Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 40, Number 96, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 11 August 1908 — THE TEMPERANCE QUESTION. [ARTICLE]

THE TEMPERANCE QUESTION.

There is a paramount issue before the people of Indiana this year. It is the temperance question and both party platforms have declared for temperance by proposing to enact laws that will establish local option at the polls. The democratic platform has pledged itself to establish township option, which we however hare by remonstrance. The republican platform has promised county option, which would bring the matter of temperance up to the people of the entire county. Just what the laws would provide can not be known until the bills are Introduced and discussed sad passed by the legislature that is • -x

to be elected this fall and which will convene in January. The republican party will, if elected, pass a county option bill, but it will be so worded that it will not do away with the present remonstrance method of disposing of saloohs in townships and wards. ' The brewers and their emissaries are quick to- discern the effect that legislation if enacted will have on their business and have decided to support the democratic state ticket, because , they see not only a certainty that the temperance movement can not progress with the adoption of a township option plank, but they also see that a township vote would probably result in the re-establishment of many saloons, j They also see more. | They see that to place the saloon i question before the people of an enI tire county would defeat the saloons I in many cities because of the pi evailjmg sentiment for temperance in the I rural districts. So the breweries enI dorse the democratic platform, and ! make plans to carry the state for I Tom Marshall and the democratic ; candidates fro senator and state repJ resentative. The anti-saloon league i is very active and very watchful of ' the temperance Interests and to offset j the action" of the breweries it de- ! clares for the republican platform , and for James E. Watson for governor I and for the republican candidates for | representative and senator unless they j have proof that the nominees aie for brewery domination, which might be the case in some localities. The Jasper County Democrat some weeks ago, had a fit of indignation because the anti-saloon league had decided not to look at things the same way the brewers did, iind the Democrat, with its self-praised moral sponser, threatened to re-instate saloons In Rensselaer by having democrats refuse to longer sign remon- : strances if the anti-saloon league did j not withdraw its support from the J republican party. We are certain i that the temperance sentiment is ‘ deeper rooted in the determination of the good and loyal democrats who j have aided in freeing Rensselaer and ! Remington, DeMotte, Fair Oaks and j Wheatfield and other places of saloons than to permit the Jasper | County Democrat to cause them to | withhold future support in the interest of temperance. There is little outside of temperance dividing the two parties this year,and any democrat who is since.ely a temperance man can afford to study the situation closely and cast his vote as he honestly believes will < result in the curtailment of the retail liquor traffic. As it now stands the breweries and the saloons and the interests that the 1 saloons control are advising the 1 election of the democratic tickets and ! the adoption of the township and ward local option law. And the an--1 ti-saloon league has declared for the ! republican nominess and the adoption of county lpcal option. Is it not 1 easy to judge, Mr. Temperance Man, where you should stand? And now a word about the sincerity of the Democrat editor’s temperance ; views. He threatens to reinstate saloons !in Rensselaer unless the anti-sa-J loon league withdraws its support from the republican ticket. Surely j this editor who claims to have made ■ the sacrifice of living in .the first ward for three years in order to sign ! the remonstrance and defeat the saloons has lost some of his proclaimed 1 fervid temperance enthusiasm. The Democrat has evidently been playing I the double cross In the temperance matter and unrighteously! assumes! ! that it can persuade the democrats to do the same thing. But it is mistaken, inw<YfW~-• -• mw> - - m* And now the paper comes out can- | didly and says that democrats, and he must have been speaking of what I he himself would do, would “resent I 1 the interference and hundieds of them j refuse to sign the remonstrances or j vote against the saloon If the League persists in its advocacy of the elec- | tlon of the republican state ticket.” | The Republican feels more sincere | in its temperance views and no . matter what may happen it will be i found doing #hat it can to rid the community of saloons, and will make no bluffs about voting for their reinstatement if something does not suit us. Aud we believe the loyal temperance democrats everywhere will resent the suggestion that their temperance regard Is so slight that they can be induced by an insincere advocate to cast aside the opportunities at hand to free this city and the other towns of the county from saloons, j The democrats were as active locally ! as the republicans and doubtless as since re in their opposition to the retail liquor traffic and they will be just as deslrouß of continuing the I fight against the traffic of liquor even if it leads them for once to vote the republican ticket And as between the endorsement of the breweries and the anti-saloon league, we. believe they #lll readily see that the latter Is right It has no personal interests, but the brewers have their business at heart The Issue this year Is temperenoe and the republicans will lose lots of*

their heretofore solid republicans, in communities where the saloon Interests are at stake, but they expect to make this up by the support of honest and sincere democrats who want temperance to progress and who will vote right when th£y see right