Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1898-03-17
COMING CITY ELECTION.

In little over two weeks the voters
of Great Bend will have an oppor-
tunity to elect four members of the
city council, four members of the city
school board. city clerk, city mar
shall, and street commissioner. The
mayor, four of the present councilmen
and four members of the school board.
| city treasurer, school treasurer, police
| Judge, justices and constables hold
over another year.
Notwithstanding there are but these
few officers to elect this spring, the
contest promises to be an interesting
one. owing to the periodical agitation
of the liquor question.
Peculiar as it may seem. there is a
large element-mostly female voters,
however-who have taken exceptions to
the excellent manner in which the
present city officers have controlled the
liquor business of the city, conhning it
to four places where liquors are sold,
instead of as in former years having a
dozen or more places.
These iadies-and few men--are,
in our judgement, very short sighted
when they contend that return to
| the former practices is better for the
city and its citizens than the present
state of affairs. We give them credit
(most of them at Ieast) for being honest
in their belief; we only critlcise their
lack of judgment. lack of reason or ex-
cuse for their present course.
We say some of them are honest in
their position. Some, however, are
not. There are some men who are at
present agitating the closing of the sa-
looms for purely political purposes.
They have practlced this deception
in former years. when men of their
party had been retired from the Office
of county attorney. These wolves in
sleeps clothing are now clandestinely
urging on the radical prohibition ele.
ment in the hope of accomplishing their
personal ends. Queer that some of
the radicals do not tumble to the fact
that they are thus being used as stool
pigeons.
There are few others in the anti
fine movement who have a personal
grudge againstcertain men now in office
and an itching desire to hold small posi-
| ton. We hope the prohibition con.
vention called for tomorrow, Friday, will
nominate these fellows and let the voters
of the city show them at the polls what
is thought of their petty spites.
! The DEMOCRAT is in favor of nominal.
| ing ticket composed of level headed,
progressive business men, who will con.
tinue the course mapped out by the
present city officials. The Tribune, for
once. has come out in a squaretoed and
| logical position on the same line. The
Beacon has espoused the cause of the
radical prohibitionists, and elects to be
the EXTREMIST of the extremists. Andy
Hoisington, of the Register, is on the
fence-has espoused neither side
doubtless knowing that he will manage
some way to get his liquors, and not
caring whether it is from boot -leggers
or back-alley joints or reasonably or
Derby saloons-so long as he gets his
supply of hot stuff.
| We believe there is no question about
the outcome of the election, as we can
not think the majority of Great Bend
voters want to do away with the reve-
nue. now received by the city. which
revenue by the way goes to paying all
legitimate expenses of the corporation.
We believe it is better to have the
liquor business confined to four places
which are known and under the eye of
the authorities, than to turn it over to
dozens Of irresponsible parties who
would pay nothing into the general fund
and would, by reason of the greater
risks they run, sell viler, cheaper stuff,
and be an unending expense to the tax
payers of the whole county.
4 New Depot Sure.
We now have it from unquestionable