Backbone. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn. ;) 1897-1906, 1903-08-01
BACKBONE,

BONE,
attached to many of them and their
signs, "Club room,' are displayed in
the saloons. Many of the saloons
have nickel-in-the-slot views, including
in some instances Sapho pictures,
which are so labeled. A special police
force patrols the saloon section and
policemen drink at the bars. 1t goes
without saying that the path between
the saloon section and that devoted to
prostitution is we'll beaten. Of course
this hell is made possible by it's near
ness to the Prohibition city of Grand
Forks Some are such superficial
thinkers as to quote this fact as a
proof of the failure of prohibition,
whereas it proves it's success. Not it's
perfect success however. That will
not be achieved until every prohibition
state is surrounded by other prohibit
ton states. My visit to these cities
intensified my shame for the license
system of Minnesota which, not con-
tent with damning her own citizens,
puts barriers before our sister COM
monwealth which is struggling toward
a higher civilization. l dedicated my
self anew to efforts for the redemption
of loved Minnesota.
l held open-air meetings at Argyle,
Fisher and Climax, in the very midst
of the saloons in each instance. l was
told that at Climax all four saloon
keepers and an equal number of bar
tenders were in my audience, but Of
course in front of their places of bust
ness CD. A burly saloonkeeper add
ed much interest to the meeting by in
terjecting paralyzing CD questions
and denunciations of Prohibitionists
generally. I had hardly begun when
he inquired loudly why I denounced
saloonkeepers. Why did I not "go
for" Congress and the Legislature
which authorized them to do business?
assured him that I would endeav0r
to satisfy him on that point before
got through. I think I did. Toward
the close, after another of his out
bursts, he invited the crowd near him
to take something" but only one per-
son followed him into his saloon. With
the aid of the portly brother our cause
was distinctly strengthened.
After booking" Mr. Pinkham and
other speakers for years at the points
between Moorhead and Crookston OIL
the Red, I was especially glad to visit
them for the first time. The township
of which Halstad, village of perhaps
700 people, forms part, was car
ried for Woolley in 1900. Our work
ers there engage the best talent OBJ
tainable and do all their party work
in ship-shape. They deserve to grow.
spent the last Sunday of the trip at
Hitterdal, speaking twice at an out
door gathering, at another grove con-
secrated to our cause by the Messrs.
Hitterdahl, father and son. The two
tributary townships have given us only
four or five votes heretofore, but there
is now a strong Prohibition Alliance,
containing a dozen or more active
members who are voters and boasting
a glee club of about a dozen voices
and a brass band of fifteen perform
ers. This shows what work will do
and the end is not yet. Our workers
agreed in crediting most of these
achievements to the younger Hitter
dahl, a young man of twenty years.
This shows another thing.
In order to give me more time in
the field, which was necessary to
Backbone's interests, Secretary Cald-
erwood has done the larger share of
the editorial work during the last three
months. 1t is hardly necessary to say
that he has done his work we'll, for
that's the way he does everything he
touches. During this time his speech,
Greed and Deed" before the Mime
apolis Methodist ministers meeting,
was published. He was too modest
to use it in Backbone, but now that I
hovo tho oooir T toLo r1oo c,,r6