Highland recorder. (Monterey, Highland County, Va.) 1877-1972, 1911-06-30
Wet or Dry?

familiar with the situation, the
vets of Staunton have petitioned
for local option election, and a
test of the matter will be made
some time late in July.
The people of Highland are
directly interested in this contest,
and the interest with which they
will await results is second only to
that which Stauntonians them
selves feel. The Dispatch and News,
June oath in menting on the
present situation and approach
ing campaign has this to say;
Somewhat contrary to general eX-
pectations the voters of Stanton
thus far have refused TO got rX.itc'
ut the prospect of another wet
and"d dry" election being held here
this summer. Of course there ar
some few radicals on both sides
who have allowed themselves to be-
come "all het up" but the grcatel
number of people the mass of thu
voters are taking the thing very
cody, and to this time have refused
toshow any of that feversh interest
such as has preceded similar cleo
tons of the past.
= 1t is early yet -four or five
weeks must 90 before the election
can be held and the present atti-
tude of the voters may undergo "
change. Unless all indications fail
however, the impending campaign
will be different from others that
the town has had, and in way
for which most sensible people will
be genuinely grateful.
Tactics employed by both factions
in former fight will be useless in the
campaign. Instead of listening tc
imported speakers tell of what hap
pened to this town and that the
Staunton ballot casters will lister
to and be guided only by the voice
of their own experiencein observing
and reviewing the events of the
last two years. FL -.
What happened in Oshkosh won't
interest the voters this time. All OF
them have seen all of them have
formed theirown individual opinions
of what has happened to Staunton
and, in the greater number of cases.
whatever outside influence may be
used in an attempt to chagne their
views will simply and totally be
throwenaway.
Sizing up the situation, then, az
it really is it would appear that the
coming campaign should prove free
from many of the disagreeable fea
lures of the campaign of the past.
1t is true that as long as there
are Christians and heathens anc
Democrats and Republicans eacf
will continue to try to convert thu
other; and it is equally as true
that as long as the wet" and thu
dry" question remains an oper
one men will continue to vast,
time and breath in arguments tina
never gets anybody anywhere.
But it is also true, in the presen
instance at least, that the majorit,
of Staunton voters - the numbe
whose ballots will tell the tale -
are sitting tight, "holding thei
head" as Uncle Amos would say
each firm in his own convictions, an,
each determined to mark his ballo
in the way his, own experienc
based on his own observations dur
ing the last two years tell him to.
Demonstration, argument, sta
tistics, brass bands and oratory, an
those other things which have bee
mostly responsible for the bitterness
of other campaigns, will be waste
on the votors this time, and it is be
levied that nothing of the sort wi
be attempted by either side,
Judging from their actions solar
leaders, "wet" and "dry" both
seem to realize that they can
hand it to the voters this time =
the boys with the ballots hav
their own "dope."