The Richmond climax. (Richmond, Ky.) 1897-1914, 1910-09-14
No Redeemin9 Features
By Ex-May or c. E. Woods.

THE American saloon has not a sin
gle redeeming feature" says Henry
Watterson, whiskey's chief apostle
Then in the name of High Heaven,
why should any community have sa-
looms, and in the light of our experience
in Richmond, why should we allow sa-
looms to RETURN | have been called a
''crank" because hate a saloon like the
Devil does Holy Water! The very
creatures who compliment me thus
have stained the court records of Ken
lucky with all the crimes from gambling
to murder, have been the instruments
of tearing down instead of building up
society, the city or the state, and yet
they have their weight in shaping the
destiny of our government, though they
can point to nothing in their careers
that adds lustre to their reputation as
citizens.
Fifty per cent. of the saloon vote of
Richmond, judged by the names on their
recent petition to vote back saloons,
have been in our Jail or penitentiary.
challenge contradiction Of this indict-
ment! have the recordSl
Over twenty-five per cent. of these
petitioners could not read nor write! |
challenge contradiction. The petition
itself proves it,
Over twenty-five per cent of the petit
TONERS pay no taxes, not even the tax to
VOTE, their poll tax! The records
prove it! Half of the 400 petitioners
were negroes-to the shame of their bet
ter element. And what is equally as
founding, ALL the petitioners COM
bined, 400 in number, comprising 80 per
cent, Of the voting population of Rich
mond, do not pay 10 per cent. of the
taxes Of the city, county or state! Let
that soak in, taxpayers! | have had to
contend with such secret enemies of
good government and have earned their
distinguished hatred, their secret oppo-
sition and the complimentary title of
Crank" wish now, publicly, to say
that if the shoe | am here making
pinches their feet they must wear it!
1t is damnable outrage against the
helpless minors OF this city to have the
criminal, illiterate, non-taxpaying ele-
ment of our population override the
standing up, clean and Woodworking ele-
ment by voting back saluOns here next
March IL. 1t will never come to pass!
God will not punish city for doing its
duty Richmond has been sober three
years, after sixty years of drunkenness,
murder and stagnatiOn. In those three
years we have made more progress than
during any twenty previous years! And
we owe absolutely nothing to the element
that would make us all drunk again!
And yet during those three dry
years we had to combat the evil in
fluences and criminal practices of a
large element of those who attached
their names to petitions for re-opening
saloons here!
hope the 10000 country people who
reside outside of Richmond will force
the grass to grow knee-deep on our Main
street if we allow saloons to re-Openl |
hope the Legislature will cut off the ap-
preparation for our Normal School, if
we vote back saloons herel | say this
because but for the country people to-
day our proud city would be a wilder
ness; and but for the dry" counties of
eastern and central Kentucky our Nor
NAL school would be but Prep. school
with 40 home children, instead of hav-
ing as at present nearly 1000 of the COM
ing citizens, male and female of all
Eastern Kentucky, who never in their
lives saw an open saloonl IS per cent.
of the crime committed in Richmond
was due to saloonsl Murder, arson,
Standings, shootings, vagrancy and
misery originated in them. Since they
closed July l, 1907, every form of crime
has decreased, and peace and prosperity
have grown in proportion! Ask the
laborers, ask the JAILER!
Ask the Court Officials, from Judge
Benton on down. Ask the City Judge,
the Police Chief (Thank God for Jim