The Oskaloosa herald., 1900-11-01
NUGENT MEETING.
A Large Audience Hears a Vim
dictive Speech

The largest democratic meeting of
the campaign was held in the Ma
sonic opera house on Monday even
ing and was addressed by Rev. Nu-
gent, a Catholic priest from Des
Moines. An audience that filed
nearly all the seats in the house
heard one of the most vindictive
speeches ever delivered in Oska-
loosa. If the speaker had been a
third rate professional politician, it
might have been considered good,
but coming from a man of Rev. NJ
gents standing, it was a caustic sur
prise that operated as a boomerang.
A minister of the gospels sometimes
supposed to have a little charity and
meet his adversary on open grounds.
But in Mr.. Nugent's speech there
was not a spark of this commend
able character istic. His talk was
made up of ''liar," "hypocrite,"
''cutthroat," "robber," "outlaw,"
''buccaneer," .'thief,p "~perjurer,"
"devil," "despoiler," renegade"
and every other inveetive that the
speakers mastery tongue could
draw from his big vocabulary.
After oharacterizing President Nc
Kinley as a t'bloodsucker," and
comparing him to Judas Iscariot and
Satan, he said:
81 turn from this sitting and fetid
atmosphere of treason and hypocrisy
to breathe a purer air in the councils
of the James and Younger brothers.
These men were criminals of the
deepest dye, but they were no hypo-
critics. They carried with them no
chaplain to invoke the blessing of
heaven before robbing a bank Or
holding up a train"
Drifting into unitarian and the
Philippines, his favorite theme, he
laid all the blame of the war upon
the treachery of the American sol
diers. He said that after the cap
ture of Manila, the American and
Filipino soldiers were drawn up on
two sides of a line, ros which
neither was allowed to go. The
Americans who crossed we're arrest
ed by the Filipinos, treated kindly
and returned to their commands,
but as soon as a Filipino set his foot
across the line be was shot like a
dog and his body mutilated. What
a beautiful tribute to the brave boys
who are Drawing death in defense of
their country and their flag.
Then getting down to the silly
nonsense, unworthy even a ward
politician, he said every man should
vote for Bryan
because it is the first time since
the foundation of the republic that
the American voter had been called
upon to choose bptween a republic
and an empire. In the past the is
sues were on the management of
public affairs according to the prin-
cipIes of our republican form of gov-
eminent. Now, for the first time in
our history, the doctrine of imperial
ism is the paramount issue"
Not content with his long fusilade
of epithets and misrepresentation,
as he drew to a close he took an
other slap at the man who was elect
ed to the presidency by a majority
of more than 1000, 900 votes of his
fellow men, descending to the level
Of the demagogue, making light of
of the scriptures, he said:
mckinley is old, wealthy and
vaeillating. He is the creature of
the trust. He is the first born of the
money power. If he should dare to
oppose their schemes of robbery and
rapine, the trust would say TO him,
Mr. Mckinley, we made you what
you are. We took you out of the
hands of a receiver, out of the town
of Canton and out of the house of
bondage. If you dare to touch our
money traps, we will teach you to
remember thy Creator in the days of
thy youth, before the days come
when you shall say, He pleases me
not.ip
The speech throughout was one
intended to arouse the indignation
of every thoughtful man. 1t was one
also that we wish every republican
In Mahaska county could have heard.
If they had there would have been
no question about every republican