Virginia citizen. (Irvington, Va.) 1891-1921, 1903-05-22
BILDAD AKERS GOES TO
RALEIGH.

Mr.. EDIToR:-Did you ever ge
real greens and hog-jole hungry
That is, did you ever feel that unles,
you could get bait of turnip greens
life would be failure? That was
me at the hotel in Raleigh when |
wrote my letter to the Aduocate.
thought it was waiting 80 long fol-
my vittels in the morning, but
found out that all lacked was a
good mess of greens out of the branch
patch at home and cooked only as
Lizzy knows how to cook 'em. What
do | care for consommy, tater puree,
rair steak, turkey and such like? In
the words of the immortal Patrick
Henry / say, "Give me greens or
give me nothing-especially in the
spring-time."
You know | went to Raleigh in
the interest of temperance. thought
was strong on the subject. But
when l heard so many hefty tenn
peranoe men (they said they was)
talking about going too fast and
preaching conservatism, was
knocked off my pins and l almost
thought our people was fools for
wanting so much all at once. But
when | got to thinking at night
about the meanness carried on around
old Ebenezer on account of liker and
saw PLAIN afore my eyes twenty. seven
graves in the graveyard dug by mean
llker, l got up and wrote in my
Pierces Memyrandon my pledge that
| would always hereafter stand up
for temperance, even before the
Moguils of the Legislature. But
somehow or other the next day when
the temperance Pollytishuns got hold
of me had feeling that was weak
ening like, and begun to think again
that somehow we was fools for trying
to get so much all at ouce in the
lntrust of temperance. Young man,
II you want to cultivate moral con-
viotions IN a Legislature atmosphere,
or, as my brother, Ben, would say,
environgment, You have got to do a
sight of fertilizing aud wedding.
They'll make you think black is
white before you can pull that trig-
ger Ben writ about.
The day after | got home, me and
Squire Pone was talking about the
Watts Bill. Like you, Mr.. Editor,
| didn't like it. Squire Pone said he
did. Said it would help the party.
said that in the temperance matter
we were not in the party business
and that hereafter me and my bows
was going to splash mud right in
the middle of the road, party or no
party, when it came to voting for
God and people.
The Squire then said that he was
in Raleigh the day before, and that
he seen man who seen Mr.. Watts
who said that before the Legislature
broke up there would be some fine
temperance acts passed, and that
they didn't want to load it down
with amendments.
esquire Pone," I said, "my con-
science do hurt me on this occasion.
| have been abusin that Legislature
for giving ne flea-bitten, crap-eared
cat for fat possum. But if what
you say is true, repent in flax cloth
and ashes. And, Squire, am going
to Raleigh to- morrow to see the thing
done and joobilate."
So here | am in Raleigh again. II
am staying with my cousin this time.
| am sitting in flax cloth and
ashes. But it is not on account of
repentance. 1t is something else.
III tell you.
The first day came back to
Raleigh l took the front seat up in
the loft of the Capitol so l could see
every man in the pit below, and /
watched for the fine temperance acts
which had to be passed separately so
that they would not run fernist the
Watts bill and overload it.
l watched for them to erot out the
"anty-jug" law which had been
sDatched off the neck of the Watts
Bill just in time to save the bill-so
q. strong temperance man told me.
But up to this writin they haven't
given the anty-jug law a pass. In fact
| can't hear anything about it. The
anty-jug law is still longing for
pass.
They said the s o'clock law would
get a pass, but it hasn't got one in
both houses yet.
They said that they wouldn't in
corporate any little settlement so
that liker could be manufactured or
sold there. But what did / see? 1
saw this, my dying brethren. saw
'em pass a bill to incorporate little
place where a man by the name of
Williams lives. His family and the
people who help him in manufactur-
ing liker are the only people there.
And yet the bill passed like it was
creased. / couldn't believe my eyes.
l went over to man and said: "Uan
you tell me how them Watts Bill
fellers can incorporate that town
when they knew that it is against the
principles of their bill and bodaceous-
ly ridiculous? The man hitched a
little closer to me and said, says he:
"Yon see Colonel Williams is a great
man. "He is the maker of .Old
Nick whiskey. His grandfather fit
in the Revolution. He is member
OF the Executive Committee Of the
great Democratic party. He came
down to Raleigh in the beginning
and said that he had nothing agin
the Watts bill provided he could be
protected. He went off mighty we'll
pleased and didn't come back until
yesterday. In passing the bill to in
corporate his big still they are Just
carrying out a promise and protect
ing him, We've got to protect our
men, temperance or no temperance.
What have you got to say agin it?"
had nothing to saw To him T