Proceedings of the Grand Lodge of Illinois - University Library

366 JOURNAL OF PROCEEDINGS \ n ? u fl da h
/ Xov. 18, 1913.
and the cost and design thereof. Further, that said committee investi-
gate as to the most suitable location of said building and make report
of all their findings at the next annual communication.
C. D. RINEHART,
W. W. PHELPS,
S. H. FOXWELL,
JOSEPH OLIVER,
W. H. LEEDY.
Report No. 71. By Past Grand Sire Campbell, from the Special
Committee on Sovereign Odd Fellow:
To The Sovereign Grand Lodge, Independent Order of Odd Fellows:
Your Special Committee, to whom was referred the subject matter
on pp. 112-117 of the Grand Sire's Report, have reviewed the reference
carefully, together with all the correspondence, and find the facts in
brief to be these:
Bro. A. C. Veach, of Gravette, Arkansas, publisher of a paper called
the Sovereign Odd Fellow, has been filling his columns with violent
attacks on a prominent religious denomination, accusing it of being a
political organization, whose operations are injurious to the community.
The Grand Sire's attention having been called to these articles, he wrote
Bro. Veach, courteously, suggesting that their publication in a period-
ical purporting to be an Odd Fellows' paper was a violation of certain
well established principles of our Order, and asking that they be
discontinued. This suggestion has been disregarded, and the articles
objected to have been increased in number and virulence.
There is no question in the mind of any member of the committee
as to the soundness of the view held by the Grand Sire, and, while
endorsing such actions as were taken by him, we are of the opinion
that had he proceeded to enforce his views he would have been justified
by the facts and authorized by the law. Every Odd Fellow knows
perfectly well that with systems of faith or sects, religious or political,
our Order as such has no affiliation. We not only have no controversy
with any of them, but are forbidden to enter into controversy about
them. Religious and political debates under the auspices of Odd
Fellowship are absolutely prohibited. On these matters individual
Odd Fellows are entitled to hold whatever opinions they think the
evidence will justify, and they have a right to all the freedom in
expressing their opinion that the laws of the country in which they
live may give them, but our Order is not in any way, directly or in-
directly, to be made responsible for them, nor should they be discussed
in an Odd Fellows' paper any more than in an Odd Fellows' Lodge.
To the Odd Fellow press The Sovereign Grand Lodge has always
extended sympathy and encouragement. Grand Bodies have even