Club Minutes: Mutual Improvement Association, 1896-1900

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A heavy shower during the meeting had made the air cool and pleasant but the grass was too wet to allow a walk in the garden. So we easily contented ourselves on the enlarged piazza and finally took leave regretfully. Adjourned to Evergreen

Elizabeth C. Davis sec pro tem.

The Association gathered at Evergreen on 8/25 -1898 Esther Wetherald, Annie Wetherald, Cornelia N. Stabler, Margaret G. T. Moore, Grace Harvey and Miss Moores were guests of the day. Sarah A Bonds sentiment was -- "Faith is the brightest evidence Of things beyond our sight, It pierceth through the veil of sense And dwells in heavenly light".

Sarah E. Stabler opened our regular proceedings with "Just do your Best" which contained much in little.

"Some day what seems punishment or loss or strain, will prove to be Gods blessing sent for every pain".

She also gave "At school and at home" showing the remarkable difference between a teacher's estimate of a childs acquirements and a grandfathers appreciation of the same. Esther Wetherald read a little story "How Hannah Chard ran away" an interesting narrative of the life of a young girl in Pa. nearly 100 years ago and she also gave a poem by Mrs. Skipwith Coale which paid a high tribute to the Queen Regent of Spain who was said to be not in favor of war. Margaret S. Hallowell

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read "Stronger than the men" an incident of a little boy whom some men were teasing and he turned the tables by saying he must be stronger than any of them as he could keep from swearing. She followed this by Spurgeon's proverbs a few of which we quote - "He who does most is the one to do more', "Don't fell a tree to kill a bee", "He is rich enough who wants nothing, A good conscience is better than a good income". M.S.H. told us of a horse having been completely covered by the fall of a straw stack in their barn yard and it was lost for 30 hrs. but it was apparently uninjured. M.G. T. Moore gave some interesting facts relating to the peanut industry around Suffolk Va. Mary G. Colt read "The babies of the single year" whose cradles placed in line would encircle the globe, and in addition a scrap, "No symptoms of being Friendly" which introduced us to a boy who thought "father might be a Friend but he really didn't think Ma was". Grace Harvey's offering was a boy's definition of good housekeeping " The home that it is nice to go to ". E.C. Davis had an article giving much information about Chautauqua. A world in itself which was founded 25 yrs. ago to give a broader scope to the education of ministers but it had been so extended that now 1500 students are taking courses either there or at their homes. It has a permanent population of 5000 increased to 10000 in summer and since 1878 over 250000 people have availed themselves

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of its advantages. Mary E. Moore had a brief selection upon " Titles" which are more and more dispensed with as one becomes famous. Eliza N. Moore read of some travelers who had ventured to explore out of the way corners of the Aleutian Islands and had found a remarkably strong tribe that they believed had never seen white men before.

References to the snowy scenes and the facilities for cold storage were refreshing with the therm. way up in the nineties and several gave the recent torrid wave as an excuse for not bringing any contributions. Mrs. Morris, a guest, kindly recited in a most pleasing manner a poem by William Pitt Palmer of England on "Light", so beautiful it should be evermore familiar. Elizabeth G. Thomas read of "The star Spangled Banner", the original Mss. is owned by Mrs. Shippen of Balt'o. a relative of the Key family. Cornelia N. Stabler gave admirable verses "When I have Time" showing that it was far better to accomplish what one can rather than to resolve to do more at a more convenient season, that may never come. The sec. read, by request, a highly sensational and improbable story that no one present had even glanced over. It seemed to be the general verdict that the 15 minutes thus spent had been wasted and your present scribe begs leave to suggest that in future no article, long or short, shall be thus hastily submitted to our dignified consideration.

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On adjourning the whole company repaired to the porch and some fine blooming plants were admired as were also the large chickens which are a feature of this place. The fact that the day was the birthday of both Ellen Farquhar and Eliza N. Moore was referred to more than once and the hostess remembered her two friends in a substantial manner by having ready a pretty frosted cake for each. Both recipients were too much overcome, apparently to respond with appropriate speeches so the good things were "eaten instead of said" at this banquet. The next meeting will be held at Wrenwood.

Mary Bentley Thomas sec.

On 9/27. 1898 The Association gathered at Wrenwood in almost full force. Guests who added to the pleasure of the occasion were Sophia Peirce, one of the few left of the little band of women who joined in 1857. Caroline H. Miller, Martha S Townsend, Ellen Stabler, Cornelia Gover, Hallie J. Bentley, Helen Lea, Catherine Stabler, Louisa Nesbit, Catherine Janney, Mrs. Clarke and daughter, Juliet Bartlett, Mary Muncaster, Mary A. Gilpin, Alice G. Stabler, Helen Stabler Florence Hallowell, Katherine Brooke and Elizabeth T. Stabler. The sentiment contained the best of rules for daily living.

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"Have you had a kindness shown? pass it on. T'was not meant for you alone, pass it on. Let it travel down the years, let it wipe anothers tears Till in Heaven the deed appears, pass it on"

Mary G. Colt also gave a short comic poem "The meditations of little Teddy". Hallie J. Bentley followed with some remarkable advertisements from London papers. Sarah E. Stabler had nothing but so seldom fails us she may well be excused.

Helen Stabler read of the "good old days" of open houses, brick ovens, turn spits, smoky lamps, tallow dips and straight backed chairs. Many of these were picturesque but the writer was evidently thankful they were things of the past. Helen Lea by request gave extracts from most interesting letters written by her nephew Frank T. Lea who, with his young wife, is a missionary in South Western Africa some 200 miles from the coast.

A picture was shown of some grass thatched huts and a small chapel erected by himself aided by his dusky neighbors whom his friends trust, may continue to be docile. He told of having assisted to save 1000lbs of good meat after the mode of the "jerked beef" of the west, and described their cook as attired in a greasy cloth around her waist, a string of red beads on her neck, another, upon her matted hair and a snuff box. "only these and nothing more". Her wages were