Jasper County Democrat, Volume 11, Number 37, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 10 October 1908 — A LITTLE MORE ABBOUT THAT COUNTY OPTION LOBBY. [ARTICLE]

A LITTLE MORE ABBOUT THAT COUNTY OPTION LOBBY.

The Kentland Enterprise, in refering to The Democrat’s remarks about the abuse that the democratic members of the late special session were subjected to by the socalled Anti-Saloon and preachers* lobby, says it will admit that the preachers were there to lobby for Gov. Hanly's county option measure, and asks if The Democrat will now admit that the brewery bad a lobby with headquarters at the Dennison hotel, and tell what that lobby did “in the interests of the people?”

No, The Democrat will admit the truth of nothing that comes from such questionable sources as these rabid republican organs like the Enterprise, that were skulking in the rear when the real temperance fight was on a few years ago, that fought off temperance sentiment in their respective communities until the people, democrats, republicans and those of other political faiths, united in forcing the licensed saloon from their midst. Now, when their party, headed by a man whom Gov. Hanly did ail in his power to defeat for the nomination because “the brewers and saloon interests were doing everything they possibly could to get him nominated," is making a public play for the temperance vote while patting the liquor dealers on the back tn private, these same papers join in the clamor of the Anti-Saloon League, which by purchase or otherwise has become a part of the republican propaganda and a few partisan preachers in denouncing the democrats who helped to make “dry" territory, as drunkards, saloon bums, breweryites, etc., because they did not fall in line and shout for county “local option” instead of township and ward local option. No credit whatever is given these temperance democrats for any honesty of opinion in the matter at all, ( but they are each and everyone of them lined up with the brewery according to these papers, the “AntiSaloon” League and the preachers who have bee® denouncing them. There is not such a vast difference between the two plans, when one comes to examine it carefully, except that the democrats believed their plan was better, in that the rural communities could be kept dry, or be made dry, that could not counl y « « *OOll, and in connection with this view wv want you to read the following from that great moral expounder of Republican principles, the Rensselaer Republican, one of the owners, editors and proprietors of which, was an ardent saloon advocate though his paper, the Rensselaer Journal, before its consolidation with the Republican, and which was then called the saloon-keepers’ organ hy the Republican. It says: •“In Gary, which has recently gone dry through the action of the blanket remonstrance law, the sentiment is that the county local option law recently passed by the state legislature is a a good measure, and that it will be of great power in electing the republican candidate the .governorship. It means in their opinion that the townships, as ■well as Lake county, will retain the saloon, in Lake county, and that as soon as possible Gary will be taken out of the dry list.”

Lake county is the most notorious saloon county in Indiana, and according tqjthe Republican the people up there— the saloon people—welcome this county unit law, say it is a ‘ good thing,’ will be a great power In electing the republican candidate to the governorship and will make all the townships in the county wet, Including Gary which has been remonstrated dry. Think of this, will you. A law which will make every part and parcel of Lake county wet will greatly assist in helping to elect Jim Watson, the great "moral temperance candidate”—according to the republican preachers who have been "organized” for the republican ticket And Lake county is owned and controlled by the brewers and liquor dealers and any candidate for office who opposes saloons is dead politically forever after and is lucky if he is not mobbed or hanged in the effigy. And these same brewers had a lobby down at Indianapolis, did they, to work against this measure which is such a good thing for them! Think of it! The Anti-saloon League, the preachers, the republican machine and that godly man Jim hand in hand with the brewers and saloon keepers of Lake county in expressing the opinion that county option'is a "good measure”# and will greatly help the gubernatorial candidate in localities like Lake county. As to whether the brewers had a lobby on the ground trying to defeat, the county option bill we know not. It is probable they did. They would also have had them there to defeat a township and ward local option bill. But there was no evidence that because the democratic legislators were true to their party’s declaration on the liquor question that they were saloon bums,

brewery pimps, and all the other endearing epithets that were hurled at them by the republican preachers whom the republican state committee recently instructed its county chairmen In a confidential letter to "organize.” Many of the more prominent brewers are republicans, and that the repnblictan state machine has had the support of all the liquor interests for years, and that with Jim Watson as candidate for governor, according to that great de* fender of the. public morals, J; Frank Hanly, -expect to have such support is notorious. But if the "brewers” were there they do not appear to have used such undue influence as the other lobby; there has been no report of their having thronged the legislative halls or having abused the republicans who voted for the bill. There has been no accusations of bribery or attempted bribery that we have heard of on the part of any of those who voted for the measure, if they would vote against it. On the contrary Representative Johnson of Vigo and Vermillion counties, a republican who voted for the bill, said —according to both republican and democratic newspaper reports, and which have not been defiled—that Crawford Fairbanks, president of the Terre Haute Brewing Company was his friend, that he had "known him for many years and he had always been a good friend of mine and I wks sorry I was obliged to vote against his interests.” This brewery man did not to Influence Johnson’s vote in adyxway, according to Johnson, and he and Fairbanks are still good friends. His constituency was against county option, said Johnson, but "I believed it was right and- voted for It” A great many lies have been told about the opposition to county "local option.” and we believe the brewers have been lied about as well as the democrats, and we are not holding a brief for the, brewers either. If we are to be-' lleve the Rensselaer Republican, the notoriously wet county of Lake believes It is a good thing because it will- make every township in that county wet and keep it wet, and, incidentally, of coarse, It will greatly help the republican candidate ' for governor in that county. Why? Is it because the saloon men have now got Just what they wanted and will- not opposq Watson qny further? Or is It because he will get all the temperance vote up there from all parties for the reason that Lake county—every town and township of It- —I's to be wet and continue so?’ An adorable law indeed. It suits Gov. Hanly, suits the Anti-Saloon League, suits the republican preachers, suits the republican party, and last but not least, Is declared just the thing by the liquor dealers! But why, as every other law passed by Hanly’s special session had an emergency clause attached to It, was the clause omitted from the county option measure, so that the people might get right to work in “Irrigating” the dry dlst.'icts* before the general flection? No doubt Gov. Hanly and the Anti-Sa-loon League ally of the republican party could answer this question If they would. But they won’t

answer it and answer it honestly. Perhaps the Enterprise will explain it?