The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1917-11-26
SCHEME OF VETS
IN LEGISLATURE.
DEFEATED DRYS
Indiana, TIL Tough Du blin
Bishops Efforts, Would
Now Be Dry.
BY HARRY 3. oEMAREE


ans thirty-five years ago, when, through
the efforts of the late Bishop Hallack
Floyd. DID,, for sixty years resident
of Dublin, the legislature passed an
amendment to the constitution, which
provided for statewide prohibition.
Married sixty and a half years. in
ventor. manufacturer, expounder OF
the gospel for more than half CEN
fury, presiding elder in his church for
twelve years, bishop ia his church for
sixteen years, editor, president of his
church college. legislator, and name
sake of over one hundred and fifty
children, is the remarkable biography
of the late bishop who succumbed last
week at his home In Dublin.
Was 70 Years Old
Bishop Floyd died at the age of
seventy-nine. He was born at what
is known as Flat Rock Cave. in Shelby
county, near Hope, Indiana At the
age of nineteen he became affiliated
with the United Brethren church and
was appointed to the Dublin circuit,
with twelve charges, which he filled
every three weeks, riding horseback
to reach them. In those days this was
designated as Circuit riding"
After serving as presiding elder OF
three districts for ten years, the Rev.
Mr.. Floyd was selected for the pres1-
dency of the Huntsville Qnd) United
Brethren college, now out of existence.
When q division came in the United
Brethren organization in 1889, the
Rev Mr.. Floyd was elected bishop of
the Radical branch for the southwest
ern district, in which capacity he serv-
ed for two years, and consecutively
thereafter in the same high office of
his church, for the eastern district,
two years, northwestern district four
years, again in southwestern district
four years, and again in the north
western district four years. He was
then succeeded by Bishop Hoskins.
But prior to this long and honor
able record in the bishopry of his
church, the Rev. Mr.. Floyd, from 1885
until 1889 was the publishing agent
and associate editor of the Christian
Consevator, then published at Day
ton. O. After being relieved from the
bishopry, he again became presiding
elder for two years.
He married Miss Mary Elizabeth
Peake, whose father, brother and
brother-in-law were all Methodist min
listers George Floyd, son of the
late Bishops is at present Metho-
dist minister The late bishops wild
CIV. now blind, survives him.
Elected to Legislature.
The great epoch in the late Bishops
life came in the year 1881, when the
Rev. Mr.. Floyd entered the political
arena and was elected by the Repub-
licans to the legislature from Wayne
county.
Always a faithful worker in the
cause of prohibition, the Rev. Mr..
Floyd received the one favorable op-
portunity to strike into the very heart
of the liquor evil.
An amendment to the constitution,
containing a provision for statewide
prohibition, had been submitted and
the Democrats of the house were
about to defeat the measure on the
theory that it would disrupt the Demo
crat party in Indiana.
The Rev. Mr.. Floyd rose to the oc-
casion with a powerful speech, de-
claring that he had been sent to the
legislature for the purpose of pro-
mitigating laws for the benefit and
good of the people, and that he repre-
scented county that was, at that
time, favorable to the amendment As
a climax to his speech, the Rev. MT.
Floyd said:
"If we refuse to grant expression to
the opinions of the voters who have
sent us here, We are taking from them
their rights of citizenship
Then he called for all those who were
sent to the legislature for the pur-
pose of representing the people, to
rise and follow him out of the House.
The Rev Mr.. Floyd was followed by
nearly half of the body of law makers
and the caucus was broken up.
Action Not Recorded.
caucus was again called for the
following night, and the amendment
was passed by both the House and
Senate. The late bishop always de-
clared the state of Indiana would have
been under the rule of statewide pro-
hibition these many years. were it not
for the fact that the clerk of that as
sembly, through some unknown fault,
either accidentally or purposely failed
10 make record of the proceedings
or az least, the records could never be
located at he next session of the leg
islature. two years later at which time
further action was to have been taken.
1t has always been the opinion of
the late bishop that it was a ruse of
the vets to defeat the passage of the
amendment.
Not all has been gold that glitter
ed before the late bishops eyes. Once
he aspired TO become a manufacturer,
and was rewarded as result of his
ambitions, with the loss of $4,000, in
the old Wayne Works, formerly locat-
ed here
The late bishop was the inventor of
4 smoke conveyer and consumer for
railway trains, also a feed cutter, the
latter being the vehicle of his $4,000
loss.
The high esteem with which the
bishop was held by his church sub
jects, is eyineed by the fact that over
$50 children in both the United
States and Canada claim him as their
name-sake. The family possesses the
photographs of most of these children
Six years after the first land rush
was made into Oklahoma, the late
bishop organized many missions in
that country for the benefit of the In
dams. He was also member of the
Indiana legislature when that body
made free turn-pikes of all the toll