The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1904-11-25
To the Citizens of VIRGINIA.

To the Citizens of Virginia.
The Hon. Marcus L. Fay, at his
meeting called and advertised by
himself and held at the Opera
House in this city last Sunday, in
his extraordinary address mingled
with pathos and tears, took partic-
ular pains to call the attention of
the people to the fact that P. A.
Coffey has circulated and presented
to his honor petition signed by
the business men of Virginia.. re-
questing the mayor to changer the
policy that he now advocates in
relation to the saloons of Virginia;
and the Honorable Mayor, in the
fulness of his voice, proclaimed to
the people that he had denied,
turned down, the business mems
petition. The great autocrat of all
the Russias could not have thun-
dered his ukase with more of the
great II am" annexed to his decree
than did the Honorable Mayor
when he announced. in stentorian
tones that "the petition is denied"
But the unkindest thing the
mayor did was to get personal in
his TRADE against the saloon-keep.
ers of Virginia. The mayors ad-
dress was full of exaggerations.
He said many foolish things. He
said that last summer the night be-
fore he issued the order to close the
saloons at eleven o'clock at night
he went from saloon to saloon in
the city and counted 40 lumber
jacks sleeping on the saloon floors.
Now everybody knows, and Mr.. Fay
himself when he reflects will know,
that that statement was unreason-
able. And his statements about
the condition of Virginia being
overrun with postitutes and gamb-
lers at the time he went into office
is largely exaggerated. Every per-
son in Virginia knows that.
There never has been a more or
derby, quiet city in the state than
Virginia has been ever since it was
organized: All this advertising
and parading to the public of this
state that Virginia is a wicked and
bad place and that the city is the
resort of Thoughts, is wrong, unjust
and is injurious to the city, and the
mayor ought to be the last person
who would sanction such advertis-
ing. We are all getting tired of
seeing every day or so in the news
papers of Duluth and St. Paul some
article with big head lines such as
"Mayor Fay is Cleaning Up Virgin
ia" The meeting that Mayor Fay
called at the Opera House was held
November 20, and yet we read in the
News Tribune report of the meet
ing dated November 10. The people
can surmise whether that report
was all prepared before the meet
ing was held. 1t would be in line
with much of the play to galleries
that Mr.. Fay has been making.
We all give the mayor credit for
good financial management of the
funds of the city but every think
ing, candid person, must certain
ly pronounce his pretended policy of
reform as ridiculous and unreason.
able The rnovor -, lo,,1 W. I'm eo:1
he would make the saloons obey
the law, and he used all the afgu-
| ments of the temperance advocate,
and yet almost in the same voice he
said he closed up the saloons
at Hoo o'clock at night, at time
when they were running wide open,
because the city council refused to
allow more than IS saloons in the
city; and because the city council
was opposed to more saloons he is-
sued his orders closing the said 80
saloons. Was ever such foolish,
inconsistent actions heard of in
mayor before?
The mayor boasts that he COM
PEELED the city council to repeal the
ordinance limiting the number Of
saloons, and yet he claims that he
is reformer. This city can be run
as it was run before NJ. L. Fay be-
came mayor, and persons and prop
erty will be safe. The mayor is in.
juring our city and the general
business of the city is suffering
thereby. A vote of the people of
the city would show that, but the
vote would have to be taken
in fair manner, not at meeting
called by and presided over by the
mayor himself, which is plugged
meeting.
I was in the city long before NJ. L.
FAY was, and I have always worked
for the general welfare of the city,
and there ia No man in the cifv tina I