The Fort Wayne Journal-Gazette from Fort Wayne, Indiana • Page 33

'ufilmiiiiHiiiniiiii jJSjTlWtHHlllU'l1 rtWlllll fflirif llllllllH ll IN llH ll Hi ll llllirillmpll' THE FORT WAVNBJpURNAC dAZRTTB nl Club Life At Wayne Knitting Mills ll 4 mmmmmi (ByT R. Dreams of ths sociologists of a decade or two ago, von those of the present day Ideals of the welfare worker, and the elms of all those seeking social betterment have been and are being made a reality In one locality of Fort Wayne That la at the Wayne Knit club house of the Wayne Knit ting mills However It did not remain for one of these theorists to bring about a realisation of these dreama It wai brought to pass through the work of certain beings, commonly called hard headed business men Nevertheless, It embodies all that is Ideal and still la the moat practical venture In the world thanks to the original plana of these same "hard headed men of affairs, and skillful steering since being launched on the sea of Qood Deeds Real Social Center. The Wayne Knit club house Is a so ctal center for a email city of well above 8,000 people, representing the employes of the Wayne Knitting mills and Thleme Ilrothers company with their families. It is to them and more, too, than the school house Is to Its patrons, much more of a social center than th. trainers of present day school teachers are trying to make the school It Is not only a social center In name, but performs all the functions which may belong to such an Institution, It 1 a meeting place every noon for more than 100 people, It is the scene of some activity almost every night In the week, It Is a home for about sixty out of town girls.

It a library where mill employes may obtain the best of reading 'material, It Is a place of recreation equipped with bowling alleys and pool tables, Is a place for all sorts of meetings of employes. Dining Room and Kitchen, Head and shoulder above everything else In Importance at this club of clubs la the dining room and kitchen feature. But this Is only natural, since the club house, Itself, grew from the coffee pots which steamed on sputtering and smoking oil stoves scattered throughout the factory a score of years ego, At the club house, three meals are served each day, and more than Wt are fed every day at noon More than half this number com for the full fifteen cant dinner while the others bring their own lunch, which Uif with soup coffee, milk or tea, or anytiilh they wish to purchase which comes at a small price. The fifteen cent dinner consists of a liberal portion of soup with crackers, a goodly slsed helping of meat and potatoes with one additional vegetable bread and butter, pie, coffee, milk or tea A private dining room for the use of officers or other people alee Is available and dinners are served there at twenty five cents each Breakfast, of course Is patronised only by the sixty or seventy people who are living In the dormitory department on thi top floor There are? often 160 or 200 persons at the evening meal, A well stocked refrigerator and store) room make It a very simple matter to prepare short orders for almost any number of people Dormitory Feature. The girls who take advantage of ths dormitory feature, receive their rooms and three good meals a day at a coat of from fS BO to per week, depending on the sort of room which they wish, In addition to the rooms and meals they have electric lights, steam heat, hot and cold soft water baths, free use of laundry and electric Iron, free use of sewing machine, not to mention the privileges of the 'green room, library, and other club house features Next In Importance to the dining room and home life at the club house, ranks ths work of the various clubs, Perhaps the most Important of these organisations is the Gymnlt club, an oiganlsation of girls only, which takes gymnasium class work once A week regularly during ths winter Two or three) times every, spring and fall, hikes are taken to Interesting places in ths country hereabouts.

In addition tf this club, there are regular classes for the W. A. extension work, At present, girls' classes are studying cooking, sewing, social usages, and first aids to beauty, and social sessions are held once every month for the classes. Practically every department la Vie mill has its bowling team, so that during the winter months a mill championship series Is rolled with, suitable prises being awarded Popular for Parties. Another line of activity of the Wayne Kelt Social Center which ranks well toward the top, Is Its use by tloni of mill employes or officers.

It is an interesting fact and well worth recording that there lues been only one or two nights with "nothing doing" at this happy club house, except Sunday nights, of course within the last ten days A little schedule will show better than any thing how busy a place this Is, and by the way how cosmopolitan If you please Busy Times, These. Wednesday Bight, January SI than 600 persons filled the large dining groom, which sleo Is a first class dancing pavilion The big room was so crowded that It was Impossible to have all In the grand march The fol lowing night, the Volunteer Firs department had Its banquet Friday night wars held the classes In sewing? and beauty hints under direction of the A Saturday night came the big banquet as a farewell to Tbeo dore F. Thleme and Ralph Thleme Monday, January 11, open house to friends the Wayne Street Methodist Church by Mr and Mrs Gross Ti day night, Gymnlt club met at club house to attend A dinner, chaperoned by Mrs Gross, matron of ths club, Wednesday night, nothln doing of special note, Thursday night. dance, and Friday night Gymnlt club So It is at this popular club house) during the winter months, or as soon US the leaves begin to turn during; fall and until Jack Frost departs In ths lata spring Even In the summer. many events are held at the club house, which serves always as ths social1 center.

