E401 LIBRARY OF CONGRESS D0DD5D2fl4t.E O V %\i- ^^^ . ^ *»^ n^ • • • » ^^.>^ oV"^^i0r- ^^d^ -'^jm^r.^ ^^^s JJ/ JVational Constitution and "By-Latos J* J<» Vames of 1846 9 :t''^^ Dame^ of 1846 J* M'R^. MOOn^B M\/'RT>OCK. Founder and Organizer A Patriotic aud Benevolent Organization in honor of the Soldiers of the War with Mexico. Founded in the City of Fort Worth, State of Texas, June the 5th, 1901, by the unanimous consent of the Texas Division of the Mexican War Veteran. AS.SOCIATION. "Ppeamfele and Fv]entori(aI. To the Texas Division of the Veterans of the Mexican War —Greeting: Peeling the deepest veneration and patriotism for every notable epoch of American history, we do nut place that of the Mexican War amongst the least, in its importance and results As the mothers, wives and daughters of the warriors of 1846, we believe that the time is over-ripe for us to commemo- rate the bravery and [devotion of those men who repelled the invader and made the proud boast of the conquerors of San Jacinto a declaration to pos- terity that the broad empire of Texas was founded upon a stable basis. The notable men and women of our early colo- nies have had their fortitude and heroism immor- talized by the women who trace their ancestry to gallant bands of pioneers in a New World. The sublime thundersof the Declaration of Independence find to-day an echo in the song of an army of women s;reater in numbers than the ihin legions that their indomitable ancestorsopposed to an implacable and remoi'seless tyranny. But the most sacred I'ecord to the Southern heart, is that greatest one when neighbors having lound argument vain, the seried ranks of Northern and Southern giants faced each other upon the bloodiest field that ever marked the conflicts of a world. As the 'Daughters of the Confederacy," the women of the South are correcting history, mould- ing opinions, demanding justice, educating youth, and rearing monuments to the men who lived and died for a cause that is Invincible. Last, but not least, the grand old Republic of Texas has its company of illustrious women who perpetuate the memories of the massacre of Alamo. Goliad and the victory of San Jacinto. How many of our Texas women, members of the "Daughters of the Republic" and "Daughters of the Confed- eracy" ever refer to the precarious place in history that the cause around which centers their devotion would have occupied if the veterans of 1846 had not marched upon tbe encroaching Mexican foe. Sup- pose a feeble arm, a half-hearted resistance had opposed the invader,— what had been the fate of Texas, New Mexico and California? To the War with Mexico we owe our supreme liberation from all present aud future lears of our neighbors across the Rio Grande. That the grand survivors of that most conclusive trial of strength and endurance are pass- ing rapidly to tlie sweet, fields of perpetual peace, "unhonored and unsung" by their matrons and maids, is a fact thatimpressesitself uponourhearts. Year after year we see the depleted ranks of the Mexican War Association tile "into our hospitable cities to receive our plaudits and heart-felt wel- comes, many, alas, for the last time. Ah! women of 1846, we have waited too long to crown the vic- tors of that war. In this we memoralize the remnantof that noble army that comprised the flower of our land, of our Southland especially, to permit us under their ven- erable hand and seal to publicly declare ourselves their heirs and successors. We appeal U> them out of the generosity of their great hearts to give us assurance of their forgiveness of our retnissm-.>*s in the past by permitting us to band ourselves together under the title of "Dames of 1846, to glorify ttieir heroic deeds, to crown with honor their rnmiiining days, to perpetuate their fame to posterity in monuments to the dead and devotion to their descendants. Mrs. Moore Murdock Mrs Ella Moore Kirtley Mrs D Murdock Lewis Miss Buford Kirtley Miss Marguerite Kirtley President Finlay and Abe Harris made appropriate remarks on the propo.sed work of Mrs. Murdock, and paid her the compli- ment of being the first woman in Texas to undertake such a movement. The widows, children and all descendants of the Mexican war veterans will be eligible to membership. Mrs. Murdock stated that she would begin the work of organization at once. She was unanimously elected an honorary member of the Mexican War Veterans' Association. Officers of tHe Texas Division of ttie MEXICAN WAR VETERANS ASSN. Who Endorsed tue Organization of tlie 'Darner of 184-6 Commandant Col. George P. Finlay, Gralveston, Texas Vice-Comtnandant Col. Wm. E. Estes, Texarkana, Texas Secretary Capt. a. J. Nave, Columbus, Texas Treasurer Mr. a. C. Hereford, Moulton, Texas burgeon Dr. J. A. Anthony, Terrell, Texas Committee from Mexican War Veterans Association, Division of Texas, to investigate and ap- prove the object and organization of the DAMES OF 1846 Col. Abe Harris, Fort Worth, Texas, Chm. Dr. a. J. Anthony, Terrell, Texas Levi C. Bishop, Fort Worth, Texas OKicers of tiie Ndtiondi Association