The Butler weekly times. (Butler, Mo.) 1881-1918, 1916-11-02
SOME HOT SHOT
FOR MIR. SCHUPP
Col. James N. Sharp Refutes
Charges Made by Anti-Sa-
loon Agent.

Butler, NO., Oct 81, 1916.
Editor Democrat:-ln reply to the
unjust charge that is being circulated
against me in our county. to tho effect
that my actions in opposing some
pretended dry measures in the last
Legislature, were tantamount to be.
trayal of the dry element of the State,
I will say by way Of plain statement
of fact that an attempt was made by
some so.called dry" leaders of the
State to foist law upon the either :
thereof by resorting to what l, IN
open session, on the floor of the
House characterized as base subter
| fuge and lie, in order that 1t, the
said law, might escape the supreme
test, (the righteous, the undisputfl,
the supreme right Of the people tn
pass upon its desirability) would make
inevitable-by declaring that the
peace, health and safety of the cit
lens of the State were in such i'm
minent peril of insurrection. epidemic
and invasion as to be in immediate
necessity" for preservation to the en-
tent as to preclude the possibility OF
waiting until the test could be put
upon it by the peoples vote.
This was their given excuse for
such an unheard of proposition,
and it was then and there denounced
it in open session as a base subter-
fuge and lie, and charged also that
they knew. and that l knew, and that
every man in the State knew that the
real reason for their perfidious at
tempt was that they were afraid for
the people to pass on it. and that
they did not propose to abide by the
basic principle of Americanism OF
letting the majority rule" settle the
matter.
Now the right of the citizens of Mis-,
souri, to pass upon all such laws en-
acted by the Legislature Is guaran-
teed and established to them in the
Constitution of the State, an instru-
ment- that can be made or unmadc
only by the people themselves voting
as whole--the legislature having no
say in the making of it whatever, but
to the contrary, each member thereof
is compelled to take an oath that he
will uphold and keep it inviCiate, hence
was under oath to Keep sacred and
inviolate this very right which they
we're openly trying to defy. and when
the gentleman who, if I am correctly
informed, was the author Of the
scheme to evade and defy this right
saw that his men in the House could
not handle me to their advantage. ne
proceeded to take me in hand person.
ally.
He said. "Mr Sharp, YOU have not
been voting to suit me-" I said "No,
guess not" He then said, Nov
Mr.. Sharp. want you to come across
and vote for the next Bill that comes
up" I said, "Take off your subte,-
fuge and I'll vote for it." His answer
was, II will not do it,, and then and
there, this great Prohibition (?) King
of Missouri, the Rev. w. c. Schupp.
State Superintendent of the Anti-Sa-
loon League of Missouri. stopped to
the disreputable act of trying to
"hold me up" and force me to do his
bidding by saying that would have
to do 1t, that he had the power to say
I could not come back to that Legis-
lature and that he would exercise 1t
If I did not vote for his scheme. II
replied to him that If he wished to
insult me by approaching me in such
a way, and intimating that the people
Of Bates County did not have intelli-
gence enough to attend to their own
affairs. for him to come on. and so
far as was concerned the sooner the
better.
And now after waiting nearly two
years to put his finger over on my
people as though they were only a
button on a political checker-board
and moving them around as his sweet
will might dictate. he comes, at the
last hour. and lin keeping with his
code of the rules that govern in an
affair of honor and decency and as
sumes authority over them by telling
them in a letter boldly published In
a newspaper Of this county that I
"befriended the Liquor interests
at every turn in the last legislature"
and that I should be defeated, and
that, without giving them one single
act of mine to justify him in making
such a statement, and I willingly
leave it to the sense Of honor and
fairness with which my fellow-citi-
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