Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1899-09-14

the virtue of Des Moines girls, asst is
| stated in the resolution, but despite
). this opposition the work of securing the
posthasbeen prosecuted. Congressman
Hull says it can be got for Des Moines
if pushed, and the committee selected
at the conference on the subject are
working to the desired end hopefully.
i The United Christian party, which
was organized in Des Moinesf
la few weeks ago and started
out bravely by nominating a
full state ticket for the campaign this
/ fall, has come to grief thus early in it's
career. This organization has had mis-
fortunes before in its short history, but
it bids fair now to be shut off the
ticket entirely The state central COM
mittee of the party claims to have Just
awaked to this condition of affairs,
and is now starting out to remedy the
difficulty.
The present trouble of the United
Christian party is all because Of the re-
i fusal of j. NJ. Helmick, of Davenport,
| to run on the ticket as candidate fer
judge of the supreme court, Mr.. Hell
mick announced his declination shortly
after being nominated, but it was not
known by the party leaders at that
time that his resignation would affect
the rest of the ticket. A letter receiv-
ed here, recently by w. c. Haines,
from c.. q. Lindley, of Hedrick, chair
man of the central committee, says
/ that Auditor Merriam has informed the
committee that new petitions for a
| place on the ticket will have TO be cir
| culated. The committee did not take
| the pains to discover whether their
nominees would serve or not, at the
time, but Immediately began the circd-
lation OF petitions for a place ON the
state ticket. The law provides that
| new party must have petition signed
bv at least 500 sworn voters, asking for
the representation on the ticket, before
the auditor can allot 1t place. These
names were secured with some diff.
4 Guilty. Then it was discovered that
Chairman Lindley says that entirely
new petitions must be circulated. The
| Des Moines branch OF the party saws
the names cannot be secured again in
time. The law at present provides that
! the petition must be filed at least tfir-
| ty days before the election, that she
ballots may be properly prepared. Fly.
hundred voters are not many for :.
state party, but the United Christian
party is new, and hasn't more than
1000 voters probably in the state The
chances are, if the claim OF Chairman
1 LindleY is true, that new petitions
must be circulated, that the state
ticket will be shy one party, which had
been expected to appear on the ticket.
With the candidate of the party for
Igovernor, Editor C. C. Heacccx, of
Brighton, in Jail for libel, and new PEE
titions to circulate, the prospects Of
the United Christian party for the
present campaign are not rosy. 1t will
/ hardly make record which will in
sure it getting a place on the ticket
another year, But the party is, patient
and has for its motto:. Whit would
Jesus do?" and will probably reform
the world and politics in Iowa if the
gubernatorial candidate gets out OF
Jail and the party is given time.
II ***.
Down in johnson county politics axe
getting into asix-ply snarl anSlssslN:yer
a little temperance agitation. Ii. seems
a little thing on the face D: the s;tua-
ton, but the interested politicians, and
! Especially the probable candidates Tor
the legislature are reported to be get
ting into rather unpleasant frame of
mind because of the complexities that
confront them. The State Anti-Salooa
League. with Secretary H. u. Abrams
as the pilot, is reported to be theicause
of the commotion. The fact is that the
temperance people are demanding a
three-mile liquor law for the State
II mi f$ry u, =
4 Agricultural college at Ames. This
and perhaps nobody has denied that
such proposition is good one, but
the fellows who are engineering Tie
politics of johnson county don't look
at it just that way. The point is that
4 il tli. law is passed, it would drive
all the saloons out OF Iowa, City. There
are twenty-one of them, und they are
guaranteed to make things lively for
the candidate that supports the law or
i pledges himself to it in advance. The
Il temperance people, however, have
served notice that they propose to ex-
act pledge from any and all can
u didates, that if elected to the legislature
they will vote for three-mile law for
the State university. State Secretary
4 of the League, Abrams, said, Friday:
1--WE shall certainly Introduce such a
bill in the legislature next winter and
believe that it will receive enough sup
port to pass it. Ames has such law
and we, see no reason why the State
university should not" The saloon in
terests will, of course, do their best to
prevent any man from being elected 10
the legislature who will support such a
bill. It is an interesting fact which
has not. been widely known that,
4 George Ball, who is the leading eandi-
date for election to the senate from
johnson county, is a prominent me M
Der OF the Methodist church. 1t is also
reported that Mr.. Ball is candidate
4 for election at the coming church CON
ference. The rumor goes that the
church membership is pressing the
three-mile question upon Mr.. Ball.
rather assiduously, and that it is to be-
come the real issue in the nomination
of the candidate. johnson county Is
a radical democratic county, and under
ordinary circumstances Mr.. Ball would
have an easy thingIin winning the cleo
ton. The temperance question may
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