The blsTerest dinner ever held there) was several weeks ago, when 120 Walther Leaguers were served a banquet at one time Llbrery Well Patron Ued Another feature not mentioned In connection with the cltye greatest social center is the library recently Installed. reading room has been at, marked feature at the club since It was started a little more than flve years ago. Last year the library was) begun with slightly more than 400 volumes, representing books clven by Mr. Thleme tnd other officers from their private collections, and new volumes) donated by the Textile Industrial club Since the library was launched, It has) Individuals for birthday parties and received generous subscriptions from nnlversary celebrations by depart members of the board of directors and monta, social clubs and all ertaoiia salesmen and there are now more than KEY TO ILLUSTRATIONS. Xo.

1 Entrance to green room with decorations up for one of the numerous parties and soms of the young ladies who were there No a fcront view of club house on Knitters avenue No a a curnei of the libraiy Mo 4 fool and billiard tables quiet only when employes are ai Mo 6 Another recreation spot the bowling alleys No A glimpse Into the kitchen Notice how spick and span" and clean it all la, with all latest conveniences No. 7 Daddy and Mother Frank Gross, superintendent and matron, respectively No. i General view of dining room, where 800 are fed every day at noon, (00 volumes on the shelves. This number consists largely of standard fiction and a fair number of reference books. Five hundred of the mill ployes take advantage of this splendid feature of the Wayne Knit club life, and about 450 volumes are In continual circulation.

This little library Is re ceiving the hearty co operation and support of the tort Wayne public library In its extension work Another use of the club house, which, however, Is not brought Into play to a great sitent we are glad to say, Is as a temporary hospital Parsons who have been Injured are taken there where medical attention Is given and they may be kept there In case of Illness or accident "Oaddy" snd "Mother Gross To keep this big social center per forming all ts functions, ia a Ufe slsed Job. But no one Is better fitted for this particular pines han "Daddy" Frank Gross and Mother" Gross 'Paddy" and "Mother" Gross sre known to ever) one about the big mills, whether or not they are regular visitors at the club house. To every employe and officer there, and hundreds of thers not connected with that in it tu Uon, they are the best of friends. bubbling over with friendliness and Food humur either has a Joyous smile snd a welcome hand for every person entering the portals of the club house That's the reason they are Just good. Whole souled happy "Daddy and 'Mother' Grose to every let or They enter Into the spirit of all the event luburai pleasure and vim as those In the events, and nothing Is complete without one or both of them present Despite their smiles that never come off, the bent of order Is maintained at the house and In the kitchen everything is spick and span always.

