Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1900-07-17
Groups Of men stood surrounding some

Groups Of men stood surrounding some
speaker who urged lynching as the
only satisfactory punishment for such
a crime. The citizens were eXasperat-
ed and nervous from the great strain
of the last two days.
Malcom Kirk came down town late
that night to get the mail from the
east bound express and walked into the
mob just as cries Of Lynch the fire.
bugw rose from many voices. AS soon
as the crowd saw him it surrounded
him excitedly.
"Mr. KIRK, we've proof that big
Jake set fire to your church"
Malcolm looked over the crowd
thinking so much about the loss of his
church and parsonage as he came down
town as about Dorothy and his future
prospects. But the sight and sound of
that mob of citizens brought his mind
back to the situation not only in the
town Of Conrad, but throughout the en-
tire state. For the time, therefore, he
faced the fact of grave crisis in the
temperance movement.
He had more than one Sunday even
ing held outdoor services at the very
corner where the crowd now gathered.
Dorothy had often helped him at
such services by playing and singing.
Every man in Conrad was familiar
with the tall, homely, awkward figure
that now lowered over almost every
head, and every man in Conrad re-
spected him.
There was an empty dry goods box
| near one of the stores, and Malcolm
Kirk asked some Of the men to drag it
out to the corner of the sidewalk. The
minute he had mounted it the crowd
| became silent.
1t is rare gift to be able to speak to
great crowd Of men out of doors and
| hold them. Kirk possessed that gift.
His voice was a splendid instrument,
and he knew how to use it. 1t is said
of Gladstone that in the days of his
| greatest power as speaker people
| would linger in the corridors Of the
house of commons when he was. talk
| ing simply to enjoy the sound of the
tone of his voice, although they could
not distinguish word that was said.
Something of this same quality made
Kinks voice q fascination for an audi
ence. Whatever it was it could truly
be called great gift of God.
And he used it now in n godlike man.
ner He began by calling attention to
! the fact that the people of the state
were trying to abolish the saloon by
legislative amendment to the coEstitu-
ton. At such time as that, for the
! temperance people to act in lawless
manner toward even the enemies OF
the home and the church would be an
act of folly so great that it might en-.
/ danger the entire movement for prohi.
bition.
81 am perhaps" continued Malcom,
"the most interested person in this
/ whole matter. 1t is my church that
has been burned and my home that has
been destroyed. And yet say to you
men that il you attempt to use violence
toward Big Jake or any other saloon
keeper on the ground of this circum-
stantial evidence and take the law into
your own hands l will defend him
from such violence at the risk of my
own life. Let us act like men in this
matter-like men who see further than
personal vengeance and are determin-
ed that our fight shall be directed moi
against the saloon keeper so much as
against the business he represents
That is what we want to fight for in
behalf of all our homes and churches
and our state and country"
He got down off the box after he had
spoken and appealed in a quiet but
powerful manner to some of the more
i influential men in the crowd not tc
let the men act lawlessly. His speech
and appeal had their effect. A small
i group of men on the edge of the crowd
gathered farther up the street, and aft
er Kirk had gone home they marched
up to big Jake's" saloon, only to find
it closed and the proprietor fed.