The interior journal. [volume] (Stanford, Ky.) 1912-1984, 1916-09-29
Prohibition In Kansas
Described by Gov. Hodges at w. C.
T. u. Convention.

Mrs. Adelia Woods and Mrs. j. F.
Cover. of the Stanford chapter of
the Woman's Christian Temperance
Union, returned home Wednesday af-
ternoon from Lexington where they
attended the state convention OF the
Woman's Christian Temperance I'm
ion of the Kentucky. At the hnal
session Mrs. Frances E. Beauchamp
was reelected president for the
22nd time. Lincoln county delegates
took a prominent part in the con-
vention which was very largely at
tended. Mrs. Cover served on tne
Resolutions Committee, and Mrs. j.
X. Baughman of Hustonville, was on
the Credentials Committee, and was
also chosen to deliver an address to
the Central Christian church Sun
day-school.
A feature of the convention was
the address of former Governor
George Hodges, of Kansas, who told
of the effect of Statewide prohibi-
ton. He said in part:
eve have not had licensed sa-
loon in Kansas in thirty-four years,
but l come not to defend prohibl-
ton. 1t needs no defense. Our
freedom from crimes, imbecility, pau
perism, degeneracy, feeble mind
ness and the attendant evils that fol-
low the use of liquor bespeak in no
unmistakable terms the value of pro-
hibition.
"The death rate throughout the
United States is about 10 to 100000.
In Kansas it is 9 90.
"The average land tax, exclusive
of improvements. is less than four
cents an acre. Kansas has no state
bonded indebtedness. We're not en-
t;rely free from consumption of Ii
uuor. Kansas spends S1.59 per cap
tia for liquor; throughout the United
States it costs S28 per capita. If
our people drink the same amount
of liquor that the same number OF
people do in other states, we would
spend about $50.000,000 more for
liquor than we do.
eve spend five times as much mo-
ney on our school system as we spend
for liquor, and that is the solution to
the statement that we have only
per cent of illiteracy.
"When I retired as Governor a
wear ago, we had a prison population
of 700. We have $50 on deposit in
the banks for each man, woman and
child in the state.
"Twenty-eight counties did not
have a jail prisoner during all of
1914. Forty counties did not send
prisoner to the penitentiary that
year. Twenty counties did not have
prisoner in the penitentiary that
year, nor have they had for years
A dozen counties have not called a
jury together in years to try a
criminal case, and in fact they would
not know the meaning of the word
"grand jury" Nineteen counties
have no poor farms. Thirty-two
counties have no indigents. Our
state has the remarkable showing of
only one millionaire and only ten
children taken care of in the poor
farm last year. 1t has a greater per
capita wealth and a much more
evenly distributed wealth than any
state in the nation.
eve only have one Predetermined
for every $500 self-possessed citi-
zen. One insane for every SIG in
| SANE. LESS IHdH per CcHI VI Jul
insanity is due to alcoholism.
GA state should be judged by
what it does in an emergency, and
during the financial panic of 1907
we made an immediate response tt
their request for money and sent
them S50,OOO,OOO in gold. Within
four months after an appeal was
made to farmers and business men
we sent to Belgium $4,000 barrel:
of our best Kansas flour.
"Of the school population of 600,
900, four-ffths of the number were
enrolled in school last year.
"One half of the population Of
| Kansas never saw an open saloor
and l dare to say that one-fourth Of
more of the young men and womer
never saw a drunken man in Kan
sas.
"Our state has less degeneracy
imbecility, pauperism, crime, insani
ty, feeble in proportion
to our population than any othel
state in the nation. A greater PEI
capita wealth, greater circulating
medium, more contentment and les
death rate than any other state. YOU
will have to agree that we are {
superior class of people, or that these
blessings, both commercial and mora
have come to us because there ha
not been licensed saloon in Kansas
in thirty-four years."