Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1910-01-21
SHIELDS STIRS
UP OPTIONISTS
Anti Saloon State Superintend-
ent Gives First Address in
Local Campaign.
AT THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH
Wants to Know Why Rock Island,
With Big Income from Licenses,
Is Embarrassed Financially.

Rev. James K. Shields of Chicago
superintendent of the Illinois Anti
Saloon league, last evening at Memoir
ial Christian church gave the opening
address in the local option campaign to
be waged in Rock Island in connection
with the city-township election in the
spring, this to be the second fight to
be made by those forces. One hun
dred men and women attended the
meeting, which was presided over by
Rev. w. 8. Marquis. pastor of Broadway
Presbyterian church Rev. Mr.. Shields
state who makes the wheels go round"
Two selections were sung by the Wen
nerberg chorus of Augustana college
Rev. Mr.. Shields said in the course of
his address,:
THE temperance cause is a peculiar
thing Before the petition is signed
and ready to assure the people that the
local option proposition will be an is
sue at the next election there Is very
little interest in the meetings. We
owe it TO ourselves to use the local
option law for the benefit of the Chris
tian people of the state.
Repeal If Unused.
IF we do not use the local option
law it will be repealed If we keep on
making use of it, it will never be re-
pealed, and some time we will gain
the victory which we are striving so
lard to win. The local option forces
CT this state are one army. By max
.,g the fight in your own town or city
you help the rest OF the state. We be-
san this fight two years ago and won
some territory. OF course, the easiest
towns in the state were won to our
cause and the more strongly intrench-
ed of the towns are still wet It is up
10 you and to all other local option
workers in the state to fight the battle
this year. We must strike every place
n order to hold what we have won
md TO gain new territory. On Nov. 2
tne liquor forces attempted to win
back % southern towns which we had
won almost two years before, and our
forces endeavored to hold the territory
which we had won and to win more.
We broke even with the saloon in this
fight
"FIOaters7 I'm Elections.
I'm order to prove to you that it is
necessary for everyone in the state to
nsht for the local option cause, 1 will |
tell you what happened in Jackson |
vile in November Jacksonville went |
Try two years ago and the saloon forces
tried 10 make it a wet town. They |
used as one OF their leading arguments |
The fact that people were leaving the |
town in squads. At the election in No
vember we had an increase of % votes |
for our side, while they had an increase |
Of 500 votes. The place was becoming |
depOpulated at a great rate. The in |
crease in their number Of votes was |
due to a large force of 'foaters' flock /
ing into the town just 80 days before /
election to make the town wet again. /
You people owe it to the rest of the /
state to make the fight so that this /
floating population. one of our wost /
enemies, will be scattered and their |
work Will be Intellectual.
ImmOrnIItIes of Traffic.
It will tell you why we should fight .
the question in Chicago, and the same !
reasons will apply in your own city. |
It is our duty as Christian people to /
work against the immoralities of the |
liquor traffic. In Chicago there are !
hundreds Of thousands of people who /
never heard of the liquor question and /
the fight which is being made against |
it. It is up to US to educate the peo- I
pie. After we have gotten our petit ,
ton signed we will be able to make (
great Roadway. We will have large /
crowds at our meetings and people .
will start talking about it. By talking ,
about it, they become educated and .
we will be making Roadway.
"One of the biggest factors we have 4
in Chicago now is a text book showing
the horrors OF alcoholism and its eff
fects on the body. The youths Of our
schools are having the horrors of it all .
impressed upon their minds and in 20 .
years, if we have not won the fight,
they will win it.
Touches ON Local Financial Conditions.
Springfield, the capital city of the
state, of which we should be proud, is
a disgrace It has 215 saloons and So
00e population, and still the city is
broke and can not pay the bills.
Look at Decatur, Rockford and Gales
burg Each one of those cities is max
ing improvements right along and still
has money in the treasury. Here is
your own city. You have a bonded in
debtedness OF $4,000 since 1870, and
since then you have accumulated more,
bringing the total to $213,000 You
have 95 saloons in your town. Why
don't you pay off your Indebtedness?
1t is common talk all over the state
that your town was SO poor that you
could not have the garbage collected
last summer. 1t may be so and it may
not be So 1 do not know 1 found at
the city clerks Office today that your
street, health, sewer. contingent, print
ing and sidewalk funds will be ex-