The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1910-03-17
NO DOUBT OF HIS POSITION
Signed Statement Declares That the
liquor Issue Must be Met and Set
tied in Wisconsin Before Other
Issues

Racine is proving himself fearless
candidate and he has come out into
the open in great shape in the fight
for county option and the signed state
meut under the caption "stand up and
fight" which he sent broadcast today
indicates that the Racine candidate is
to make county option the big feature
Of his campaign for nomination. The
statement is startling one coming as
it does from a candidate for governor
and it is attracting not only state wide
but national comment this afternoon.
The text of this campaign edict is
printed below:
Stand Up and Fight
Wisconsin's great battle for repre-
sentative government has been of
small avail if, after ten or twelve
years of bitter but victorious fighting,
political parties are to- be allowed to
dodge any great issue.
Greater than any other benefit grow
ing out of the regeneration of Wis
consin is the new and awakened spirit
of independence of the citizen-the
determination of the people to control
their own government.
County option is an issue.
1t is pressing for settlement.
It's opponents and opponents have
been engaged for two campaigns in a
bitter struggle for the control of, the
legislature.
To attempt to dodge an open fight
on this question is neither wise nor
courageous.
As a candidate for the Republican
nomination for governor, propose to
make this an open fight
County option, as phase of the
liquor question, has two active classes
of opponents One is made up of
those who are interested in the liquor
business who fear the results which
would follow the passage of such a
law.
The other class has little concern
about the effect of county option
law upon the liquor business, but is
fearful of what will be its own poll
teal fate
The first class includes brewers, dis
tillers and saloonkeepers.
The second class is made up of those
politicians who are afraid of the
brewers and saloons
Others may be- in favor of the sa-
looms, but the average American citi-
zen is willing to submit his case to
The people and to abide by the will of
the majority, whether it be a question
of licensing saloons or amending the
constitution
A majority of the active opponents
of submitting the license question to
the county are either brewers and sa-
loonkeepers or politicians who fear the
liquor interests.
Some of these have expressed the
fear that a discussion of county op-
tion at this time may involve other
issues and possibly endanger them.
Does anyone believe that other state
issues have not been involved with
the liquor interests heretofore?
Ask your member of the legislature
what interest joined hands with the
harvester trust to defeat the -appropria-
ton to complete the binder Irvine
manufacturing plant for the state pri-
son at Waupun.
Ask your senator or assemblyman
what interest was most active in the
defeat of the Milwaukee home rule
bills in the last legislature.
Some may deny that the liquor in.
terests helped to kill these measures.
but they will not deny that many of
the men, the most prominent ones who
opposed the binder Irvine and Milwau-
kee home rule bills, were the most ac-
tive and most powerful of the opposi-
ton to the county option bill.
1t was common report that the lobby
at Madison was consolidated to kill
these three measures.
1t is not important that the merits
of the binder Irvine plant or the Mil
waulzee home rule plan should be dis
cussed here. The point is that
'other issues" always have been in
volved and always viii be so long as
the bush-whacking campaigning con-
tinues.
There can be no real progress in
Wisconsin until the saloon problem has
been divorced from other issues. Fore
ed to fight in the open there can be
no alliance of long duration or effec-
tive operation.
Let us fight in the open.
The people have a right to what
they want in government.
County option would not enlarge
the right of the people, but rather en-
large their opportunity to express
their will
# the sphere Of influence Of the sa-