Democratic Sentinel, Volume 18, Number 40, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 19 October 1894 — GRAND SIRE OF THE WORLD. [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

GRAND SIRE OF THE WORLD.

John W. Stabbins Elected to High Office by the Odd Fellows. John W. Stebbins, recently elected Grand Sire of the world in Odd Fellowship by the Sovereign Grand Lodge, I.

O. O. F.. at Chattanooga, Tenn., is 75 i years of age. He is ' a native of New ' York, and resides at Rochester. After graduating from Union College he became principal of Macedon Academy. ,He studied law, was admitted to the bar and in 1856 was elected to the State Legislature. He was one of the committee of

fifteen, of which Horace Greeley was a member, which drafted the terms of agreement that led to the uniting of the old Whig party with the Republicans. Mr. Stebbins became an Odd Fellow in 1850. He was Grand Master for two terms: seventeen years ago became a member of the Grand Lodge and was successively Grand Warden. Deputy Grand Master, and Grand Master. He has risen from Chairman of the Appeals Committee to the office of Grand Sire. The Grand Sire in his annual report said that since the last contention in the South, held in Atlanta twenty years ago. the membership in the Southern States had increased from 6.000 to 53.000, and to the people of the

South Odd Fellowship had become an established institution. The total membership of the order was now 780,OtO, or, inc uding the sisters of the Rebekah degrees. 889,000. To this should be added a membership of 25,OJO in foreign jurisdictions, making a combined membership of 900,000 men and women. The net increase in membership during the year had been ;-3,000. This was less than the year previous but this might be accounted for in the United States by a season or financial stringency that lessened the resources of the people. In Canada the order ha? made greater progress than in any year of its history. In no department of the work had there been such decided progress as in making provision for the aged members and orphan children. In many States new homes had been opened, while numerous jurisdictions were accumulating fundsand preparing buildings for the laudable work.

JOHN W. STEBBINS.