15911 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Dec. 15 



THE ANTI-SALOON LEAGUE OF OHIO AND THE 

 ANTI-SALOON LEAGUE OF AMERICA. 



The Ohio conventiou occupied one clay 

 and part of another. The national conven- 

 tion at 8t. Louis oci-upied three days and a 

 part of the fourth. In my report I )nay get 

 the proceedings somewhat mixed up occur- 

 ring in these two great conventions. 



At the preliminary meeting of the execu- 

 tive committee in Columbus a delegation 

 from the W. C. T. U. called on us with a pe- 

 tition to permit the women of Ohio to have 

 a vote in deciding whether saloons shall or 

 shall not be permitted near the homes. Their 

 petition was most ably presented. One of 

 them said she mentioned the matter to one of 

 Ohio's great politicians. He made objection 

 something like this: " Why, my good woman, 

 the thing you ask for would banish the sa- 

 loons from the great city of Cleveland." 



She replied," Why, my dear sir, do you 

 think that would l)e a calamityT' 



He replied, " Why, madam, it would be 

 one of the direst calamities." 



1 suppose he meant by this that there are 

 so many in Cleveland who can not live with- 

 out alcoholic stimulants that a riot or civil 

 war would be the consequence. Now, some 

 of us who agree with him might have reason, 

 or at least some reason for the above opinion 

 were it not that the great city of San Fran- 

 cisco has just tried it both ways. I leave it 

 to the readers of this journal if it has not 

 been pretty well demonstrated that the 

 "calamity " part came when they brought 

 the saloons back to San Francisco, and that 

 no calamity happened at all when they drove 

 them out after the earthquake. 



I am happy to tell you that our executive 

 committee decided in favor of letting the 

 women vote; and through the new Jones lo- 

 cal-option law the women do not have to 

 go to the polls at all, as you are perhaps 

 aware. They simply have to write their 

 names on the petition, yes or no, just as the 

 men do, to keep the saloons out. Do you not 

 think, friends, that the State of Ohio will 

 stand a pretty good chance of being dry all 

 through when we get such legislation? 



I have told something about enforcing the 

 search-and-seizure law here in Medina. A 

 brother from some other State told of a sim- 

 ilar experience. AVhen the • saloon-keeper 

 was bidden to open his safe and show what 

 was inside, he refused. The sheriff then 

 sent for a big sleilgehammer, and told the 

 saloon-keeper he could have fifteen minutes 

 to make up his mind. If he did not unlock 

 the safe in that time he would demolish it 

 with a hammer. Now, friends, here is a 



good ol)ject-lesson, showing well the attitude 

 of the whole saloon-keeping fraternity. Per- 

 haps 1 should say it illustrates the lack of 

 sense these people show in law enforcement. 

 At the end of fifteen minutes the saloon- 

 keeper was still ugly and contrary, and his 

 safe that might have been saved, and which 

 cost him (luiie a sum of money, was Ijroken 

 open with the hammer, and (juite a lot of ex- 

 pensive licpiors were likewise fouml and de- 

 stroyed. 



The governors of two great States honored 

 us with their presence at the Ohio conven- 

 tion. Now, friends, this means something. 

 A few years ago our politicians, most of 

 them, were afraid to come out in the open 

 for the Anti-saloon League. In fact, some of 

 the churches discussed as to whether it was 

 a good thing to do, to open their doors to 

 our people. Governor Harris gave a brief 

 but most emphatic indorsement of our \york; 

 and Governor Hanly, of Indiana, gave us a 

 speech that is going to be scattered by print- 

 ed copies all over the United States, I hope. 

 He told us something of the battles he had 

 Ijeen forccil to tight to accomplish what has 

 been done in Indiana. When he first com- 

 menced law enforcement one of the million- 

 aire brewers — a man who stands high in pol- 

 itics, and has his constituents all over the 

 State, came to him and said, " Governor Han- 

 ly, you must not push this thing as you have 

 been doing." 



Governor Hanly x'eplied," And who are 

 yon, sir, that presumes to dictate what the 

 chosen executive of the great State of Indi- 

 ana shall or shall not do?" 



The brewer replied as he rapped with his 

 fist on the table, "Heed my words, or I 

 will show you, sir, what I can do and what. 

 I will do." 



I can not remember Mr. Hanly' s reply, 

 but it was something to the eft'ect that they 

 would have to get the Governor out of the 

 way in some way or other before the thing 

 the millionaire threatened could come to pass. 

 After the conference was over, Mr. Hanly 

 mentioned it to his wife. She said she fear- 

 ed he had been unwise to defy the power of 

 a man so well intrenched as this brewer was. 

 Several of his political friends felt the same 

 way. Well, Governor Hanly said he never 

 realized, until eighteen months had passed, 

 how many obstacles this brewer and his le- 

 gions could bring to bear. Again and again, 

 he said, he was led to believe that Satan 

 himself was leagued with those fellows, or 

 else they never could have studied up with' 

 so much Satanic ingenuity schemes to sui> 

 vert the laws and to mislead good and well- 

 meaning people. But with God's help he 

 triumphed. He said, fuithermore, that he had 

 recently visited fourteen States, and he had 

 reason to think that the I'um power has been 

 ruling and is ruling in those fouileen Statea 

 very much as it was in Indiana. You see 

 there are "bosses" in other cities than Cin- 

 cinnati. 



When Governor Hanly undertook to put 

 on the lid, the mayors of fourteen large cit- 

 ies in Indiana told him it could not be done.. 



