Illinois newspaper directory. History of the Illinois press association

Illinois Newspaper Directory and HistoryChapter VIIIThe Golden Jubilee and New Leadership1915The Golden Jubilee meeting in honor of the 5 0th Anniversary of the Illinois PressAssociation was held at Chicago on May 19, 20 and 21, 1915. The President, J. M.Page, Jerseyville Democrat, called the meeting to order in the Crystal Room of theSherman House.Secretary Sheets made the following remarks on the attendance:"We have the promise of the biggest meeting we have had in the history ofthe organization. I have returns from about 180 that have signified their intentionto be present and I saw a number here this morning that I did not hear from. AndI have about twenty applications all ready to turn over to the Membership Committeeand I received another letter here this morning with an application and afive dollar check in it. So that I think we are going to have a rattling good timeand we want you all to get in the swim now and make this a success. Help boost."The matter of the post office furnishing mail sacks for the publisher to mail outhis paper was discussed. H. U. Bailey, Princeton Republican, said that in his officethey tied up the mail and took about twenty of the sacks directly to the train withoutgoing to the post office. Once a month a clerk from the post office came to the plantand weighed a sample mailing. Some of the members put out their own mail and otherstook it to the post office.The next topic discussed was clubbing papers, the members who had tried it agreeingthat it was an unprofitable practice. In a discussion of premiums several of themembers told of experiences with the strict enforcement of the lottery law.In his address President Page reviewed the 5 years of the Illinois Press Association,particularly the work of E. A. Snively of Carlinville and Springfield, who had beenLegislative Committeeman since 1888 (twenty-seven years). The President also advocatedthe proposed waterway from Chicago to the Mississippi. He said in part:"Fifty years ago the Illinois Press Association was formally organized at Peoria andthe first President was John W. Merritt. It has been the rule to have a President servebut one year, but this rule has been broken a few times, and a President re-elected;therefore there have been but forty-three Presidents during the half century of theAssociation's existence, as follows, sixteen of whom are dead: John W. Merritt, E. H.Griggs, J. R. Mosser, Rodney Welch, E. B. Buck, George Scroggs, S. P. Rounds, J. W.Bailey, Cadet Taylor, E. A. Snively, Chas. Holt, C. B. Bostwick, J. W. Clinton, M. W.Mathews, W. M. Kennedy, J. K. LeBaron, L. A. McLean, Owen Scott, E. B. Fletcher,Thomas Rees, W. W. Lowis, Clinton Rosette, George W. Cyrus, C. D. Tufts, C. M.Tinney, Chas. Boeschenstein, M. F. Walsh, A. C. Bentley, Smith D. Atkins, C. W. Bliss,Charles Bradshaw, John M. Rapp, J. B. Castle, H. N. Wheeler, J. C. Adams, S. K.Strothers, W. T. Bedford, J. M. Sheets, E. L'Hote, G. W. Hughes, Charles Warner andJ. M. Page. Presidents Merritt, Griggs, Taylor, Snively, Tinney and Mathews werehonored with re-election. There were but few editors present at the organization butthey were workers and the Association grew rapidly and the next meeting was calledfor Peoria. The third meeting was held in Springfield and the members participated in190