Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1890-05-10
EARLY IN THE FIELD.
General John Bidweil Expounds the Pro
hibi,ion Doctrines.

General John Bldweu Expounds the Pro-
hibi,ion Doctrines.
Even though they may be accused of
rushing the season. the Prohibiionists of
Sacramento do not propose to lose the COM
ing election by reason of not starting the
ball early. They opened the campaign"
in this city last evening by holding meet
ing at Pythian Hall, which was attended
oy about one hundred and twenty five men
md some fifty ladies, the hall being COM
ortably filed. The meeting was presided
over by DR.. F. M. Clayton, and between
the addresses the audience was treated to
excellent vocal music.
The first speaker was General Bidwell
OF Butte who few years ago ran as an
independent candidate for Governor. The
General is now the candidate of the Pro-
hibition party for the same office. In the
course of his remarks last evening he said
the Republicans and Democrats comprised
the rum power and the monopoly power
of the country. Nothing good for the peo-
pie could be expected from them, for to
cut away from the rum sellers and monop-
olists would be to commit standardization
They could no more do it than the eagle
could fly without wings.
The Prohibitionists, he said, demanded
| that the saloons shall be closed on election
/ days, because they were the cause of crime.
| And II the saloons were a curse on election
day, "are they not, he said, ION any day :?
Everybody knows 1.-THE Republicans
know it and the Democrats know it," The
Prohibitionists have given good people the
| opportunity to throw off the oppressive
| yoke, and the speaker wanted to know if
| they intended to avail themselves of it.
| The General said he didn't want the
office of Governor. and only consented to
run for the good of the party-he could
\ not find it in his heart to refuse.
| He then went on and told again the story
SO often told before, of how he once
thought he would make pure wine for the
communion table; of how men came to his
| wine-celler and got drunk on it, and of
how he gave his best wine away to the
manager of hospital, had the poorer
made into vinegar, and then pulled up his
| vines.
| Next the General explained the origin of
his antipathy to agricultural hoss-trots and
State Fairs, and how he had Withdrawn
his patronage from them several years ago.
He did not, however, venture to explain
how 1t was that the State Fairs had man.
aged to continue and grow in importance
| annually.
! After commencing the Australian ballot
system and declaring himself in favor of
woman suffrage, the General closed by re.
lating how he had (probably) escaped be-
ing drugged and murdered in London BY
refusing to go to a saloon with a strange
man and drink with him. The point he
sought to make was that it was his temper
ance principles that saved him; but other
travellers attribute their safety from such
dangers to the exercise of a little judgment
and common sense.
The General was warmly applauded
| throughout his remarks.
| He was followed by Colonel Samuel
Dickey, Chairman of the National Prohibi.
ton Committee. Colonel Dickey is more
fluent speaker than General Bidwell, and
the Colonel being much younger, has a
great deal more of that composition known
to the modern tongue as ginger" He isa
very entertaining speaker, and held his
audience deeply interested for upward of
an hour while he explained why it was
that the liquor traffic did not create
wealth, and how it could flourish only by
fostering and promoting vice. His vigor-
Gus style and eloquence elected frequent
outbursts of applause.
| The meeting closed with some remarks
| by Professor Crowhurst.