Wichita eagle., 1889-02-26
Balm ON WICHITA.

The following very handsome and elo-
quent tribute to the enterprise and genius
of this city is from the pen of Kentucky'S
great temperance orator, Hon. Geo. W.
Balm. contributed to the Union Signal
since his recent visit here:
am just from Wichita, Kansas, called
by its own The Peerless Princess of the
Plains but by some who are not its own,
1.-The Windy Wonder of the West"
gave three addresses for the w. T.. L.
u, and though Wichita is cosmopolitan
city, where not only every nationality. but
every kind of character seems to be repre-
sented, and where craving appetlteS for
drink formed in license states, with greed
for gain, create in hid-away corners
whisky joints" yet there is not to be
found an open saloon to tempt the youth,
and after years of travel covering the lead
ing cities of nearly all the states | do not
hesitate to declare there is not city in
this union in which licensed saloons exist,
where so many attend church services,
where Sabbath schools are so large, where
Y. NJ, G. A. meetings are so well attended,
and where temperance advocate can get
such an audience in proportion to popula-
ton as Wichita. Kansas.
My first lecture was on Saturday even
ing and hundreds were turned away who
could not be admitted. On Sunday after
noon the meeting was for men only under
the auspices of the Y. NJ. c. A, and the
spacious auditorium was packed with the
cleanest-countenanced young men | have
addressed in years. On Monday evening
an admission fee was charged, and not
withstanding the stringent times, gave
the w. c. L. L. about one hundred dol
lars above expenses.
There are few traits in Wichita char
acter worthy of study. One Is the unity
of purpose to build up, not only the COM
mercial, but moral grandeur of the city.
While the board of trade generously do
mated at one meeting twenty acres OF land
and one hundred and fifty thousand dol
lars to packing house enterprise, the cit
liens also at one meeting subscribed forty
five thousand dollars to erect I. NJ. G. A.
building, which is now under way.
and will cost sixty thousand dollars
when completed. While many thou
sands of dollars have been raised in
one day to place electric travel through
the streets, as many more thousands have
been contributed the next day TO build
colleges and churches. While they have
pierced the prairies with avenues, and
adorned these avenues with handsome res
licences they have not forgotten the gar
dens of mind and heart, where character
is developed, and the seeds of happiness
grow.
After months ofcampaign work through
politics, where votes were bought and sold
like cattle in the market places where cor
ruption of the ballot was never so rife,
where mailing lists were stolen TO advance
party interests on one side, and ballot
boxes stuffed for the same purpose on the
other, it was delightful to breathe atmos-
phere of a community without an open
saloon and its churches crowded with
worshipers.
Another communicable feature of this
western life IS the respectfulness Of the
rich toward the poor. Great fortunes have
been made. but the rich do not seem
TO be pulled up into silk
and satin kind of society. They
seem TO realize that over the bill Of life is
the valley of death where. side by side. the
banker and beggar will sleep together; the
prairie pillow viii mingle the dust of the
high and low. and that he who II poor. yet
deals in immortal futures, is worthy the
respect of the successful dealer in stocks, |
bonds and real estate.
Another beautiful trait IL Kansas char |
acter is hopefulness. No matter II crops |
fail, they do not lose heart, but climbing
the Hill of Hope they stand on its summit
and point TO the sunlight of better days
ahead. They know Hope often goes on
credit aud frequently fails 70 meet her note
when due, but when she does, they turn to
collateral securities and surrounding re-
secure an extension OF time and
press on. The git and grit of these west
ern people drive away dependency and
doubt, and give promise of coming devel- |
opment made up of moral as well as ma
terial worth. which is the only kind
worthy to be called improvement.