of Mejcican War Veterans. President— J. C. Carlton, Bedford Indiana. Secretary— Mrs. Moore Murdock, Fort Worth, Texas. Treasurer— IikRoy Wiley, Paris, Illinois. Vice- Presiden ts S. p. Tufts, Centralia, 111. H. T. Ogden, Cincinnati, Ohio. W. S. McChesney, Lexington, Ky. LeRoy Wiley, Paris, 111. C. P. Sargent, Bellwood, Pa. Wm. M. Stewart, Gallatin, Tenn. Geo. T. Barney, Elkhart, Ind. S. E. Chamberlain, Barre, Ma^^s. S. J. F. Ruter, Los Angeles, Cal. Wm. Boone Majors, Odessa, Mo. Honorary JVattonal Commandants l>ame^ of 184-6 Mesdaiiies Jefferson Davis, Mississippi Ulyssus S. Grant, Wasiiington, D. C. Phil. Kearney, Washington, D. C. John A. Logan, Washington, D. C. Letitia Tyler Semple, ^ ashington, D. C James Longstreet, Washington, D. C. Wm. B. Bate, Washington, D. C. Jolm C. Freemont, California Albert Sidney Johnston, California Clarence Mackey, California John A. Wood, Kansas A. E. Campbell, Kansas Daniel H. Hill, North Carolina Stonewall Jackson, North Carolina Wm. H. Polk, North Carolina Katherine E. Cobb, North Carolina Orren Randolph Smith, North Carolina Elizabeth E. Partin, North Carolina Braxton Bragg, Louisiana J. D. Kirkland, Louisiana Bettie Taylor Dandrige, Virginia Geo. C. McClelland, Pennsylvania Kate Arnold Parker, Mississippi Rosalie Quitman Duncan, Mississippi Antonia Quitman Lovell, Mississippi Lamar Fontaiu, Mississippi Mesdames Isabel A. Hobgood, Missouri Minerva Peacock, Missouri Aurelia D. McCarty, Oklahoma Nancy Ross Ogden, Ohio S. C. Lavalette, Pennsylvania Mary A. Nixon George, Pennsylvania Francis J. Keffer, Pennsylvania John C. F. Sargent, Pennsylvania W. C. Haines, Pennsylvania W. S. McChesney, Kentucky John H. McBrayer, Kentucky Wm. F. Bond, Kentucky Mary Rogers Clay, Kentucky Admiral Semmes, Kentucky Calvin B. Fowlkes, Tennessee H. C. Seesell, Tennessee Louis J. Beeler, Maryland Leroy Wiley, Illinois S. P. Tufts, Illinois J. Freeter, Illinois James F. Harney, Indiana Henry H. Lane, Indiana Lew Wallace, Indiana James B. Mulkey, Indiana J. M. Parkhurst, Indiana Sarah Ferry Purcell, Indiana Louise Haygood Pettitt, Indiana Jennie A. Callahan, Indiana William W. Lowe, Indiana Sophronia M«)nroe Landers, Indiana Countess Telfener, Germany Princess Colona, Italy Madame Emile Assenmarcher, Belgium James Buckner Barry Eot entitled to a vote. 13 ARTICLE 11. NATIONAL BOARD OF MANAGEMENT. Section 1. The National Board of Mana- gement shall be composed of the active officers of the National Encampment, the State Commandants and such other dele- gates as may be deemed a local necessity. Sec. 2. The Board of Management shall have full power to manage the business of the Organization, to enact By-Laws, pre- scribe rules and regulations for the guidance of the officers of the Organization, and ap- prove all applications for membership. Sec. 3. The National Commandant shall have full power to approve or reject the rul- ings of the Board in her absence, to fill va- cancies in offices until the next regular elec- tion, and to do all things for the general good of the Organization. Final appeals may be made to her, collectively or individu- ally, and her decision shall be legal and binding. ARTICLE III. ORDER OF BUSINESS. At all business meetings, National, State or local, the following order of business shall be observed; 1. Invocation by the Commandant. 2. Reading of minutes of previous iDef'ting' and their approval. 4. Report of iSeleet Committees. 5. Unfinished tnisiriess. 6. New business. 7. Miscel- laneous business. 8. Benediction . and ad- journment. ARTICLE IV. DISCIPLINE. Any member conducting herself, either al the meetings of the Camp or elsewhere, in a way calculated to disturb the harmony of the organization, or to impair its good name or prosperity, or to injure the reputation of any member thereof, may, upon thorough investigation, be reprimanded, suspended or expelled— as the National Board of Manage- ment shall decide. ARTICLE V. TIME AND PLACE OF MEETING. It should be the endeavor of each Camp to own and control its headquarters. That being definitely settled, due prominence should be given through the public press as to its locality: and such care and adornment of the premises should be exercised that at all times the headquarters should be in an orderly and inviting condition. "Palo Alto'' has chosen the first Wednesday of the month as the day and hour of meeting. This is the l)usiuess meeting, and unless urgent busi- ness comes up before the Camp, no other meetings during the month can be called for business. Upon the day selected, all busi- ness accumulated since the previous meet- ing must be transacted, unfinished business from the previous meeting taking precedure. No meeting for business purposes can be called except by the Commandant; should she be absent, the next highest officer can conduct the meeting — but the Commandant alone has power to set an irregular day for business meetings, or to call the next regu- lar meeting. When the Commandant is absent from a business meeting, the Record- ing Secretary must give her due notice of the business