The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1915-09-09
Campaign for 100000 Prohibi-
tl0n Votes
LOCAL CITIZENS PRESIDING
Meetings Opened at County Court
House Wednesday and Are
Continued Today.

Small but enthusiastic audiences
greeted the members of the Flying
Squadron of New England, who are
touring Vermont in the interests of
prohibition, at the courthouse We'd
nesday afternoon and evening. Sever
al interesting and instructive address
ses we're given and a number of good
vocal selections by Mr. and Mrs
John c. Sutffin, w w Bartlett, sec
retary of the Bennington County I'm
proyement association presided in the
afternoon and John Spargo at the
evening session.
Rev w. f. Meyer pastor of the
Baptist church, opened the exercises
Of the afternoon with prayer, after
which the chairman introduced James
H. Woertendyke Mr. Woertendyke,
who was for many years minister,
took up the study OF law so that he
might attack the liquor traffic from
legal standpoint The speaker eX-
planned TO the audience what the
Flying Squadron meant and its plans
and purposes which are. namely, to
procure five million voters who will
stand steadfuastly for total prohibi-
tion and thus control the vote on the
liquor question. 1t is hoped that this
can be accomplished by July 1916.
Mr., Woertendyke declared that the
Flying Squadron was not money
making affair nor were the members
out for u good time as some people
have been wrongly informed, but that
the association of which they are n
part is willing and eager TO enter into
any fight, however small, against the
liquor traffic in any community, town,
or state. The fight is not only against
this traffic as confined to the states
but 10 the country as a whole, as the
interstate commerce commission has
declared that liquor can be legally
transported from one state to anoth-
er, even if one state be dry territory.
The speaker closed his remarks with
a plea that the people may unite
against this great peril of the country
and do their part in making up vote
to control it.
Following the address of Mr.. Woer-
tendyke, an entertaining vocal selec-
tion was rendered by Mr.. and Mrs.
Sutfrin. Prof. John A. Nichols spoke
on the gradual evolution of the prohi-
bition movement He Informed those
who were not satisfied with the prohi-
l, a..
prior to 1902 that the law now pro
posed was not similar to the prev
ious one hut was modelled after the
Kansas prohihitory law which is at
present working satisfactorily. The
speaker told of the uselessness of To-
cal option laws and other attempts at
regulating the liquor traffic. Mr..
Nichols declared that saloons were
disgrace to the community in which
they existed and asked his audience
for their aid in the furtherance of
nationwide prohibition movement.
At the evening session, the aud
ience again had the pleasure of lis
tening to an address by Mr.. Woerten-
dyke who spoke on the Protective
Attitude of the Law in Regard to the
Liquor Traffic" The speaker dis
cussed the stand of the federal gov
ernment Oh this question and the Law
ish manner in which the liquor inter
ests spend money to defeat prohibit
ton Mr. Woertendykc closed his
speech with a wish for the co-opera-
tion of those present in the fight
which the Flying Squadron is making
against the sale of liquor in our coun-
try