Ladysmith news-budget. [volume] (Ladysmith, Rusk County, Wis.) 1907-1927, 1915-06-04
IS NOT BREWERY DOMINATED
AsemhIyman EIIngson Writes Con-
corning AssembIy's Record on
Liquor Questions

An article was recently circulated
in several newspapers of Northwest
Wisconsin signed by one of our lead
ing assemblymen in which amongst
other things he referred to Assem-
bly, bill No. 525 in the following
language: Another step, showing
the absolute control that the liquor
interests hold over this legislature,
was taken the other day when
bill passed through the assembly,
repeating the Sunday closing law
for saloons. A bitter fight was
waged against that nefarious sort OF
legislation. It is one of the most
far-reaching measures which has yet
passed the Wisconsin assembly for
twenty years etc.
Friends, the bill in question did
not pass the assembly at all. 1t
was completely and thoroughly
killed May Goth by a vote of 40
against 20. l will further say the
reference of this solon to this legls-
lature as being under the absolute
control of the liquor interests is
unfair, untrue, and | can add I'M
manly. 1t may be that the writer OF
the article in question is not wholly
in accord with the assembly, but that
should be no reason why he should
decry this legislature in such terms.
want to challenge this gentle
man to show me any assembly in
the past years which has introduced
and passed more bills for the bet
terment of morals and decency than
has this assembly. We cite the
Anti-treating bill No. 228 A, by Mr.
Heden, of Price county, which car
ried through the several roll calls
and finally passed by a vote of AZ
for and 20 against. This doesn't in
dictate submission to the liquor in
terests. This measure is a far-reach-
ing measure and one which if con-
Cured in by the senate will do
more for the sObriety of our grow
ing up young men than any pre-
vious acts that have ever passed
the Wisconsin legislature.
Besides this the assembly has
passed more bills calculated to dim
inish and suppress vice than any
previous assembly.
He next attacked the legislature
for passing Senate bill No. 529
which passed the senate by a vote
of 20 for and against and the as
sembly by a vote of 50 for and 26
against Facts relative to this bill
are that some citizens Of Rusk
county had acquired the entire
flowage right stretching for 4 Or
5 miles on both sides Of Flambeau
Water-poWer in the wilderness. But
the state did hold the floWage
right to two fractions of land near
the upper end of the flowage of this
prospective Water-poWer. The flow
age rights on these fractions could
not possibly do the state any good
unless it had acquired the floWage
right to the other five miles and
the riparian rights to the dam site
etc, hence it wisely discarded the
policy of playing the part of the
dog on the manger and stopping de-
velopment If it had not been for
the unWise water-power legislation
during the last few sessions, this
water-power would have been built
and harnessed several years ago and
thus become a source of revenue to
the citizens living tributary thereto.
We of upper Wisconsin should feel
much relieved if the state is about
to change their dog in the manager
policy of refusing to develop the
water-poWer as a state and putting