Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1906-04-12
CUMMINS MEN MEET
FEW ORGANIZATION OF VOTERS
HOLDS SECOND sEsioN-sPIL-
MAN MAKES ADDRESS
President of Club Lauds Principles Of
Present Governors PIatform-En-
roIiment Lists Are Out for Member
ship-Forty Attend Meeting.

From Tuesdays Daily
The second meeting Of the Wapello
County Cummins club was held last
night in the Offices Of e. H. Emery on
Commercial street. There were
about forty in attendance. Major T.
P. Spilman, president of the club, de.
livered an address, which was enthu.
siastically received. d. H. Emery,
Sumner Siberell and F. A. Nimocks
also spoke briefly upon the object
and principles of the club. The club
voted unanimously that the address Of
MI. Spilman be published in the
Courier. The enrolment committee
reported thirty new members. Two
enrolment lists are being circulated
In each ward of the city for sigma
lures. The next meeting of the club
will be held Thursday evening, April
10, in the Emery office.
At the close of the club meeting,
the executive committee held a short
session.
Major spiIman's Address.
The address Of Major T. P. Sp1lman
Is complete as follows:
Mr.. Lee says: I'VE fail to under.
stand why the major should say in
this contest, We shall be raisunder-
stood. often maligned and misrepre-
sented,' and yet in the very next sent
ence expresses q charitable sympathy
for those who do no agree with him
In his particular IDEAS" / made this
statement because / know something
Of political contests, Inc my expecta-
lions In this direction have been more
thar verified. 1 have been misunder-
stood, severely criticised, almost
abused by some, but / am pleased to be
able to say that the leading stand
patters, the men I have learned to re-
spect and love have treated me with
uniform kindness and courtesy, but
this Is no more thar I expected from
these friends. AS to my expressions
Of charity and kindly feeling, I want
to say that with many Of them there
is a friendship of 80 to 40 years, we
have been through many contests to-
gether, they have been always true,
always manly and faithful every time,
and so / want to again. register my
esteem, even more my positive affec-
ton, and I should most earnestly re-
sent any insinuation of corruption OF
~falseness on their part
Now as to the anti-pass legislation,
Mr.. Lee assumes that hat is settled
by the enactment Of the law just pass
ed. ] am glad to know that we have
a. anti-pass law, ever though 1T has
cost a struggle extending through sew
eral years, during which time h rep
have done everything in their power
maaps at-their command.
employing Wy 95eest talent money. could
secure, using every influence socially
and politically, when largely through
the efforts of Governor Cummins
public sentiment was so rouse that
the people almost as one mar de-
manded immediate action on tnls
question, when the combined railroad
prevent action, this bill was passed
How effective it may be remains Y
be seen. We know by past experience
that they will contest this as they d.
every other effort to regulate or con-
troll their action with all the power a
their command, and gentlemen, Is !
not remarkable that during all thu
years OF this contest the newspaper
Of this section have been stranger,
silent, or absolutely opposing Thu
question? If they have ever earnestl!
championed the cause Of the people il
this struggle, I do not now recall j
and there is another feature about tn
enactment of this anti-pass law tina
/ scarcely know how to discuss, ant
yet do not quite see how / can pass j
by unnoticed, and that is, the remark
able statement of a member of tn
legislature, whose personal integrity
I would not question, that it is neces'
sary to have these railroad passes IL
order to exc out the miserable pittanc'
paid by the state of Iowa to her leg
islators. / do not know how to char
acterize this statement. 1t certainl.
Is humiliating, I will almost say, al
insult, to the intelligence Of any mai
to make such a statement on such al
occasion. This circumstance c~ertainl.
f~orcefully illustrates the insidiou