This is proven bv the fact that city health authorities have always been forced to give the Wayne Knit club house a grade of ninety eight per cent, for cleanliness Every night Mrs Gross Koes over the entire house before re ring and ever thing is 'ship shape' before the house Is closed fos the night Mr Gross lion a staff of four peo I ie In the kitchen, three dining room girls woman In charge of the sleeping looms man In charge of the bowling alleys and pool tables In the basement snd a porter Ten girls from the mill go to the club house every noon five minutes before quitting time, and wait on the diners and furnish dulckent of ser ice, for which they receive their dinners Thieme Ie Founder Theodore Thleme president of the Wayne Knitting mlUs. and other officers of the comjtany are responsible for this splendid work being performed by the Wayne Knit club house From the first, back In '91, the knitting mills have endeavored to help the employes In 1900, a complete dining room was installed with kitchen adjoining and other features on the second floor of the office building A stage auto was erected and theatricals were given there, and the fiaxonla Singing society was organised at this time In 1908 the capacity was doubled, but Its popularity continued to grow, demanding the present quarters Some six or seven years ago, the Wayne Knitting mills bad a baseball team. A benefit social netted seventy or eighty dollars more then enough suits and other expenses of the nine. Going to Mr Thleme, the manager of the ttmm put up the prop oaitlun of ueing this as the nucleus fun a fund to build a gymnasium or small club house going to. start, although the original cost will greatly exceed this Cost 150,000 It was no great length of time until this fund had hit the $25 000 mark Work then was started and December 14, 1910, the club house was completed, a monument to the Idealism of these 'hard headed" men of business and dedicated to the employes But the coat was practically $50,000 The Wayne Knitting mills," spoke Mr Thleme, 'has always recognised the obligation of modern factories toward their employes to consider their physical and social well being and to offer not only moral encouragement but financial support In developing the highest and best in them Our sense of this obligation has culminated In the erection of the present club build Ing, which has for Its mission the promotion snd development of the so cial features and welfare work con nected with this Institution The sympathetic Interest In the success of our scheme on the part of stockholders and the public at large will doubtless encourage the club man, ugement and all club members to do everything In their power to maintain the high standard created for this institution Chinese Editor is Real Head of Yunnan Revolt "Why bless you, we ftlreadj hne i onei thousand dullui said Mr Thleme, fund of twenty for just such a iii a much more When this fund at the big institution with as kauca treuLhe twenty live thousand we arerl PEKING Feb I Liang Chl chao Is popularly regarded by the progressives of China as the actual leader of the movement which culminated In the revolution In Yunnan He Is easily the most celebrated classical student In China, according to the Chinese ideals, and Is celebrated throughout the republic as a teacher No other man in China Is supposed to have a greater facility for writing classical Chinese Liang Chl chao was In the government service in Peking when the monarchical movement began, and within three weeks he left this city to Join the opponents of Yuan Shi kai in South China who are operating under the Immediate direction of one of Liang Chl chao a moat noted pupils Tsal AO The distinguished classical student as ths editor of the first Chinese daily newspaper ever published Peking He was associated with the movement to unseat the late Grand Pm press Dowager Tie Hal and In 1898 was forced to flee to Japan tu get her whh the venerable Hang Yu wel who afterward) lived for a long time in America and Is now in retirement at Shanghai Liang Chl chao conducted a paper in Chinese while residing in japan, ana aevotea an nis time to the cause of reform in his native land He advocated a limited rchy for China rather than a re public at that time, but after the es tablishment of the republic he returned to China and conducted a dally paper in Tientsin Later he became minister of Justice In Hslung llsl lings cabinet This cabinet lusted only a short time.

Liang Chl chao then devoted himself chiefly to writing for the reform press. Hs was named member of ths committee for drafting a constitution for the republic which was rMntIy dissolved after the mun archil ul movement hud taken definite Just before his departure for Houth China, Liang Chl chao wrote a last message to President Yuan Hhi kai which has Just been translated Into, fcijltsh snd made nubile by his dis ernment expressed so mildly in the nowery language wnicn appeals to the Chinese mind that it is cherished even by men who do not approve of the position Liang Chl chao has taken. i The text of the translation follows 'For the kind perusal of the great president A respectful reading of i your kind Instructions reveals to me 1 your modesty and brotherly love which 1 you cherish for your humble servant, who ia ao moved by your heart touch ing sympathy that he does not know how to return your kindness A desire then seised him to submit his humble views for your wise consideration but ht had been thinking that a he might fall to express what he wishes I to say if he were to do so in a set of brief words, while on the other hand he has no desire to trouble the busy mind of one on whose shoulders fall myriads of affulrs wit) views ex pressed In many word furthermore, what I hi chau dehM say can be likened to the an xiet uf um who, fearing that the luaiii maj sums day fall on him strhis ward off the catastrophe if his words should te misunderstood, it would only In creueie his offence Tim and again he essayed to write, but each time he stopped short Now tin la going south to visit hie parents and ti ukimr at definitely snd the thouKht that hs has been a protege of the great president and that daugera lung ahead be fore the nation as well ss his sense of duty and friendly obligations, charge him with the responsibility of aaylns something 'The problem of Kuo tl (the form of government) appears tu have gone too far for reconsideration the post tion is like unto a man riding on the back of a wild tiger Chi thers fore at onto moment thought he would re about it. sines added thereon might make him all the more open to suspicion, licit TS sober study ot the general situation ooneideratj of the pos It Is generally regarded as a document i whlcb, wlU rank as classig In revolu (Continued en Succeeding Pagey isaiWiri'snesJgJssswatts ip Jistnipfj in nfl iihiia mma mmmt mwtiittotov..