Virginia citizen. (Irvington, Va.) 1891-1921, 1904-01-15

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sympathy in this work. When say
all, mean all honest, law-abiding
citizens. We don't expect or want
the help of others. Our plan is to
give every man an opportunity to
join; we appoint committee to wait
on the0; We tell them the principles
OF our order; we tell them that we
have opponents who are using every
scheme of both brains and money to
defeat US; that it has become a simple
question with a plain answer-we
have either got to defeat those men
or be defeated. We show them the
side we are representing, and the
other side. We say, gentlemen, we
are band of oystermeu and are over
1.2O0 strong in Lancaster and Mid
dlesex counties. You want to buy
oysters. We have oysters to sell.
The other side has, too. You are
privileged to buy our oysters, or refuse
to buy them. We can't make you.
We have the same privilege accord.
ing to law that you have. We can't
make you buy our oysters, neither
can you make us sell to you. We
say that is the plain truth. We have
buyers right here that are with us,
lighting for US. We can sell to them,
but we say this, if you buy from our
opponents, which you have u perfect
right to do, you can't get tour oysters.
We won't threaten you-thst would
be violating the law. But we would
let You alone. We would not con.
spire against you. You would have
the privilege of buying every oyster
you could get, but If You took our
opponents oysters you would put. the
power IN his Lands to aunihilate us,
aud you could not get our oysters,
and we would be only using some.
thing that the law of the land gives
free men to use. You would say
when you refused to take our oysters
that you could get along without as,
and we would see if we could not get
along without you. We will pass
the word 10 our stations through
Lancaster aud Middlesex counties for
our members to LET YOU ALONE
those three words are our motto
and if you want to call that a boy
cott, why do so; but if the law con-
strues that simple statement as un-
lawful we have got hard row to
hoe, and the sooner we get to the end
of the row the better. Now, / want
to say to all of our members, be
prudent, be conservative, keep your
temper. lie man won't join us after
we honor him with the invitation,
why LET HIM ALONE.
One other plea wish to make to
the public. You know that there
never was anything ever started on
this earth since Adam and Eve were
tempted and fell in the garden of
Eden, that did not have two sides
one arrayed against the other. And
everything frem the time that
Michael and Satan battled for the
supremacy to keep heaven heaven, or
make heaven hell, the greatest
battles have been fought with mo
rality against immortality.
Now, as al organization we wish
to ask generous public to give us
fair and impartial trial, and don't,
for Gods sake, pass sentence from an
indictment and trial by packed
jury of our enemies. We stand
ready to be tried as the law of our
State says by our peers. IL convicted
by them We will pay the penalty
without murmur, bnt in this case
we will take an appeal even to the
Supreme Ruler of the universe.
We have men in our organization
who are not conservative, who speak
without knowledge, without proper
thought and Judgment. Those men
are found in the church, lodges
and every place but heaven, and
their words are taken by our oppo.
nents and misconstrued by them TO
suit themselves and we naturally
have to bear the blame. I wish to
say to the public that the only thing
or things that Irvington Station No.
8, .. z. u, is responsible for is on
the journal of the proceedings, and
l, as secretary, am ready at any time
and place to produce those books
and let any committee of honorable
men exsminer for themselves.
la conclusion, / invite all to unite
with us and help save the oyster
rocks. If you don't wish to do 90
just simply LET Us ALONE.
B. s. HAMMoNDs,
Sec,y irvlngton Station. No. 9, o. p. u.