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3rd International Vegetarian
Congress 1893 From The Vegetarian (London) September 23, 1893: The Vegetarian Annexe at the World's Fair [introductory poetry and general comments about US Independence Day and the state of the poor in Chicago] . . . Truly appropriate was it that on this great day of Independence the Vegetarian Annexe should be first opened, and the announcement made to the assembled multitude that "Vegetarianism proclaims freedom from the slavery of Drunkeness and Disease," and thus innaugurates
The additional space granted to the Vegetarian Federal Union had been beautifully decorated with lovely pictures of golden corn, beautiful peaches, melons, grapes, apples and other tempting fruits, whilst representations of an ideal chubby child and lovely maiden sweetly smiling, proved apt texts for illustrating the difference between their frugivorous teeth and the carnivorous ones shown in the adjacent fine oil painting of a tiger's head. The stall of the Vegetarian Federal Union placed in the midst was pretilly arranged with plants and specimens of grains, pulses fruits and nuts, and displayed diagrams and a varied assortment of literature arranged so that visitors could read them, and ths take away seeds of truth which with the leaflets and year books freely distributed must in the future yeild good results. The position allotted to the Union was especially favourable, being the best position in the Liberal Arts Division. The bright bluse banners directed attention to the sign, "VEGETARIAN FEDERAL UNION" which could be distictly read across the pricipal transept at a distance of six hundred feet. Placed as it was in the centre of all the nations of the earth it might be considered a fair augury of the grand future that awaits the Union. The addresses happily inaugurated on Independence Day were continued every afternoon, and the proceedings in the Vegetarian Annexe were announced in the Official Programme and leading papers, and their readers would thus be educated in the truths of Vegetarianism by daily seeing such titles as "Vegetarianism the Final Solution of the Drink Question," "The Most Nourishment at the Least Cost," "Bread Reform," "How to Prevent Rheumatism, Rickets, and Consumption," "Humanity and Vegetarianism," "Vegetarianism Promotes Temperance, Humanity, Peace, Purity," etc. Mos attentive and sympathetic audiences came and listened to the addresses, and the discussions that followed showed the lively interest taken in the subject. It certainly was an encouraging sign that several of the stock yards failed or were obliged to lower the wages, and it seemed as if the mocking salutation of one of the papers that the Vegetarians were looking forward to the day when, like Macauley's New Zealander, they would stand on the shores of Lake Michigan gazing at the ruins of the deserted stock yards, was in a measurable distance of being realised. It was also a strange coincidence that that the leading representatives of the Woman's Buildings, should at the same time, be using every effort to have adopted as the National emblem, the flower of the Indian corn, or, as the Indians name it, Zea. Maixe implies the giver of life. It was pointed out in an address given in this building that lovely and refined women would be horrified at the idea of selecting as their emblem a beef-steak or pork chop. No!
The World's Fair is considered by the wise men of our times to mark the betrothal of the English speaking nations, and to be the harbinger of the federation of man. The Vegetarian Federal Union which teaches the truths that will make this dream easy to realise - may well gather confidence from its recent success, and full of belief in its great destiny never rest until it had induce those great nations who have freed the slave and are now waging such earnest warfare against drink and impurity to consider the sufferings of the non-human races, and to bring nearer that day when
- MAY YATES
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