I'm always interested in stories about Otterbein Church, the home of a pioneer United Brethren in Christ congregation that was moved to the Lucas County Historical Society Museum grounds from its original location along Highway 14 south of Chariton in 1976.
So I was happy to find this little item, published by editor Henry Gittinger on the front page of his Chariton Leader of Nov. 9, 1911.
Remember that this was at a time when many Protestant denominations looked upon card playing as one of many pitfalls on the slippery slope to perdition.
So when a typographical error turned the Otterbein Aid Society into the Otterbein Card Society there may have been a few sharp words exchanged. On the other hand, our forbears were not lacking in senses of humor, so I suspect members of this ladies aid, including several relatives of mine, found the whole thing amusing.
Anyhow, here's Henry's mea culpa.
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Among the Otterbein items last week appeared the following notice: "The Otterbein Card Society will meet at the home of Mrs. Henry Miller Thursday, Nov. 2."
The item was written correctly by our correspondent but the compositor substituted the word "card" for "aid," so the women's good church society was published to the world as promoting a "card" society.
The Leader has been making amends so far as it could and has had that compositor bound to a stake and is prescribing slow fire to cause proper repentance for the careless error. However, it is understood the good women are organizing a lynching party and will soon move on this stronghold with the intention of demanding satisfaction.
Before the execution we want to confess that there is no "Otterbein card society" but there is an aid society and this aid society met with Mrs. Henry Miller on Thursday, Nov. 2.
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