transacted, and the minutes held in abeyance until approved by the Com- mandant. The Commandant should call her meetings through the Press, at least twice before each monthly meeting. ARTICLE VI. NATIONAL COMMANDANT. Section 1. The National Commandant, in addition to her general duties, shall be ex- officio chairman of the National Board of Management and of the Executive committee, and a member of every other committee. Sec. 2. At each jMiiiual meeting she shall appoint the following- standing committee: Finance connuittee, Auditing committee, Printing committee, Mexican War Relics committee. The duties of these committees shall be such as usually pertain to com- mittees of like character, and such as may be defined by the Board of Management. ARTICLE VII. VICE NATIONAL COMMANDANTS, AND ALL OTHER OFFICERS, STATE AND NATIONAL- SECTION 1. In the absence of the National Commandant from any session of the Nation- al Encampment, or from a meeting of the National Board of Management, one of the Vice-Commandants shall be elected to pre- side.! Sec. 2. In the prolonged absence or in- ability of the National Commandant to act, the executive authority shall be vested in the Vice National Commandant, who ma> be selected by the Board of Management for that purpose. Sec 3. The National Recording Secre- tary shall keep a record of all meetings of the National Encampment, the Board of Management and the Executive committee ; have charge of the seal; give due notice of all meetings of the National Encampment and other iruportfiiit raeotings; ly'we due notice to ail general officers of Camps of ail votes, orders and proceedings ai^ectiiig or appertaining to their duties, and generally perform such acts as pertain to her office. Sec. 4. The Corresponding Secretary shall attend to all correspondence of the Or- ganization and Board of Management; dis- tribute all pamphlets, circulars, rosettes, supplies and directions, as decided by the National Board of Management. Sec. 5. The National Treasurer shall collect and receive the funds of the National Organization. She shall deposit the same in some bank selected for the purpose, to the credit of the Dames of 1840, and shall draw from thence for all uses as directed by the Executive Board upon the order of the Na- tional Commandant, countersigned by the National Recording Secretary. Her ac- counts shall be audited by a committee ap- pointed at the annual Piucampment. She shall, if so required by the Board of Manage- ment or the Executive committee, give bond for the safe custody of the funds. Sec. C. The National Registrar shall keep a register of the names and date of elections, resignation or death of all members of Camps; and shall have the care and custody of all applications for membership, dupli- 18 cateri of wliich, proijcrly approved by tho National officers, shall be retained by the Registrars of Oamps. The National Regis- trar shall examine all applications for men)- bwrship and approve the same if correct; if not, she shall return same for correction, pointing out the defects. She shall report all applications to the National Board of Management for final action. Sec. 7. The National Historian shall have the custody of all historical and biographical collections of which the National Organiza- tion may become possessed, and shall place the same in a fire-proof repository. She shall prepare for ofiicial publication histori- cal and biographical sketches of the Mexican War, ancestors of members, and of distin- guished women connected with that war. Sec. 8. The Sergeant-at-Arms shall keep the key of the Camp assembly rooms, admit eligible members and invited guests, seat the same in designated places of honor, pre- serve order, distribute literature, remain un- til the room is vacated, collect and deposit in places of safety articles of value left in the room, and be generally responsible for the care and custody of Camp property not otherwise provided for. She shall have power, in time of large assemblies, to select 19 and appoint such assistance as she may deem necessary to insure the order and dignity of the organization. Sec. 9. All the above rules and obliga- tions pertain in relative manner to each and every officer of the State or local Camps, such amendments or restrictions as may be voted necessary for local environments. ARTICLE VIII. INITIATION, DUES AND LIABILITIES. Section 1. The initiation fee of the Na- tional Encampment is (50) cents, to be paid on or before the 8th day of May, following- charter. Sec. 2. The local annual dues are fifty (50) cents, and (10) cents additional to the National Treasury, and (10) cents additional to the State Treasury. ARTICLE IX. amendments. Amendments to this Constitution and By- Laws may be offered at anj'^ meeting of the Board of Management, but shall not be acted upon until the next meeting thereof. If approved by amajority of the Board, a copy theieof shall be sent the Commandant and Secretary of every Cami), and to each 2(1 State Commandant, at least thirty days prior to the meetings of the National