three of the planes entered are German Fokker machines captured almost intact. French, British, and Italian machines also are entered. Lieutenant B. W. Maynard landed at Mineola at 1:50 p. m., Oct. 18, the first to finish the race. With him, as passengers, were William E. Klein, electrician, of Harrisburg, Pa., and "Trixie," a Belgian police dog. His speed at the finish was nearly two miles a minute.
In a world mad with destruction, it is a pleasure to note the con- structiveachievement in the brief life of this man. He died very suddenly on the morning of August 8, 1919, of apoplexy, at the age of 39. He was the husband of Elizabeth Cannon Porter, a writer well known to Era read- ers, and the son of Mr. and Mrs. M. Ross Porter. A builder by nature, of superb physical strength and untiring energy, Roy Porter did his full share in making the earth a better place to live in. He planted thousands of fruit trees, built miles of fences, made roads, constructed bridges, dug waterways and drain ditches, and trans- formed desert ground into waving fields. He made the Ranch Oasis, on a small sec- tion of the Great American Desert. When, according to the prophecy of Brigham Young, Salt Lake City extends to the Great Salt Lake, Roy Porter will be pointed out as one of the pioneers who literally "made the desert to blossom as the rose." Brother Porter had preserved till middle life, a sin- gular purity, manhood, and nobility of soul. He was a devoted son, a beloved husband, and a true father. He was young in looks, at his prime in years, and old in works. Roy Stillman Porter. President Wilson arrived in Salt Lake City, September 23, and was ac- corded an enthusiastic reception. The streets, from the railway station, and
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along the route of the presidential party, were lined with throngs, eager to catch a glimpse of the head of the Nation. President Wilson and his charming wife seemed to be immensely pleased, as the car carried them along slowly, among the cheering crowds and under the gently waving flags. President Heber J. Grant, Governor Simon Bamberger, Mayor W. M. Ferry, Mrs. Grant, and Mrs. Bamberger were the first to greet the President, in be- half of the Church, the State of Utah, and Salt Lake City. They were escorted into the President's private railroad car, at the depot. After introductions, the distinguished visitors were escorted to the automobiles. The parade then started. Points of special interest visited were Fort Douglas, the State Cap- itol, and the Church Offices. In the evening, President Wilson delivered an address in the Tabernacle. The vast building was crowded to its utmost capacity, and when President Wilson entered the rostrum and greeted Presi- dent Grant with a cordial handshake, the entire audience applauded vigor- ously. After the invocation, offered by President Grant, the speaker deliv- eied his eloquent plea for the ratification of the peace treaty. He proved con- clusively that amendments and radical reservations might be fatal to the work for humanity, accomplished at Versailles. The audience listened with deep interest. Thousands expressed their views by applauding. If any had come to scoff, or to create a disturbance, they were not in evidence. The audience — — speaking of the great majority was in sympathy with the speaker. During the afternoon, President and Mrs. Wilson, called at Hotel Utah, on Mrs. Emmeline B. Wells, president of the Relief Society of the Church. It appears that President Wilson expressed a desire, to members of the reception committee, to be introduced to the woman who was at the head of the Relief Society organization which had saved so much wheat and turned it over to the United States government when needed. Mrs. Wells had been ill in bed for some time, and President and Mrs. Wilson sat by her bedside, and, in shaking hands with her, the President said he wanted to thank her for what she did, as president of the Relief Society, in helping with her associates in the storing of wheat and then turning it over to the government in time of need. Mrs. Wells, in answer, related some of her experiences in early days. She told the president how, when she first came to Great Salt Lake Valley, her first home was a wagon box, located on the same piece of land on which is now her home. Mrs. Wells has met twelve Presidents of the United States, the first being President Harrison. Presi- dent Wilson left for the East in the evening. On the 26th his itinerary was cut short at Wichita, Kansas, owing to a nervous breakdown, and he proceeded direct to Washington. His ailment was considered very serious, and the President up to October 20, had not been permitted to leave his room, or engage in any public duty.
Notice to Y. M. M. I. A. Officers It has been found advisable by the General Board to use the 1917 Hand Book for officers for the present season. It contains just such instructions
as officers will need for a guide in conducting their associations. A new Hand Book will, therefore, not be issued this season. A few amendments only having been made, the principal of which are briefly named below: I. The General Board, Stake and Ward Committees should be recon- structed as follows: 1. Administration and Standards. 2. Organization and Memberships. 3. Finance and Publications. 4. Junior Department. 5. Senior Department. 6. Advanced Senior Dept., joint. 7. Social and Summer Work, joint. 8. Reading Course and M. I. A. Special Activ- ities, joint.— See Sept., 1919, Era, pages 995-999. II. Observe that the special Activity, work for 1919-20 has been greatly simplified. No individual scoring records are kept, but there are ten points