Idaho County free press. [volume] (Grangeville, Idaho Territory) 1886-current, 1910-01-13

than you can say for their palefac'
brothers..
Mr.. Garfield will spend severa
more days seeing the sights of Spo
kane and hunting up old-time friends
Challenge Evangelist Winston
On Wednesday evening of last
week the writer Of this article attend.
ed the meeting at the Christian church
now being conducted by Evangelists
Winston and Longman.
At the meeting | heard the Rev.
Winston make the statement that he
had never found greater "moral rot
tenness" in any place he had been in,
than he found right here in Grange
vile.
OF course, | do not know what towns
or places he has been in nor how
much or how little "moral rottenness"
(please excuse the expression but | am
quoting the preacher) he has ever
seen or found.
But if he meant to say that there is
a superlative degree of ''moral rotten
ness or depravity among the young
girls of this town, then | challenge
the statement.
That this was just what he meant
to say was evident from his remarks
that followed but which | cannot now
quote.
Now it should be remembered that
at the time this statement was made
the Rev. Winston was stranger in
our midst and had been in town but
about four or five days.
would like to ask his Reverence
where he found this moral rottenness?
What part of town had he frequented?
With what class of our citizens had he
associated? He may have nose for
scenting out moral rottenness better
than other people have. He may
know better than | do where to 90 to
find it. have been a resident of this
town for more than ten years and
have never found it and never before
heard Of it. And | venture that no
other citizen and no other minister,
though he may have been here for
years, has ever seen or heard of it.
Now this statement of the Rev.
Whiston's is either lamentable and
deplorable fact and truth, or it is an
infamous and malicious falsehood and
slander upon our town and its people.
| was not present at his meeting on
Friday night but l am informed by
good people who were there that he
said he had the names of a number
| think it was eighteen, young girls
the daughters Of Christian parents
whom he had heard swearing and u.s.
ing profane and obscene language in
the post office and on the streets late
at night; that the first night a man is
in town he can go to the post office
and hear young girls swearing and
cursing and using vile langua ge in
public. That drummers are solicited
by young women of this town, as soon
as they get off the train.
Now, if he said this, | believe it
was a false and malicious slander of
the young womanhood to this town.
He may be a Sherlock Holmes and
may have been able to discover in the
sew days he had been in our midst, a
condition of ''moral rottenness" that
Ne did not know existed here, if so he
ought to tell our officers and city
authorities and good people, privately
where to find it and we would help
lin to eradicate it.
He may have heard some woman or
ome young girl swear in public. |
10 not know. | cannot say. But |
10 not believe it. | do not believe he
las heard eighteen, or any other con-
iderable number, swear or use pro-
ane language in the post office or on
he streets Of this city.
| say do not believe it, because
ave, during the more than ten years
have lived here, been in the post
flee and on the streets at night hun
reds Of times and have never yet
card one woman, young or old, swear
a any public place. And l would
ooner believe this preacher was mis-
AIKEN or had uttered falsehood than
elieve such thing Of the young
irlhood of our town.
feel it is the duty of some one to
ONE to the rescue, and challenge such
tatements and defend the good name
the young girlhood Of our town
gainst what | believe Is malicious
lander, uttered by an alleged minis
er Of the Gospel and from a public
ulpit. II