St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1893-02-20
HIS FRIENDS IN ARMS,
Proponents Of the Admins
tration Now Demanding
a Reform.
Tonight's Mass Meeting Called
to Test Public Senti-
ment.
The Truly Good Want the
Saloons Closed Nights
and Sundays,
And Wonder What Went With
the Ante Election
Pledges.

Enforce the Law" is the heading in
large type of handful with which the
city has been literally sprinkled within
the past few days. The bill announces
mass meeting at Market hall tonight
"to consider the enforcement of the
license laws regulating the sale of in
toxicating liquors."
And thereby hangs tale.
For the past two Sundays every
church in the city, with few eXcep-
tons, has been the forum for the circu-
lation and signing of a petition addressed
to Mayor Wright. asking the enforce
ment of the law requiring the Sunday
closing of the saloons. On week days,
in the interim, these petitions have
been circulated from house to house, and
the signatures now number up into the
thousands. The petitions and tonight's
meeting are the Outgrowth of series
of meetings of which Mr.. Hammond,
Col. j. Ham Davidson and other star
reformers are the guiding spirits.
W WCiO al llltllOS VI MAY VI
Wright" said Mr.. Hammond to the
GLOBE, ''and all worked for his cleo
ton. but we feel he has not done what
he promised. We are now organizing
| a movement to secure the Sunday clos
ing and see If Mayor Wright, now that
| he has secured reform in some of the
things of greater magnitude, would not
pvt Unnn fO nnfnrnp-
ment of the liquor laws"
"What do you mean, Mr.. Hammond,
| when you speak of the reforms Mayor
Wright has already Accomplished"
| asked the reporter
| "Well, mean that he has, er-well,
| he has--to tell the truth. don't know
that he has really done anything, but,
! perhaps, he means well, and will do
! right if lie sees that public sentiment is
behind this movement. We have been
! gradually working up this meeting for
Monday night, and there will be some
pretty plain talk to tho mayor at that
| time. We have got Col. Davidson to
! talk, and he will probably say that the
| mayor was elected on his pledges to en-
| force the liquor laws, and so far he has
| failed to keep his pledges. tits true he has
! ordered the saloons closed at midnight,
| but he has really no authority to do so,
| as the lawsays IL o'clock, and his order
| is merely emporizing with evil. How
ever, we teeI that the administration
has been carrying water on both shout
I derS on this question, and we are de-
| termined to secure ali expression from
| Mayor Wright as to his policy for the
! future. AS matters stand now, he could
not get half of the church vote that
| elected him asst spring"
From the statements OF Mr.. hammond
! and others it appears that the cnurcn
people have held several meetings and
drawn I'D the petition referred to. The
language, and, after citing that several
reforms have already been secured,
goes OH to request that Sunday closing
be part of the policy>Of the admins
trati0n for the future. There was a
warm discussion over the wording OF
the petition where it refers to the re-
forms accomplished, and it seems there
was question raised as to what these
reforms were. Nobody seemed very
certain, but the form of the petition
was allowed to stand as concession to
the friends of Mayor Wright who de-
clared themselves still his friends,
though tnGy dullltlCu liz li"u ~ llCh
short of their fond expectations. One
of these latter expressed it this way:
Il want the mayor to feel that in this
matter the eountenance we turn to him
is more in sorrow than in anger"
Another prime mover in the matter
said yesterday:
Il nope the meeting at Market hall
will not take the form of a discussion,
for we might get worsted in the argu-
ment. We are working for principle. |
but must admit that L never saw any |
drunkenness or disorder i'll st. Paul on
Sunday, notwithstanding the saloons !
are wide open. | do not know what
will be the outcome of this move. for l |
believe the administration is pledge1 to
the other side just as it is to ours"
There will probably be an interesting |
time at the meeting tonight. The speak |
ers announced are Archbishop ireland. |
Hon. Ignatius Donnelly. Col. j. Ham
Davidson, Rev. S. G. Smith and others.
All of these but Donnelly were warm |
proponents of the administration, and
there. is considerable curiosity TO hear
what course they will take.