Mountain Home maverick. [volume] (Mountain Home, Idaho) 1906-1911, 1910-10-27
MORAL QUESTION ISSUE BEFORE
THE PEOPLE.
Governor Brady Delivers Vigorous
Address 20 Big Crowd at Harrison
Special Dispatch)


house and his address was more
carefully prepared than any other he
has delivered. In discussing the tent
perance question. he said;
MY friends. we are CONFRONTED
with a new issue in the politics or
this state. a moral issue involving the
happiness and welfare of our mens
women and children and the integ-
ritv and efficiency of our poliucal
system L refer to the problem now
before as of solving the saloon ana
the LIQUOR traffic question. nave
said that the liquor question is pri-
marily the moral issue. EVERYBODY
knows ii is an evil.
~ appeal to all the loyal Republi-
cans to tell me how long our party
could live if it got the reputation OF
standing for wrong and immofallty
How long could It endure as great
Institution if everybody believed II
was operated to protect the saloon
The strength Of this party depends
upon there being full agreement
among the party leaders on questions
fundamentally moral where the party
should stand overwhelmingly for the
maintenance of those principles Of
government. which favor honesty in
dustry and sobriety among men ana
against those influences which cor
rupt our youth. decrease the useful
ness of our men and inflict unhappi-
ness on our women. on no other
basis can parties be Of service TO good
government and on no other basis
can they continue TO exist. Princi-
pies of morality should be the tOun-
dation of parties and honest Disagree
ments upon policy the issues upon
which they win or lose. 1t is better
for the usefulness and integrity Of
great political parties that their IS
sues should be matters of policy,
rather than matters of morals.
"a etc
for morality They We're primarily
devised to deal with the settlement OF
honest differences of opinion as TO
how desired social and moral stand
ings are to be achieved not 20 baffle
the expressions of existing belief as
to right and wrong. But when the
forces Of self-interest and immoral
ity try to force themselves into the
community of party or a govern
ment it is essential that moral issues
shall become party issues.
To Safeguard Community.
'There is no other way TO safe
guard the ideas for which the COM
munity stands. We cannot allow the
solf-intercst of a minority to seize
part of a government. we dare not
when that minority is a league In
favor of evil. the liquor interests
must not be allowed to usurp the ma
chinery OF government for the pro-
IeCIlQn OF .lntln0tANE1s ifN mus
not be allowed to make an nlegiu-
mate use of party machinery.
"Since they have forced upon us
this struggle for the protection of our
party and our government, we must
accept the saloon question as polit-
ical issue and fight it out before the
people
Gives His Private Views
"As private citizen, with the right
Ia 1nfnfop hpIfnWn
that the evils of the liquor traffic and
the power of the liquor Interests can
not finally be put down without clos
Ing every saloon IN this state. This
is my personal judgment after study
ing the experiences of other states.
Yet IL l had the power to coerce my
own party into such declaration
against the wishes of a majority of
its members. 1 would not do so. If,
as governor Of the state, could
force the legislature to pass state
wide prohibition act. without being
certain that my party and majority
of the community We're behind me, 1
should refrain from doing so.
Must Have support of People.
1T Is no use to have a law upon
the statute books that cannot be en-
forced. II only breaks down the
force of the law. You can't pass
law and enforce it with an indiffer-
emit majority ncnlnu III ana an lnull-
ferent minority against II. But when
there Is a fierce lighting minority
bent on breaking the law you must
have the support of an earnest, Wig
orous majority whose enthusiastic
convictions win not permit 1t to fall
into lassitude or reaction. IL is for
this reason that do not believe that
party leader or a chief executive
OF a state should pledge himself to
do what cannot be done without eff
fective support A man can make
promises to catch votes and enter Of
fee.
"a man might even whip a reluct-
ant legislature into passing a state
wide prohibition act. but If public
opinion were not strong enough to
close every saloon at once and keep
them closed he would set back the
fight against the evils of the liquor
traffic a whole half century-people
would grow discouraged and say the
evil was not eradicated.
Il prefer to stand on the Republi-
can platform and in every way
strengthen, and maintain our present
local option law and then submit this
entire question to the people of this
state and with their decision every
honest man should be satisfied / do
not believe that the liquor question
should be made partisan. but when il
is made so ] believe that every man
should be honest and frank enough
TO let the people know where he
stands on that question.
'But whatever opinion any citizen
may have no one can object to sub.
hitting the question of a cOnstltu-
tional amendment to the people and
then Il Will be settled one way or the
other for years and this turmoil anC
strife viii end and we viii proceed
to develop the resources of our stat,
and build q great commonwealth
without having to devote our time {,
one single issue. Let us settle thi,
matter by electing the entire Repub.
iican ticket, which has pledged itsel
10 reform. Idaho Daily Statesman
EXTRACTS FROM SPEECHES OF
GOVERNOR JAMES III. BRADY
IN THE PRESENT CAMPAIGN.