Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1884-1886, 1885-06-10
CONSERVATISM VS.. A CHANGE
OF AFFAIRS
To the Editor of the Eagle.

prosperity OF haEsas - StugWlch
WICHITA
Prior TO the amendment, and prior
to the enactment of the statute look
ing 10 the suppression of the liquor
traffic. the argument of the prohibi-
ZIONIST summed up was "A school
house on every hill top and no saloon
in the valley the argument of the
opposition was. "Gi'mc liberty or
Crime death" and The state i in
rum, the church Is in ar. soon wei
have decisions, expressions, and MIR
dcruu, war, and the final squclchcr
that he state would be depopulaicd
property become valurle-s and our
grand prairics become a. IL was ere
the fiat of commerce issued 10 grid
iron Kansas with railroad iron, aud
the future historian would. Il he sat
on the decaycI trunk of COTTONWOOD
king, which once standing on the
bank of the .'P1lengcnic Nile" reared
Its proud head above it, fellows and
scattered seeds of cottonwood DER
Sedgwick; thus muses.:
''l on waste, where roaming polc-cais
howl,
1 on aisle, where means the gray-eyed
owl;
was the hansans proud al ode.
Where sccptered once an earthly God,
tt,- 81 Il.
happier cline,
Where sports the warbling muse, and
fancy scars sublime
The prohibiiionist's argument was
addressed To the heart and 10 the re-
siraining of mankind from doing on
sugcring to De done ANYTHING hurtful
TO msskind. II - the language of
the pulpit transferred To the "stump.r
The opposition remembering that,
where yoUr treasure l., there will
your heart be a.so,' harped long. loud,
continuously and uuremittingly on
emigration and the worldly treasure,
and touched every chord, sounded
every depth, in the human diapasp III
that responded in sympathy to selfish
ness, j. e., liberty, taxes, prosperity,
property, emigration, together with
enough abusn to make it reasonable to
the listener.
The amendment the law, aud the
amendments thereto are things of the
past. Let us sum up the result: Gar
field said not in storm but in "A calm
we measure the depths of the sea
Now is The time to figure the result
on Kansas morally and financially.
The prohiDItioniSt hunt up moral stat
isticS and believe that Kan-as morals
are quoted AT Sl.36. same as &. ~ \.
railroad stocks. The opposition
quotes morals at Soo03 IL along with
Wabash stock, but tire real question:
the question that interests u all-is
how has the law affected the people.
the state, not as a question OF morals,
but a. II question of cash?
Til, question has been overlooked
by both sides, and yet 80 the majority
il i, the cn"trollin. idea.
kan>a, has doomed since the amend
ment a. 1T never before Doomed
without concr.ling that the amend
mcnt caused the boom, We eau al least
admit that il has not checked our
growth, retarded our prosperity or
deprecated our values. Our prosper
ity has forever dissipitcd the argu-
mcnt and dis2ciicd The doubt that pro-
would damage the state a. u
financial success.
The writer hereof without being /
able To combat the argument. could !
not understand how an evil cause
could produce 4 beniiirial result. and /
ns one crowd talked cold morals and |
the Other hard cash. hc gave {
cash the benefit of ali doubt /
and voted with The MINOR |
ity and has patiently waited
for bankrupt act that he might |
''huSt' hon"rably, aud with gcntility,
and not make a vulgar assignment for
the benefit of his family and friends.
Prohibition has not injured us
We could not have been
in much better shape il the amend
mrnt had been defeated: and though
there i some Inconvenience in .get-
tin Ticker" and no revenue from the
traffic. the conservative element in
society will acquieSce in the new con-
iition of things rather than have four
more years of political turmoil in the
re-submis>iou of this amendment.
when the real financial benefit from
re-submisSion will be rcapcd only by
saloon keepers and few tax PAYERS.
The conservative element in society
icars agitation. turmoil, debate, dis
urbance of tranquility of mind. If
he blotting ont of either the prohi-
,itioni~t or the anti-prohibitionist as
class would forever settle the liquor
lueSiion--the conservative element
mi draw strawS for which should 20.
md go on attending 10 business.
The writer hereof has mo az TO /
grind" has no selfish motive one way
,r the other except aS the pros
,eriitv of Kansas affects his
and from u purely CON
sentative standpoint has arrived
II the conclusion that the growth
IF the state since May, 1881. having
that the great argument
If the anti-prohibitionist Il. e: the in
urv 10 the state by the amcndmcnil is
faIlacy-the amendment can never
Re wiped out. nor can this state ever
lgain bc wrought up to a fever heat
over the liquor question.
The conservative element did not .
Iote either for or against the amend
nent. Ii voted for continuation of
settled order of things and against
'hangc of affairs. and on re>GhmiS- ,
ion it viii again vote the same way
Wendell Phillips. during the agitation ,
# the slavery question in 1855. said: ,
There i a class among us so conSery-
alive that they are afraid the roof viii .
,pme If Won sweep of the cohWcbS ,