The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1911-08-01
BALLOT BATTLE
IN STAUNT0N IS
ON To A FINISH
Temperance Workers in Cause
Place Names High in
Local History
NEGROES HOLD THE
BALANCE OF POWER
Seaborn Wright Closes Cam
paign With Great Meet
ing Making Very
Strong Plea
(By STAFF Correspondent

by staff Correspondent
TAUNTON. VA, July SILT IL all
over but the voting and the Shout
ing Magnificently organized. watch
ing every detail Of the situation. the
forces OF righteousness and civilixa-
ton will present a solid front to the
enemy, when at one minute before
5 o'clock tomorrow morning the bat
tie Of the ballots will start No band
of men ever worked more nobly or
displayed more determination or more
genuine grit and gumption than those
who have born the blunt Of the fight
for the drys In this campaign.
Should Staunton give such de-
cisive majority tomorrow as shall
show the vets the uselessness OF re-
lnewing the struggle In the days to
come the names OF Jordan. Kern,
Gregory. Tyler. Taylor, Blease, Lewis
and others who haze stood by them
in the fight will have won immortal
fame in stanton.
Tomorrow will be the most mos
mentous day in the history of Staun-
ton, save only that other memorable
day when the saloon evil Was first
voted out. Upon the result hangs
not only Stauntons moral and spir-
ituaI progress. but largely that Of the
magnificent country. by which 1t II
surrounde, whose people have petit
toned the town to keep the rum
demon out.
n Tp-morrow will he q das af real
battling. Brain win be matched
against brain. Roth sides will do
; their utmost to keep down the vote
of the other. 1t Is known that scores
of men will demand the right to
vote who have no lawful right to
cast a. ballot in Staunton.
win Challenge Votes.
| Hundreds of votes viii be chaf-
lenged. and every inch of the ground
viii be contested. In the neighbour
hood OF 1900 votes will be cast
against I.a2o in the last election. Tho
total registration is about 1870.
Staunton's Christian womanhood Is
wrought up as never before From
sunrise to sunset their earnest pray
ers will rise on behalf of the success
OF the forces of Righteousness. Ar
rangements have been made to con-
| vey the aged and decrepit voters to
have made elaborate preparationsfor
fun representations at both polling
places.
| There were no new developments
In the situation during the day to-
! day, but on every hand there were
indications OF aggressive canvassing
on rtre part OF both sides.
Ballot Of tho Dolls.
Much interesting gossip however -
going about and story Is told OF q
recent local option election held by lit
tie girls In which their dolls were the
voters. Doll after doll voted dry when
1t came the turn of a little girl whose
father had voted wet at the last elec-
ton to vote her dolly.
H. 81 a.
tie one said. MY dolly might as we'll
vote dry. too, as my papa is going to
vote that way this time
Amusing stories are told OF efforts
to hamboozl and befool the negro
voters. one of the stories told them.
being that If the drys win the negroes
Will be disfranchised.
The Negro Vote.
The negro vote. the menace of the
existing situation. Is ,ne only puzzling
feature of the fight II they have been
as successfully bought up. as many
claim. the wet vote viii be perilousIy
large, but as one wet man IN adver-
tentiy Is reported to have expressed Il:
They take our niossey and then we
don't know how they vote sg
| There is little doubt that certain un-
principled negroes have for consid-
GRAFTON. doubtless clothed with soma
ruise of legality, contracted to deliver
the votes of their brethren. These mem
have been employed as committeeman
or in some such capacity ana receive
pay for their services to the cause Of
rum.
While the fight has been warm from
the very beginning of the campaign
Staunton Is to be congratulated that SO
little of real bitterness has developed.
Wright Closes Campaign.
With an eloquent heart searching
I souf-stfrrfng appeal. seanorr Wright
closed the campaign for the drys to-
night when he addressed an immense
open air meeting at the courthouse It
was the largest gathering of the cam
pat and the audience. in which there
were many wet voters. gave tho
4 speaker close attention.
Mr.. Wright declared the contest was
not between the aple of the town but
rather a fight on a wrong system ana
upon the great American whiskey
trust and their allies. the brewery In.
terests, constituting we most brutal
grinding monopoiv In America. There
was no unkindness In his heart, No
said, for the men who drink.
His fght was on the trust. which
had made Its boast that 1t could control
fine Southern peonle. He had no
harsh criticism for the saloon neekers.
They are as good as the sovereign
reople votes are responsible for tho
saloon. He placed the blame he said
where It beionced on tie voters, who
voted to license the SaIaon
Trust Responsible
He declared that the whiskey truse
was responsible for the repeated elec-
tions called in attempt 10 bring back
whiskev to drv towns. Tho trust 49,
the only beneficiary OF the trafsic and
II was spending Its money IN 49,