The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-11-01
RIVAL ME- T|NGS HELD ID THRESH AMENDMENT ISSUE Hippodrome and Bijou Crowd ed to Hear hivaI Speak
 e s Yesterday
LONG AT HI1PODR )ME
 AND LEA AT THE BIJOU
Brooks Lawrence Defies Anti-Amend. ment Leaders to Circulate 1,000,000 Copies of the Text of the
 Amendment.

The defenders of the constitution gath cred in the Hippodrome yesterday after noon and heard discussions by Capt. John G. Smith. commander of Camp Hardee, United Confederate veterans; Gen. Fred S. Ferguson, one of the gallant soldiers of the Lost Cause, and Thomas l.. Long, the well-known lawyer of Jasper. At the conclusion of the arguments. Col. P. G. Bowman, having been called upon, said a few words, telling of the good meetings that have been occurring throughout the state, and predicting a splendid victory against the amendment November 29.
 In the Biiou there was a meeting in favor of the amendment. This was ad- dressed by Col. Sumter Lea, A. J. Dick inson Brooks Lawrence and Kyle Price, a lawyer.
 Both meetings were well attended. The defenders occupied every available foot of space in the Hippodrome, upstairs and downstairs. on the stage and in the aisles. Those present, with the exception of six or eight women, were men. the majority of whom are voters. At the Bijou there was considerable number of women and children.
 On the stage at the Hippodrome were seated veterans of the Lost Cause. At their head were Capt. John G. Smith. commander of the local camp of veterans; Gen. Fred S. Ferguson and Col. J. F. B. Jackson, the well-known citizen whose storehouse, some weeks go. was searched on the false statement of boy to the effect that whisky was stored therein.
 At the Bijou, too. number of veterans occupied positions on the stage. They were under the leadership of Col. Sumter . Lea. who was a gallant soldier in the war between the states.
 Long at Hppodrome.
 Mir. Long at the Hippodrome made an excellent speech, and the audience was pleased with his logic and eloquence He made an attack against the amendment, claiming that it was worded in such a way that the people, reading casually, would not detect the deception; that it was founded in politics, that 1t cannot aid the prohibition laws which are sup ported by the most stringent statutes: that its adoption will prevent the mak- ing of homemade wine for home con sumption. that such had been admitted by Judge Weakley and the Birmingham Ledger an amendment paper; that it's adoption will empower the legislature to specify places wherein liquors may not be kept and that it's adoption will em- power the legislature, if it sees fit, ro enter the homes of the people.
 He stamped the document as a danger to the people of Alabama. He declared that Judge Denson had not attempted to the homes of the people; he stated that Captain Hobson had admitted that it's submission to the people at this time was a mistake, had admitted that the first section should have contained the words flor sale," which would have allowed the making of blackberry wine, and had ad- mitted, in an indirect way that the second section contained a menace to the homes when he stated that it should have been worded to have precluded any possibility of danger to the homes.
 The speaker alluded, too, to the adms- sion by Senator Reese, an amendment leader that the second section contained a danger to the homes of the people.
 He spoke of the Conner administration, charging that it had bankrupted the state He paid his respects to those leaders on the side of the amenders who had sold whisky or who were formerly known as gamblers.
 He presented the recent rhyme of Dr. O. T. Dozier, which was printed in an afternoon paper, and charged that 1t lis vile in every respect and too indecent to go into the gutters of the big cities.''
 And yet" stated he, ''the amenders, at their meeting last Sunday at the Bijou, distributed this rot, with all its vile lan- guage, to all who entered the building, many of the number being young girls"
 Colonel Lea First Speaker.
 At the Bijou the chief speaker was Col. Sumter Lea, who stated that the veterans would be foremost in the fight for the women of the state.
 He was followed by Brooks Lawrence, who spoke for the amendment while a collection was being taken Dr. A. J. Dickinson, who was the next speaker gave a lengthy dissertation on prohibi- tion.
 Kyle Price of Elba closed the meeting with a characteristic oration. At the be- ginning of his speech he violently refuted what he termed was islander that had been placed upon his name. He was prob- ably referring to the language employed by Congressman Sydney J. Bowie in Sell ma last week.
 Price made an attack on the Montgom- cry Advertiser relative to a cartoon pub lished some time ago in which Brooks Lawrence was criticised.
 Brooks Lawrence was especially wig orous in his denunciation of the tactics pursued by the anti-amendment leaders.
 ''They say we are trying to deceive the people on this issue." he said. We have printed and circulated 100000 copies of this little pamphlet which contains nothing but the text and exact word ing of the proposed amendment. We rely upon the intelligence of the voters to read 1t correctly and l say here and now that we defy the enemy to print and circulate a million copies of this amend faent as we have done.'
 Holding up a little white ribbon MT. Lawrence paid tribute to what it stood for and then holding up a little Amer ican flag, the emblem of the anti-amend- ment forces, he said: Ut is the first time in all the years of my life that I have seen this glorious emblem used to a dis graceful purpose; it Is the first time I have ever seen this emblem used as a cloak for debauchery. But we mean to redeem it on November 29 and then we will proudly pin it where It belongs beside the little white ribbon"
 
 0,poas11n dinner Tuesday,