The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1901-03-18
LIS. pIGGs, LECTURE.
Discusses Mrs. Nation Before 8 KAN
sas City Audience.

sas City Audience.
Mrs. Annie T.. Diggs addressed a large
audience in the First Baptist church,
Kansas City, Sunday afternoon Mrs
Digs was given cordial greeting by the
W. c. I. O, whose guest she was Her
lecture was on "Clinching Mrs Nations
Work" Every. Kansas Cityan wants 70
know all about Mrs Nation II To-
pekan looms up they want to have the
joint smasher dissected piecemeal- So
Mrs. Diggs had a very interesting SUD
ject and a most interested audience, ana
it was little wonder the chairman OF the
meeting said In introducing Mrs Digs
that the members Of the organization
sought religion through temperance lie
was not aware of the deep interest that
attached to the personalities engaged IN
the work.
mark" she said THE church IS the
place for all good things and tor all good
references. A man should not be afraid
to say anything in the church.
Mrs. Digs prepared her audience lot
what was to come by saying that IN ref-
erence to the movement Of Mrs Nation
she believed in a thought tim sphere, "A
''cOntagiOn of mentality which sweeps
over the country as do physical epidern-
les. and controls our thoughts as do the
physical sicknesses our. bodies We are
experiencing this sort of an epidemic IN
Kansas now.
III. who was born an optimist. have for
the past two years been downcaSt over
the nOn-enf0rcement of our prohibition
law I had sometimes been given over
to the thought that reSubmlSSlon We're
the better way out Of the violations OF
the -prohibitOry law But just IN the
darkest moment there appeared on the
horizon the greatest Of all things ! Lelt
something like a change come over me,
but did not look for woman with
hatchet.
when first heard of Mrs Nation I
hot Of he
who had been disturbed by the LIQUOR
evil and had been bold enough to take
the matter into her own life ana rlsnt
her wrongs with the Ratchet thougnt
it no unusual occurrence But 1 mo
am mistaken. That first blow delivered
by Mrs. Nations Ratchet at Wichita has
beer. heard around the world. The faTne
Of this remarkable woman has spread
throughol1t Christendosn, and L know by
the study Of history that a new epoch
has been opened by Mrs Nations
batchet-
enforc ement of the prohibition law in
Kansas. we have gained the upper hand
in a way that has known no equal since
the prohibition law was first enacted IN
IN topeka we had taken up drastic
measures with our temperance union
We had raised money to get evidence
against the saloons and close them VIZ,
and we drafted laws giving the county
attorney power to enter any saloon and
destroy it and its contents Thls meas
ure passed the legislature with vim,
thanks to Mrs. Nation and the wonderful
condition of thought which 1 think due,
as 4 said before, to a mental contaglon
Critics have wrought no good out q Lhe
books OF the Rev Mr.. Sheldon, OF To-
peka but despite this his one little pro
dtlction has worked q. wonderful good.
don't know If the conditions were r1pe
as they were in the case of Mrs Nation
I don't care, but It is true that the good
I had not met Mrs. Nation. 50 I in
vited her to my house Some nao salo
she was insane, and wanted 70 Iind out
for myself believe her TO De the most
sane person I have ever met she IS
without doubt one of the most trutn1ul
individuals ! have ever met tApplause.l
she Is original as to her language and is
truthful and fearless. The foundation or
the universe is truth and love- carrie
Nation is a part Of that foundation she
belongs to the prehistoric age as 10 hef
ufterances some of which are most
chndlike. but all Of which are prompted
by the most righteous thoughts we
don't say what we Ihink ana we 1on
utter our thoughts as we think
them, because II we did we would say
too many unpleasant things But / am
not here to say. we do wrong IN not do
ing so. Mrs Nation says what she
thinks. and some Of her remarks are
homely. She is like child in that re-
spect
of a cigarette and she says So A child
win saw. I don't like your face Mrs.
Nation says I don't like your actions
Hers is the phraseology Of the child
When she thinks anything is like hell
she will say 50. am not here to crit
icise her for that
How small it would be for me to
say. don't approve of your course be-
cause of that We should not presume
that we have her conscience or life in
our keeping If a cyclone comes along
and carries away a church spire we
would say, Let US approve of the glory
of Cod We would not criticise the
At this sally there was applause and
saThe barb wire trust and the sugar
trust closed small factories in Lawrence
and Topeka said Mrs Digs, the cap
ftal to build which had been called to
Kansas under the prohibition law Ohio
are cold. Yet they have high license
Kansas is better of for the prohibition
law from a moral standpoint, and we are
better off than If we had the saloon and
the rob5er and the thief
Let me give you a conundrum- II
they break every law under the license
what would they do under prohibitions.
1T makes me feel insulted to see an
American flag above a saloon door, and
/ presume some men have them behind
their bars, If were a man I believe
would get a Ratchet, don't know. I
don't see how you can stand it. You
don't have to. You Americans are stub
do. Join forces now with the right,
while the great wave Is sweeping over
the country"
ROCKEFELLER'S INTERESTS