The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1889-05-21

General Fisk Thinks His Best
Interest Lies Out Of 0fiee---
Nothing Would Tempt Him
to Be Governor, but He
Wants to Infiet County OPP
ton on the State Again,
and Will Work for Legis-
latiye Candidates Who Are
Pledged to Vote for That
Measure.


Clinton B. Fisk this morning in his COM
Portable office in the Schermerhorn Build
ing, on Broadway, where he looks after
the interests of the New York Accident
Insurance Company found him sitting
in front of desk covered with papers,
his white beard and fine eyes making him
look like the benevolent father of whole
State.
There has been some question lately of
his being nominated by the Republican
party this autumn, and asked the Gen.
eral whether there was any foundation
for the rumor that he would run.
No. said he; ~ am not going to run
on the Republican ticket, or upon any
other ticket. can go further than that,
and say that there has never been time
when would have accepted nomination
for Governor if 1 had believed that there
was the smallest danger of my being
elected.
Il have been before the people twice,
hoping each time that my candidacy
would be of some benefit to the good
cause, but that is enough. / shall never
do it again. 1t is time for some one else to
carry the standard of temperance
"Is it true, General, that you are going
to use all your influence to help elect to
the Legislature candidates of either of the
old parties who are in favor Of temper
ance9"
eyes; do not care whether they are
democrats or republicans, if they will do
anything to further the interest of tenn
perance will do anything in my power
to help elect them. The politics of the
State are dominated by the rum power,
and the only way in which we can attain
anything is by electing honest men who
will vote for the right You people in
Jersey City are absolutely and tyranically
ruled by rum. l was told by friend
who has studied almost every city in
America that there is no place in the
country so irredeemably owned by the
whiskey power as Jersey City.
N FAVOR OF local OPTION.
II do not look for absolute prohibition,
much as it is needed, but / want to see
the traffic in rum surrounded with legal
restrictions which will keep it within the
bounds of fsdecency In the first place,
want the local option law of 1888 restored.
That was long step in advance, and to
repeal it was to turn from the light to the
darkness of ignorance. 1t was most I'M
democratic to say that the people of
county should not have the right to say
that no rum should be sold and it was
only acknowledging that principles were
nothing and the demands of rum every
thing"
els it not new thing for you to favor
local option, Generalg"
"Well, was never strongly opposed to
local option, nor am strongly in favor of
it now. 1t was better than nothing, and
showed that it would finally accomplish a
great deal.
'-The two great parties are pretty nearly
evenly divided on the question of local
option, and it is only the managers who
are really under the heel of rum. When
ran for Governor about twelve thousand
of the twenty thousand votes / received
were cast by republicans, but last year,
when got eight thousand votes in the
State, about five thousand of them were
cast by democrats"
wHIsKEY-DRINKING PROHIBITIoNIsTS.
"You do not think, then, that the re-
publicans are comparatively more prohi-
bitionist than the democrats?" sf
"Not necessarily; in the upper counties,
Warren, Hunterdon, and so on, where
those old hard sided descendantso Of Scotch
Church and then go home and drink
Scotch and Irish whiskey, it fires them
with enthusiasm to shout for prohibition
and vote the Democratic ticket. In other
places, notably the big Cities the republi-
cans are more apt to be for prohibition
than the democrats"
ssAre you going back into the Republi-
can camp General, or will you still re-
main prohibitionist?"
81 have always been republican. !
marched in the Republican column in
every campaign from Fremont to Garfield,
and that speaks for my republicanism.
and I shall continue prohibitionist to
the end of my life, voted for every re-
publican President who ever ran except
Blaine and Harrison, and / shall always
be republican, but the question of pro-
0lulbiOA 10 AOo a A0cstlOu, VI pOllelCSt ftuy
more than the suppression of any other
great evil is question OF politics. If we
can get what we want from any source
shall welcome it, you may be sure"
sYou will bend your energies, then, to
reenacting the local option law of last
year ~
EITHER that law or one similar to it, /
shall do my best to see that men are elect
ed to the Assembly who will allow the
people to say at the ballot boxes in each
county whether or not the dram shops
shall be closedp &s3k& g&F
Then the General took off his glasses
and put them in his pocket took up his
hat and nut it on his head; took up letter
and put it in the letter box, and said
good bye.
Y. NJ. G. A. Convention.
The third annual convention Of the Y
NJ. G. "A. of the first district, including
Hudson, Bergen and Passaic counties
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