d behold it was very good," and he rested. Then He made man and
said He was good--and He rested. He then made woman out of the rib of a
man, but no mention is made of His remarks, or of His resting--in fact
there has been no rest for mankind ever since. [Laughter.] The first
lady was called woman--"because she was taken out of man," and twenty
centuries look down upon us, and we realize that what she has taken out
of man is a plenty. As the poet Moore pleasantly remarks:--

"Disguise our bondage as we will
'Tis woman, woman rules us still."

For two thousand years the Order of Knighthood has been endeavoring to
ameliorate and elevate the condition of womankind. Among savages they
are beasts of burden, among barbarians and Mohammedans they are toys or
slaves, but among us, thanks to American manhood, they have our love and
respect, they have all our rights, all our money, and, in these days of
tailor-made garments, they have nearly all our clothes; and we smile and
smile, and wonder what next? [Laughter.]

Is it surprising that a sedate, sober-minded, slightly bald-headed,
middle-aged Templar Knight, "used only to war's alarms [laughter] and
not to woman's charms," should be at a loss what to say on an occasion
like this, or to do justice to such a subject? It is delightful to have
the ladies here. Like Timon of Athens we can truly say:--

"You have, fair ladies,
Set a fair fashion to our entertainment,
Which was not half so beautiful and kind."

In the presence of the bright eyes, rosy cheeks, and warm red lips of
the ladies it might be possible to work up to the proper degree of
enthusiasm in the short time allotted me, if it were not for the stony
glare of one which says "Beware, I am here!" [Laughter.] Now, in my
innocence, I presumed that poets were the fellows who had prepared all
the pretty things to say about the dear girls, but I find a variety of
opinions expressed. That good old Masonic bard, Bobby Burns, says:--

"And nature swears, the lovely dears,
Her noblest work she classes, O;
Her 'prentice hand she tried on man
An' then she made the lasses, O."

But you will note that Dame Nature swears this, and she is not a
competent witness, as she had nothing to do with the little surgical
episode when Brother Adam lost his rib. [Laughter.] Lord Lyttleton gave
our sisters good advice, as follows:--

"Seek to be good, but aim not to be great,
A woman's noblest station is Retreat,
H