Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1916-1918, 1916-10-31
TALK ON ISSUES
At DINING HALL
Roberts and Enoch Address
Packing House Men;
Quartet Sings

The political Issues OF the day were
discussed at meeting held in the wo.
mems dining room of the packing
mousse Friday night. Judge NJ. A. Rob
erts and United States Commissioner
A. w. Enoch were the speakers. The
various republican county and town
snip candidates were also present and
most of them spoke
i The meeting was we'll attended the
room being comfortably filled and the
interest was keen. The attention was
close and the speakers given ample
opportunity to dwell on the various is
sues for the men present wore the air
or thinking and seemed anxious to
near the questions of the day dis
cussed./
The meeting opened by Chairman
Zeli zimmerman, one Of the, employees
OF the company. introducing the cele.
orated megaphone quartet Of the FRS!
cavalry band. Messrs Arthur Grimm,
James Riggles, William Hahn and
George Potter.
| The singers woR place in the
hearts or the audience Immediately
and had to respond to two encores be-
fore the speaking program was begun.
The songs were campaign ballads sung
to the air Of popular music.
Assails Mexican Policy.
Mr. Enoch opened the speaking by
! short discussion and explanation OF
tariff showing the stands taken by the
two big parties and urging upon his
hearers the greater benefit to the
people at large by the republican high
protective tariff.
His remarks were chiefly upon the
foreign policy. of the present admins
tration which he charged with being
inadequate and one OF repeated mis-. .
takes. The Mexican question as
handled by President Wilson was :
especially scored as one fraught with
danger to this country in the event
1t is not settled before the end Of the
European war. The speaker held that
upon the close of the big war the ma.
tions now fighting will demand redress
for the suffering of their citizens and
property loss in Mexico because Of the
position taken by this country under
the Monroe doctrine.
He cited the Moroccan incident in
President Harrison's administration
when an ultimatum backed up by the
navy made the Sultan of Morocco de.
liver an American citizen held by ban
dts in that land. He said he believed
In dollar diplomacy that protects the
life and property of American citizens
anywhere in the world.
Urges Party Organization.
The quartet sang two more selec-
tions and Judge Roberts then spoke
for half an hour. He devoted hi.
opening remarks to urging party or.
ganization holding that 1t II Necessary
to the welfare Of the country. He
said that the two big parties stand to-
day largely on the separate sides OF
the same question that divided them
seventy-f1ye years ago.
He gave some attention to the cur.
rency question and the part that the
republican party has taken In financial
legislation recalling the days of the
late seventies when the greenbacks. (,
national bank notes and specie pay
ment to redeem the currency was be.
fore the people for discussion.
The speaker said that the republican
party then carried out It's promises
and has since done SO. He referred to
the single gold standard and the free
silver campaign showing how a repub-
lican congress placed the monetary
system or tue government on SAFE
footing.
Tariff And Labor.
Judge Roberts also gave much at
tention to the tariff and showed the
fallacy of free trade as compared to
protective tariff in providing employ.
ment and good wages to the American
laboring man and woman. The former
he characterized as permitting foreign
made articles manufactured by cheap
labor to compete with American made
goods and its consequent throwing out
of employment the American laborer.
The protective tariff. he said would
charge suficient duty ON the foreign
made articles to bring them up to the
cost OF manufacture Of the same
goods in this country and thus max.
the competition fair for the American
manufacturer. This he said would pro.
vide the labor of this country with the
means of employment and bette.
wages than should the competition ba