The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1897-05-08

{ Il
four men as large as he, escorted Mr..
/ Chiles to the floor of the hall. Chiles
stopped on the steps leading from the
I platform and attempted 10 speak, but
/ the crowd hOwled him down.
/ Chiles.
Sit down; sit down; this amt your
/ day came in chorus from all parts
/ of the hall
Colored and white citizens surround
ed ChiIes and ordered him to keep still
Finally he started back to his seat and
quiet was partially restored, tmmedi-
ately following which Chiles was heard
to shout:
I'm a taxpayer in this town and am
a better citizen than you, Mr.. Trout
man"
ChiIe's sympa thizer's kept up a dis
turbance which caused the chairman TO
say
If the brotherhood does not maintain
order we will send for one of our IA
nous metropolitan policemen and see if
be can do anything towards Quelling
{ disturbance"
Sergeant Owen stood in the crowd but
he was not observed in the act of tell
ing any one TO keep quiet although
members Of the disturbing element in
me corner emitted frequent and pro
! longed Kisses during the reading OF the
resolutions by Mr. Larimer.
After the resolutions were adopted. on
motion of Mr.. Larimer, Mr. Troutman
was authorized to appoint a committee
of fifteen to look after the enforcement
of the law. He has taken the appoint
tuEulS uuuEE amusement out VIII an
nOunce the members OF the committee
within short time
Invoking the divine blessing upon the
meeting and its purpose Rev d D
Boyle pastor of the First Christian
church prayed that the action taken by
the people should be with cool heads
and cool hearts, and that all be done in
righteousness and with the spirit of
truth.
Mr.. Troutman who was elected chair
man, In taking charge of the meeting
Constitutions cannot take the place
OF official honor Statutes cannot sup
ply executive veFtebrae. Ordinances
cannot supply Official vigilance. PrOhi-
bltions and penalties written in books
do not do away with the necessity of
vigilance in the hearts and purposes OF
public officials. Constitutions, statutes
and ordinances are dumb unless made
to speak through yitaIized police pow
er- mean that broad and comprehen-
SlVe power which begins with the gov
ernor and ends with the lowest police
man on your force.
To say that the force that creates
constitutions. statutes and ordinances,
cannot execute them. is atrOciOuS in
theory and HbelOus in fact. Laws have
been enforced. They can be enforced,
and, by the grace of God, they shall be
enforced. loud applauSe)
There has been an aggravating
Iethargy on the part Of the temperance
people The sentiment of the public
with reference TO law GIBBS and flows,
and these difficulties confront public Of
nc1als. Public sentiment is vital to en-
during success. An unbroken line for
seventeen years demons rated that fear
less county attorneys and sheriffs, such
as A. H Vance, Charlie Curtis and r.
B. Welch, were able to enforce the law.
There is a dual responsibility. partly
on the officer and partly on the citizen
The primary responsibility rests with
the public official The people of Kan
sas never went into the highways and
hedges and compelled any man 10 ac-
cept public office Laughter) The Of
heers knew what responsibilities would
confront theln- 1t Is the duty of the
citizens to offer the official every en-
courag cement in the discharge of his du-
~ If the governor of the state should
issue a brief proclamation. tomorrow.
stating that the people passed q law
prohibiting the saloon, and calling upon
every officer TO do his duty, every joint
ist would scamper over the line before
shutdown. The artist who attempts to
make whistle out of a pigs tail I'M
dertakeS nothing more impossible than
the governor who tries TO make a good
police commissioner out of a member of
the Mystic Brotherhood" (Cheers)
There is no force which compels a
man to be candidate for office Men
know what the constitution imposes and
they accept 1t voluntarily. It is the pri-
mary duty of citizens to stand bv the
officers and aid in creating a public
sentiment and compel the enforcement
of the prohibitory law
Ex-senator PETERS speech was wildly
cheered, especially that part of il in
which he urged, unless other means be
found. that force be employed in drfv-
ing the liquor trafhckers our of the city.
He said:
Some years ago I was invited to
make speech at meeting where the
induction of a number of officers of a
benevolent institution took place As
each candidate was called to the plat
form he was put through a course of
questioning, whether he understood his
new duties and was willing to perform
them All he answered affirmativeIy
Those ceremonies left impressions upon
my mind which have strengthened and
winch L now feel are positively indeIi-
Society is a body of men and women
organized for self protection. If a man
strikes another, the man to whom the
blOW IS dealt has the right TO defend
himself So it is with the organized
body We choose officials to do our will
We commission them to go out and exc
cute that will, not to sit down and wait
until their attention is called to viola
lions by kind friends"
You remember the little constable in
Massachusetts who went to arrest a
burly ruGian. The latter looked down
upon the little officer and said: III
shake you out of your boots, you little
rascal The constable replied: Yes.
and remember that when you do you
shake the whole state OF Massachu-
sets
The good people of Kansas deter
mined to Danish the saloons. the de-
stroyer of homes, the debaucher of pol
itics and the cOrrupter of legislation
We adopted the prOhibitOry amendment
and created machinery for the execu-
ton Of the law. but not until we edu-
Gated our officers; not until we sent two
or three men to Jail. was the law ma de
a success. Six years ago a general lax
ity in the enforcement of the law was
observed. Governors seemed to have
forgotten it. Judges overlooked it and
jurors forgot its existence 1t has
since been constantly growing worse.
Only once have the trees dropped their
leaves since an assembly Of people was
held in this very hall for the purpose
for which we are assembled tonight.
From this time on we shall insist that
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