The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1912-06-28
COLD WATER ORATOR
SPOKE TO few FOLKS
From Tuesdays Daily.

From Tuesdays Daily.
Oliver W. Stewart, of Chicago, and
a member of the Illinois state legis-
lature, made an open air prohibition
speech at the corner of Front and
Walnut streets this noon. He spoke
from an automobile that had been
paid for with dimes donated by PEG.
pie who desire to help along the
campaign against the liquor traffic.
Mr.. Stewart is a well known pro-
hibitionist and a forceful speaker. He
spoke at Mortified this morning and
drove from Mankato to st. Clair, and
from there he goes to Good Thunder,
thence to Mapleton. He makes on
the average from five to seven
speeches a day in the open air.
Favors Woman Suffrage.
The speaker was heartily in favor
OF woman suffrage. He said that
taking Chicago as an example, it
would be impossible for the women
to rule that city any worse than the
men do
1--WE live in an age of industrial
ISM" said the speaker and then he
dwelt on conservation, comparing the
term as used by business men and
then in conservation of men, who
are on the downward path. He said
that the problem of conservation is
one that faces all men, for when a
man is turned into a drunkard he
becomes piece of waste and it
takes the rest of the world of able
bodied men 20 carry up the world
The saloons do not bring business to
a city, but the city furnishes bust
ness for the saloons. The fact that
there are more saloons where there
are more people and larger cities, is
no sign that they bring business any
more than the fact that in the larger
cities there are more pickpockets.
There Is ar Awakening.
But there is an awakening that
helps the fight for good government,
he said, and he spoke Of the liquor
question with regard to good govern
ment. Bad government comes from
bad men, not necessarily those who
are mean, but those who are so low
and have so small conception of pub
lie duty that they allow themselves
to be bought, or hold the positions
they do. to further their own ends.
The saloon, he said, was usually at
the bottom of all corrupt measures
in the legislatures. He commended
the Women's Christian Temperance
Union and the Good Templars and
could say nothing too good of them,
for they had come to the rescue and
were doing noble work not only in
eradicating the saloon, but also in
building up good government.
At one time William ]. Bryan
thought that the democrats were the
originators of the proposition to
select United States senators by the
direct vote of the people and was
proud of it, but later he was told
that the populists started that move
ment, and he took off his hat to the
populists. A short time after that
it was found for certainty that the
prohibitionists originated this idea,
and he took off his hat to that party.
Mr. Stewart said that a campaign
would be conducted for better govern
ment in the next five months, with
such force, that under ordinary con-
ditions it would take two years to
produce the same results. The pro-
hibition society had purchased their
own automobile, with the dimes con-
tributed by enthusiasts of the cause
and now. warm campaign is being
waged. " #