Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1905-03-07

that leads to damnation." An excited
brother in the back Of the audience
sprang to his feet and cried out.
This niger is goin' to take to the
woods" hope that it will not be-
come necessary for decent people to
take to the woods in this spring cam
paign.
But back of the methods there Is
something still more important, that
is the quickening of the conscience OF
the community on the subject OF civic
righteousness. John Morleys char
acterization Of English morals twenty
five years ago can be read with profit
today. There is a disposition to
acquiesce to lazy accommodation to
error, and ignoble economy OF truth,
and a vicious compromise OF the
permanent gains Of adhering TO
a sound, general principle for
the sake of the temporary
gains of departing from it" This lazy
accommodation to error is the Dane
of our political action today. Ideals
become lowered. Public conscience
becomes drugged. This is the thing
we must earnestly contend against.
Never Touch the Ground.
The dying color-bearer exhorted the
fellow that seized the flag Hold the
colors high, I never let the colors
touch the ground" So we should not
be afraid to hold the colors high. The
thing which the moral element OF our
community needs is courage. 1t mas
been so long dominated by little
coterie Of fellows Of the baser sort VINO
have seized the balance OF power and
insisted that every party man snail
bear the stamp of their approval, that
the result is good men have sue
cumbed to that sort OF bullying TIL
they scarcely know whether they nave
any rights that are worth regarding or
not.
1t is high time for the good ele-
ments of the community to rise up and
assert their demands Let these
business men who are SO timid about
trade, who insist that they cannot al
ford to offend these evil-disposed ele.
ments be given to understand that
they cannot afford to offend decency
and the man who will not come out
square-toed in this matter will have
to take the consequences Good men
have some rights as well as bad men.
For my part would like to see a Wig
orous months campaign waged right
along that line. l would like to see
a campaign of civic righteousness con
Quoted with all the enthusiasm OF the
national campaign of '96 or 81. yes
I would like to see it conducted with
, all the fervid zeal of an old-fashioneo
revival meeting in a frontier settle
!, 70 q thNnC9n0
, earnest men coming out to 1nstill o!d
fashioned ideas of morality into INT
i drugged conscience of our city.
: Need Tonins Of Ideals.
We need a toning up Of ideals. W.
need to get back to the simplicity o
common honesty. GWse need a breez
t from the mount of Sinai to sweel
J away the miasmatic fog that has RISE
from the slums of reeklng corrupti 4,l
To this end l would like to see IN
workman laboring to convince his fei
low in the shop, the clerk persuadin
I the fellow who touches elbows VIII
: him at the desk. the salesman ex
Y changing views with the custome
: over the counter.
/ would like to see the business ma
! arguing the case with his associat
on the street, neighbor reasoning wit
4 neighbor around the fireside, wifi
9 pleading with husband or mothe
n with son around the family circle t
t be true to principle and faithful t
q home. would have everybod
I preaching the principles of commo
= i honesty and ordinary decency. LIZ
: our utterances ring true to such pla.
j, facts as these.
u We cannot be publicly corrupt an
privately moral. AS individuals W
are responsible for the acts of our pub
lie agents if we endorse them at tn
polls. If we vote to share in the cor
rupt earnings Of evil resorts we al
f partners III the evil business. We car
!. not endorse lawlessness in the cit
a and then hope to have the protect1o
= = of the law in our private interest
. We cannot give our sanction to ope
= gambling and then consistently CON
II plain if somebody CANDLES with OF
|, money We cannot traffic in the VII
t. tue Of someone else's daughters and
J. sure our own shall escape the per
: of impurity. If these plain moralit1t
. are pressed upon the consciences
the vacillating the results connot
uncertain.
= Let us then enter into such can
II paign with courage, hopefulness ar
e enthusiasm The discouraged ma
I plans no aggressive enterprise, leat
|, no triumphant army to victory, II
&c spires no dropping heart with tt
- energy. Let us not be ashamed or OF
II colors. While we have no ambition
n be Impractical theorists or impossib
n reformers let US not be ashamed
n avow the fact openly that we are bo
% honest and decent. Let us not hes
If tate to declare that we stand for
% reasonable observance of the law. .
- We ought not to be afraid to ent
= into this campaign with something
II the courage and faith of the man wi
is believes that he is in the right, al
y that Right is right, since God is Go
and right the day shall VIM Q
n. armies went marching south keepll
If step to the inspiriting words,
~ "He has sounded out the trumpet tn
!; shall never call retreat.
y He is sitting out the hearts Of men b
q. fore His Judgment seat,
he Be swift my soul to answer him;
e. jubilant my feet,
It. Our God is marching on"
" A Question Of Manhood.
Let the marching columns in o
- spring campaign have no less e
III thusiasm in their heroic war agar