The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1901-03-11
EARLY SALOON WRECKBRS
A Kansas Crusade Inaugurated by
Miss Spencer In 1856.
In the Army of IconOcinsts. Carrie
Nation Tail Ender-Subseuuent
Raids on the Liquor Traffic - The
ProHess Exhibited by One Woman.

TOPEKA, Kan, March q.-Since Mrs.
Carrie Nation and her hatchet made their
record in the way of demolishing saloons
old timers have been coming forward with
( "reminiscences which show that she is by
no means the first person to engage in
this particular method of warfare against
the liquor traffic. Mrs. Sheriff., who
sprang into brief notoriety some time ago
on the strength of a small raid made in
Harper County. and who asserted her
right to the honor Of being the pioneer
in the movement instead of Mrs. Nation,
also took up the work about forty years
too late to make her boast good.
As well as can be ascertained the first
I raid of this nature took place in Law
renee in the winter of 1S56-1S57. This was
| in Territorial days. Then there were no
restrictions on liquor selling, and every
! thing was wide open. Lawrence had 500.
or perhaps LOCO, inhabitants. and there
were a disproportionate number of sa-
/ looms.
After the matter had been carefully dis
cussed at meetings the women made up
1 their minds to clean the places out, and
/ one day quite a number Of them, attend
/ ed by a few men who went along to see
/ that no harm befell them, marched out
/ from one resort to another, and at each
/ place rolled out barrels. demijohns, and
vessels of all kinds containing liquor and
/ poured the contents into the cutters.
A Miss Spencer, schoolteacher, was
one of the leaders. At one place, where
a saloon was being run in a log cabin,
the proprietor put up an ugly front. and
it looked for few minutes as though
there might be trouble. But in the face
of it Miss Spencer, who was an athletic
girl pushed a chair up to the bar, mount
ed it, from there jumped over to the bar
keepers side, seized a keg of liquor-all
there was in the place-and threw it over
to her fellow workers, who Immediately
demolished it.
The men who accompanied the destroy
ers took no part in the work, but stood
by to be in readiness in case violence was
encountered by the women.
Not more than eighteen months later
came the raid on the ''Pro-Slavery Dog
gerry at Trading Post, which had
bloody ending. Trading Post was a small
place in Linn County about four miles
from the Missouri line. In the early days
there was saloon there which was the
resort of the pro-slavery fellows from
Missouri. 1t was always called the Pro
Slavery Doggery."
In 1856 General Clark drove out the
Free State element with the statement
that there was not room in the county for
more than one party. But in April, 1858,
James Montgomerv, local Jayhawker
chief, appeared at Trading Post with
about twenty, followers and called for a
clean house. They raided the saloon,
and taking three barrels of whisky out
in front of the place, the heads were
knocked in and the contents thrown out,
while Montgomery, with revolver in
each hand, stood by to see that not
drop of it was recovered.
Among the pro-slavery men who were
present YVES Charles Hamilton. A month
later Hamilton with number of com
panions returned TO Trading Post to
even up old scores. He captured eleven
Free State men, who were taken into
ravine, lined up and shot.
Perhaps one of the most complete single
handed jobs of saloon wrecking ever done
was performed by woman at Abilene,
little more than twenty years ago. She |
became incensed because the proprietor
of a saloon in that city persisted in selling |
whisky to her husband, after he had been
asked repeatedly to desist.
One day, without warning, she appeared |
in the saloon armed with a stout club. |
She unlimbered and went into action with |
out moments delay. Before the aston |
ished proprietor or his assistant was able |
to grasp the situation the work Of destruc- |
ton was well under way, and by the time |
they had recovered their wits they made !
no effort to stop her simply because there |
was nothing left in sight worth saving. |
Glasses, bottles, mirrors, all articles !
smashable, We're in ruins. An eye witness |
declares that when the woman finished /
her work there was nothing left in |
n
stove and the metal spittoOns.
Nothing was ever done in regard to the !
matter. The woman had had her re
yenge. and the saloon man seemed TO be
satisfied to regard 1t as closed incident.
Three years ago the women Of Milton
vale, a small town in Cloud County, or
ganized wrecking crew and started out
accompanied by some men, to close joint
operated by a man named Hammerli. The
latter barred his door, and, when an at
tempt was made TO force 1t, fired through
the door with a shotgun, injuring one per
son in the head and putting out an eye
OF another. Hammerli was tried and con-
victed on the ground that while he had
right to protect and defend his property,
ii was joint where |
liquor was Illegally sold, yet he had in this !
instance used greater force than was
necessary or justifiable in the defence Of
his property.
Counsel against Hammerli asked the
court to instruct the jury that Hammerl,
being engaged in an Illegal business and
conducting a puDnc nuisance, the women |
were entirely within their rights in at |
TO abate it in person Judge
Sturges took the contrary view Of this
In his instructions he said:
I'm this case, the fact, if it is a fact,
that the defendant was joint keeper and
HIS habitatiOn a joint, if 1t was, and his
property therein liquor and fixtures used
in dispoSing Of the same, If such is the
case, can make no difference. The mere
fact that some are engaged in unlawful
business does not give others any lawful
right TO destroy the property or to injure
the person of those so engaged without
of law
The Supreme Court sustained the de
cision of the lower court. but I'm its de-
cisiOn il ignored altogether the question
as to the right of private citizens to close
up the joints public nuisances.
Another thing called to mind by the
Nation raids is the hot time Kansas had
on the last night before the prohibtory
law went into effect. May l is Prohibition
of the day when the prohibitory law went
into effect in 1881 If May l. 1881. was the
original Prohibition Day, then the even
ing of April 20, 1881. has an equal right -
be called Drunkards' Night in Kansas
1t was the last night for the open sa-
looms In Kansas, All the drinkers deter
mined to swallow all the stun they could
before midnight, the closing hour. and
many men who were not much at drink
inc took part in the gayety just on ac-
count OF the Importance of the occasion. !
April 30 fell on "A Saturday. For many
men that was pay day, and that, of
course, made the gait of the night all the
swifter. There was probably more liquor
punished in Kansas between the hours of |
p. m. and midnight than there ever had
been in the State i'll any one week before. |
he largest city in the State and OF
course, had the biggest time The ma jor-
ty of men who came downtown that
night carried jugs; and on the home trip
~