Encamp- ments. Adopted by a majority of the En- campment, such amendments shall be in full force thereafter. AETICLE X. CHARTERS. Section 1. When eight eligible women shall be living in one locality, they may, after formal authorization by the National Commandant or Board of Managers, orga- nize a Camp. They may elect a presiding officer whose title will be Commandant, and who by virtue of her office shall be a dele- gate to the State and National Encampments. Sec. 2. After the Camp has been estab- lished, all applications for memberships must be passed upon by the Local Board, and upon the approval of the Board, the applica- tion shall receive the endorsement of the Commandant, the Recording Secretary and Registrar,- and be forwarded to the National Board of Management for final action. Sec. 3. The Local Camp may enact By- Laws, for their own government, in harmony with the National Constitution, ARTICLE XL TERMS OF LOCAL MEMBERSHIP. Any woman having proven her eligibility for membership, and having been accepted and enrolled upon the roster of a local Camp shall forever after be a member of that Camp; should she remove to another locality, she may upon application to the National Board of Management, obtain a transfer permitting her to affiliate with the business and social life of the nearest Camp in her vicinity; but her vote upon State or National matters, if entitled to one, must be cast with her charter Camp; annual, State, and National dues must be paid into the treasury of her charter Camp — her loyalty, devotion and support given to it for life, and her memorial ser- vices conducted under the aiispices of the same. She is not barred from giving her enthusiastic services and encouragement, and any and all gifts, pecuniary or otherwise to ihe Camp of her adoption, but her obli- gations to the Camp that enrolled her shall end only in her death. ARTICLE XII. CAlklPS. (1) Notify the National Corresponding Secretary of the election and appointment of all officers and delegates. (2) Pay to the National Treasurer, on or before the 8th day of May, the sum of ten cents for each active member thereof, for National dues. 22 !..f*r (3) Pay to the State Treasurer, the sum of ten cents on or before the 8th day of May for State dues. (4) Transmit to the National Registrar all approved applications for membership for final action of the Board, and notify her of the resignation or death of any member thereof. (5) Each (.^amp shall elect its officers and local Board of Management at the time of the year that falls upon the anniversary of the battle for which the Camp is named, but the delegates must be elected ten days before the 8th day of May. (6) Each Camp shall be entitled, upon payment of the cost thereof, to a certificate or charter duly certifying its name, location, date, officers, and organizing members, which shall be signed by the National Com- mandant and National Recording Secretary, attested by the seal of the National Organi- zation, and countersigned by the State Com- mandant. (7) Camps must be named for battles fought during the Mexican War, being par- ticular to observe the order of succession of said battles. Furthermore, each Camp must choose as sponser a soldier of the Mexican War, dead or alive, whose birthday must be observed with all honor and decorum. ARTICLE XIII. SEAL. The seal of the Organization shall be a disk, one and seven-eighths of an inch in diameter, charged with the figure of a Mexi- can soldier discharging a cannon, the wreath surrounded by the legend, "Palo Alto, May 8, 1846," and the motto, "For Americans." ARTICLE XIV. INSIGNIA. The insignia shall consist of a badge in the form of a shield, made of bronze; a per- fect duplicate of those worn by Mexican War Veterans. Each member of the Organiza- tion shall be entitled to a certificate of mem- bership duly attested by the National Com- mandant, National Recording Secretary, National Registrar, and the seal of the Na- tional Organization. ARTICLE XV. STATIONERY. The stationery shall be pure white, with the American and Mexican flags commingled on the National stationery, and for State and local, the flag shall be combined with the American and Mexican. The insignia 24 shall be placed in the center at the top of the sheet upon the paper, and in the same position upon the envelope. ARTICLE XVI. GUESTS. Every veteran of the Mexican War shall be at all times a welcome visitor to either the local Camps or National Encampments. The wives and daughters of sons of Mexican veterans not eligible to membership, may be included in all social events of the Organiza- tion. ARTICLE XVII. AMENDMENTS. These By-Laws may be altered or amended by a vote of three-fourths of the members present at each meeting of the National Board of Management, written notice there- of having been given at the previous meet- ing. 25 «• » AT ♦ ^^.^^^ * ^^ ^^ ^: U v*^ /^^ A* ."i^t^^K". *•. .«, ►.;'?.^:« >^ '\^' v' *;'.:' .« * • • • ' T Y • ^^ ^^'^ ^i bookbinding! ?*.* ^ o *.^^:^'^* ^0 Crantv.lle Pa ■ ^ aV Q ♦ » . -i • ^0 ntville Jan Feb 1989