Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1914-04-09
Illinois "Drys" Make Great
Gains at General Local
Option Election
SIXTEEN COUNTIES
GUST THE DRAMSHOP
Rock Island and Moline in
"Wet" Column After Hot
and Bitter Fight

Chicago, April 8.-Women voting for
the first time in Illinois township elec-
tions demonstrated their power yester-
day by closing the doors of more than
thousand saloons, adding sixteen
counties to the thirty already dry and
barring the sale of intoxicants in ap-
proximately 200 of the 800 townships
in which local option was an issue.
Their victory included eleven of the
larger cities of the state which until
the votes were counted last night were
wet territory. They were:
Bloomington, Galesburg, Elgin, De-
catur, Canton, Freeport, Belvidere,
Monmouth. Kewanee, Lockport and
East Galena. Rockford, Mattoon and
Galva were kept in the dry column by
women's votes.
No city nor township which was dry
before the election was lost by the
anti-saloon forces but the cities of
Springfield, Rock Island, Quincy,
Aurora, Alton, Moline, Dixon and Ga
lena remained wet. Complete re-
turns from country townships and
from more remote sections of the state
were not available but detailed figures
of the vote in 81 townships placed the
women's vote at 40,681 dry and 1881
wet. showing that in those townships
approximately seventy per cent of the
women voters favored the antisaloon
ticket.
Men Vote "Wet."
Where accurate figures were avail
- hos M
about Sohe-eighth greater than the
approximately sixty per cent wet and
forty per cent dry.
In addition to their victories over
the saloons the women elected thirty
women township officials; twenty-six
woman member of a city board of edu-
cation, Mrs. Mary L. Morrison Of
Springfield.
ing said they hoped to win in ninety
per cent of the townships. After the
returns were announced last night, F.
Scott Mcbride, superintendent of the
anti-saloon league declared that he was
more than satisfied with the result.
Not a city or township which was dry
has gone over the enemy" he said,
"and our victories have been many.
This election will hasten legislation
curtailing the liquor selling in the
state. We have just begun to fight
and the campaign will continue until
there is not saloon left in Illinois.
Before another wet and dry election
we hope to have county option law
on the statute books and that will
make our battle easier to win
How Counties Stack Up.
The sixteen counties added to the
list of thirty already dry are: Boone,
Brown, Christian, De Kalb, De Witt |
Fulton, Henry, Jersey, Knox, Living
stone. Macon, Mclean. Shelby,
Warren and Winnebago.
OF the nearly dry counties resulting
from the election Joe Davies and
have each one wet city,
West Galena and Fulton, respectively
Kane county has five wet precincts,
Aurora, where the hottest kind of
contest resulted in favor of the liquor
and Burlington.
Promises in Rock Island.
Rock Island, which landed in the wet
column. experienced an eleventh hour
change Influenced, it is believed, large
ly by promises that the number Of city
saloons would be curtailed, more
stringent regulations enforced and all
bars closed at Z p m. week days and
all day Sundays.
Springfield, the state capital, voted
vet after campaign in which every
possible argument for or against liquor
selling was presented to the voters.
A majority of the women voted wet,
,he women's vote being 4,301 dry and
1876 wet.
Freeport, which for more than fifty
7ears has been wet territory and
which was regarded by many as GER
ain to remain so, saw it's forty eight
,aloons wiped out of existence by the
rotes of women.
Joliet was voted wet by majority
If approximately $500. Late night
'eports were that the city had gone
nto the dry column by 1000 votes.
The campaign, particularly in the 1
wards where the steel mill workers
i've. was vigorous. Nearly ten thou
and women voted their ballots being
learly equally divided as between the
vets and the drys. A majority of the
nen voters favored the saloon inter
sts.
To Demand Count.
Bloomington. Ill.,, April Son the s
ace OF the returns Bloomington was s
.oted dry yesterday by slender ma {