Illinois newspaper directory. History of the Illinois press association

Illinois Newspaper Directors, vnd History"One of the Association trips included a visit to Salt Lake City, and therecame in new experiences and enjoyments. A meeting in the great tabernacle wasarranged for the special benefit of the excursionists. By some means I missed ourparty as it left the hotel for the place of meeting and wandering alone I becamemixed up with the Mormons to the extent that I was seated among them. Thecommunion service was observed and when the emblems' were passed to meI adopted the precept of doing in Rome as the Romans do, and participated inthe service with all there around me."Alas, those good old days have gone, but they linger fondly in the memory,and will afford those who participated in them, gathered now to recall them, anopportunity to live over some of their former days, or 'swap lies' as Snively callsit; and furnish a source of enjoyment which will nuke time hang anything butheavy on their hands. I regret that I cannot have a 'put in' and am sometimestempted to disregard the dictates of prudence and answer to a roll call. I shallmiss them more than they will miss me, for a lot of good fellows will congregatewho will entertain themselves and give only a passing recollection to one absentcompanion. I dislike to break in on the habit of attending the meetings of such anorganization as the one in which I have so long been a member, but the infirmitiesof age are creeping upon me, and we long that some friend may speak a last kindword for one of the oldest members of an association which has no superior in thelist of similar organizations."With best wishes to all, old and gray, and the lady members who have notgrown old since I knew them. Uncle Charlie."Mr. Griggs gave the following talk:"It seems to me that one or two allusions that have been made make itincumbent upon me to speak a word. During the four years, we had some prettyheavy excursions. The first excursion we took as an association was from Rockfordto Minneapolis and St. Paul by river. I got up that excursion. I had, in fact, anexperience the previous year when I went up with the Wisconsin Editorial Association.We went by river. I was representing the Illinois Press Association as itssecretary. There were no ladies except one or two. The wife of the president wasalong. There was a good deal of hilarity, some cards, etc."When it was proposed that we hive an excursion for our association, I wentto the different railroads and made efforts to have them include the ladies, and itwas the unanimous declaration of the men on the river that it was the best winductedexcursion partv that ever went up the river. That established a precedentthat has been followed in all the subsequent excursions of this Association."In Mobile—that was a pretty heavy trip. We went into Mobile and we hadabout 275 ladies and gentlemen—a pretty large family to manage and take care of.I did all the corresponding in regard to the excursion. I think it would be interestingto Snively if he could see the letters of those papers that were heavily represented.It is true there was a good deal of fraud. We were not much experiencedand when a paper sent a letter to us guaranteeing a party to be connected with it,we took it in good faith. It is true that some of the papers ran in some who hadno sort of connection with them. Nobody regretted it more than the officers ofthe Association."I think the next excursion we took was when we went to Montreal andBoston, we had a much more select company, about 110 or 115. As far as I know,they were all bona fide representatives there. This Mobile excursion was an eyeopener to us. We succeeded in eliminating outsiders. There are a great man)-