Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1905-02-28
BUSINESS FOLLY
LARGE AUDIENCE HEARS AID.
DRESS AT FIRST METHODIST 5
EPISCOPAL CHURCH.
"The Business Folly Of Vic, Open
City" Topic of Fifth Address in the
'tottunwa Gates Of Hell"-series
Being Delivered by Local Pastor.

SStAI1Wd N0kSS VI btS't tSo
Being Delivered by Local Pastor.
From Mondays Daily.
The Business Folly Of Wide Open
City" was the subject of the fifth ad-
dress in the "Ottumwa Gates of HELP
series being delivered at the First
Methodist Episcopal church by the
pastor, DR.. A. 3. Craig. Despite the
inclement weather the church, both
auditorium and gallery, was packed
with attentive listeners.
IA The address was as follows:
Goodness is profitable unto all
things" ] Tim. Nv. 8.
Il we will take Poor Richards para
phrase of the text we might read it:
Honesty is the best policy" Such a
truth ought to be self-evident. With
most minds it is an accepted fact.
With some the matter is obscure. There
are always too many who fall into line
with the precept given by the old Ro-
man to his son: Make money. Make
It honestly if you can; but make
money!
Such system Of heather morals
sometimes fastens itself on Chris
tian society and it is hard to dislodge
1t when once it has gained a foothold.
1t Is a depressing fact that there are
always those who place business above
morals, and money before manhood.
They have become SO accustomed to
devious methods in trade that it makes
them dizzy to walk a straight line.
They become SO saturated in sophistry
that "the worse appears the better
way" as old Shakespeare said long ago
and 1t is difficult to get them to use
such glasses as might correct the abb
erration in their moral vision.
sts I do not wish to be too severe upon
these people. for it is not every man
that has the logical acumen that en-
ables him to reason correctly, even
in a. business proposition. If all could
perform this feat we would see less of
the wild cat transactions in trade that
SO checker business careers.
Befogged in sophistry.
Perhaps there is no proposition that
is SO befogged in sophistry as that
which relates to the business welfare
of any community. I shall state the
AAfSAeSSA tAlo OVVdlA6 ia luS WOIuS
have used as the caption of this dis
course: The Business Folly of Wide
Open City" Here think we may find
the core of this entire difficulty. Ev-
erybody is willing to admit in the alb
stract the wrong of this situation, but
when proposition is made to correct
1t. it is met with the hue and cry that
It will destroy business, it will ruin
trade. 1T will damage our city to shut
up these places of evil resort.
It is shocking to see the timidity
OF business at this point There ought
to be manhood and sterling honesty
enough in our solid business men to
take hold of this situation and say it
Is wrong, it must be corrected, even If
1T bankrupts us in the endeavor we
Will not be parties to an unethical con
dition in trade. / say there ought to
be that much rugged honesty in the
business world. There is much of it
but not enough fear.
It is my undertaking this evening tc
show that it need not imperil bust
ness to do this very thing, but as q
strictly business proposition, it is the
very best thing the city could under
sss~AASs' Oil 6ldu W 11u tudl BUSINESS
men on our Main street are coming tc
this conclusion. and are having theil
eyes opened to the damage this condi
ton is to their legitimate trade.
Let us approach this thing candidly
and admit that it would be bad fol
some kinds of business to have {
closed town It would be exceedingl,
bad for such operations as come un
der the ban. believe it would almos
ruin the gamblers business There
are many hangers on. who would alss
feel the shock Of this sort of disaster
These men will oppose such cours,
with all their might and ingenuity ant
OF course will do all they can to instil
the elixir of life into the bugaboo tina
business is being ruined.
Again let me insist that there ar,
some, hope but few, who woult
rather ruin business than curb lust
and these will oppose any effort t,
bring about a closed condition. The,
would rather knock the bung out O
business and let michief caper, thai
be deprived of their sinful indulgence
Then there are those who do prof
directly in trade with these lawIess el
ements, and who are SO absorbed ii
the paltry dollar they do get that the,
cannot see the many, many dollar
they lose indirectly by this nnbusiness
like condition. Like a character /,
Bunyan'si Pilgrim they are SO bus,
raking together straws that they d,
not see the crown of gold suspended
over their heads which might be theirs
II they would only look up a moment
These people cannot see that for tn,
few paltry dollars they gather iron
this unholy traffic they lose hundred
Of dollars from their legitimate Gus
toners. Such will continue to vot
for an open town till they are shown
better. They are the persons / have il
mind in my discourse this evening
Let me say there are also those ia,
seeing, clear-headed business me-
who do size up the situation accuratel
and believe some of them have mad
an effort in the past to correct thi
condition. They pronounce agains
this thing purely as business waste
and would wipe it out tomorrow i