The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1901-05-05
LITTLE CHILD'S VIEW
Of Mrs. Carrie Nation Before
Medicine Lodge School.
ENTIRELY NEW VIEW
Of the SmaSher and Her
History.

The Medicine Lodge Crescent says:
Once a month in the public schools Of
this city two pupils are selected to write
sketch or essay on some subject as
singned them by their teacher. On last
Friday Rachael Nixon was chosen. and
Mrs. Nation" was the subject assigned
her. This is the way she handled it:
q think that Mrs. Nation was born in
Kentucky at some remote period before
the remembrance of man. She says she
was gay and giddy, as girl. wearing
the most stylish and fashionable clothes.
She went to parties, danced and wasn't
very fond OF going to church. She kept
this up for a good many years, in fact,
until she got so old nobody cared to
dance with her. It was then she con-
cluded to reform. And she made such
shining success reforming herself that
she decided to reform the whole world.
So she began on her first husband, who
was a moderate drinker when she mar
ried him, and so vigorously did she con-
duct his reformation that he became so
hard drinker that he sunk into drum
kards grave, which, instead Of soaring
her out of business, strange to say, caus-
ed her to redouble her energy. After see
ing her first husband comfortably buried
she looked about for other worlds to
conquer. But being without money,
good looks or engaging manners, she de-
cided to obtain money by marrying Mr..
Nation. She turned her ugly looks to
account by dressing with severe plain
ness and abhoring all attempts of beau
tifying her clothing and at this time Gull
tivated the perpetual smile that the
newspapers have spoken about so much
this winter.
Armed with these weapons she came
to Kansas to assist in enforcing the pro-
hibitory amendment which was aldeady
working to good effect in nearly all of
the smaller towns and many of the larg-
er ones throughout the state. In the
year 1883 she came to Medicine Lodge
with Mr.. Nation as pastor Of the Chris
tan church where she tried TO be the
preacher, superintendent and the whole
Sunday school and even to rule the pri-
vate lives of the members. OF course,
the people wouldn't stand that and the
result was a general fuss in the church
in which she was vanquished and the
whole church withdrew from her. Then
she plunged into the other denomina-
lions. She stirred up the Methodists and
Baptists and even went so far as to say
that the Lord told her to go to the
Episcopal church. and all the time keep
ing up a vigorous war with the mayor
and council on the liquor question, al
though there was never an open saloon
in Medicine Lodge since long before she
came here, and the sentiment Of the
town has always been in favor of tenn
perance. She made many enemies for
that cause by her extreme methods.
''She once headed a company Of wo-
men who raided drug store here where
they destroyed all the liquor but did not
demolish any of the drugs or fixtures.
Then she tried her hand at street meet
ings where she soundly berated the citi-
zens who did not come up to her stand
ard, her language being such as any boy
would be punished for saying. We had
always treated her politely and kindly,
but when she made her raids on other
towns they even went so far as to call
her Crazy Carrie, and made ugly pic
lures Of her Even the good temperance
people quarreIed with her and refused to
follow her, and all the mean things she
ever did and lots she never did do were
put into the newspapers.
IF she could get up an extra good
lecture and go around and deliver it, she
has been so well advertised that she
could do lots OF good But can she?''