Forest City press. (Forest City, Potter County, D.T. [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1917-03-30

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enthusiasm to make the thing a
success.
John Smith became the topic
of conversation everywhere, in
Washington, on railroad trains,
and in hotel Hobbies throughout
the country. Railroad men checked
up his calculation that he would
use that 81, 1000, 900 SO as to bring
to Washington approximately $50
people from each state in the
union. This was based on the ar
rangements with the railroads,
which meant that they would
carry each passenger both ways
for the price of one straight fare.
The experts examined the fig
ures and found them correct.
Hotel managers figured on how
many guests they could accommo-
date, and finally were persuaded
that they would have to resort to
the inauguration expedient of put
ting cots in the Railways. Board
ing house keepers-those Of the
best class and those who spent the
first part of each day in dingy
wrappers-began their dreams of
unexpected prosperity. The Wash
ington chamber of commerce,
through it's various committees,
went to work to get the matter of
handling the crowd down to a
system, prepared cards showing
hotel and boarding house rates,
and began to call for volunteers to
help in entertaining and locating
strangers who would come into
the city without any knowledge of
where to seek accommodations.
: The police department an
nounced that it would have to
have the help of the organized
militia of the District of Columbia
in policing and patrolling the
streets and avenues on the day of
the parade.
At first the newspaper CORE
spondents, assembling each eve
ming in the National Press club
where they say what they really
think - confided to each other
their conviction that the plan was
impossible, and a few minutes
later wrote long, serious dis
patches, declaring that it would
be the greatest thing of it's kind
ever done. But even their cynic-
ism was short lived. 1t became
too evident that, back Of the move
ment, was a marvellous personal
ity which produced results. The
arrangements were going forward
with machinelike precision. The
things mapped out in the little
suite Of offices in the shadow of
the capitol were being carried to
fulfillmept in Los Angeles, Kanka-
kee, Galveston, st. Paul, Seattle,
Baltimore = everywhere. It was
impossible to believe otherwise
than that the greatest army ever
assembled for the purpose of
championing a reform cause was
coming into the national capital.
Leaders and representatives of
the whisky interests we're prac-
tically forgotten despite their sue
cess now and then in getting into
certain papers articles rejecting
on John Smith, questioning his
past history, and, in one or two in
stances, boldly asserting that he
had behind him a criminal record.
But they could not stop the inter-
est in John Smith. No matter
what he had been, he was now the
head and shoulders of a brand new
thing. No matter what he had
done, he was now doing something
that had never been attempted in
the United States. He had an
nounced that he would throw
against the doors of the capitol
such a crowd as would persuade
every legislator under the dome
that the nation wanted and de-
manded the abolition of the liquor
traffic. And, according to all
signs and evidence, he was going
to succeed.
OF course, through the chorus
of comment ran the argument as
to whether the demonstration
would have the effect he desired.
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