The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1918-07-17
OPENED HIS MOUTH;
PUT FOOT IN IT
Law Takes Hold of Secretary Bauer,
of the st. Louis Retail Liquor
Dealers Association.
PUT on LIQUORTTES.
Grave Abuse OF Serving to Draft Con-
tingents Causes Trouble: Newspaper
Urges Drastic Punishment.

Ignatius Bauer seems to have open
ed his mouth and got his foot in It.
And 1t is all because he would direct
a certain clientele to play the game
of politics In such a way as to defeat
for Office candidates with records back
OF them for enforcement OF law
against the liquor interests. lgnatius
Bauer is the reputed secretary of the
Retail LIQUOR Dealers of ST. Louis. He
will he remembered for having been
indicted for alleged circulation Of
anonymous literature attacking Jo-
seph w Folk In the interests of the
liquor dealers The method OF at
tack rs commented upon in the 81
Louis Dispatch. which condemns tn"
method as savoring of cheap political
trickery;
"Bauer's appeal by letters TO the
retail liquor dealers TO defeat FOLK Tor
the United states senatorship. be
cause nc had enforced the liquor laws
in Missouri was an extraordinary act
of folly and effrontery. SO unaccount-
ably vicious and silly that IL aroused
suspicion. Of cheap political trickery
His sending opt abusive posters was
the climax of The outrage"
What starts the rise against the sin
lister met hods of the Missouri liquor
dealers is the vicious manner In which
they are menaCing the welfare Of
nghtinE men whom they have the least
opportunity to reach The ST. Louis
liquor dealers are charged with max
ing open house for the draft contin-
gents when their time for departure
comes the results OF which are best
understood from The statement on the
St Louis Post Dispatch;
1T is the usual thing for the men
who make the rounds on their last
day to be the recipients Of great deal
Of well-tntended but tll-advised treat
ing" and tt lis the usual thing for
some 81 the men with every depart
ing contingent to appear az the train
intoxlcate ed The ward politicians idea
OF the correct thing Is a send off ac-
centuates this
1T is a matter Of Increasing con-
Germ to the war boards The roister-
ing enthusiasm which II breeds is not
in keeplnr with the serious business
for which tho men have been called II
interfere@ with the solemn farewels
OF relatives and mars the last moment
before departure Not infrequently
relatives of a departing man are not
able 10 find him before the train de
parts because ~ the crush Of jostling
and shouting friends
~ there ~ a day IN q mans life
when re ought 70 strive to keep sober
and he encouraged to keep sober II Ia
the dar on which he leaves home to
enter his country's service"
Ienatius Bauer opened IN the
searchliEht or newspaper arraignnent
when he attempted To put over hts
political scheme. And u IS recognized
that this attempt on his part Is just
part Of the general scheme Of the
liQuor fraternity They are reaching
70 7 ia
is concerned and are charged with
passing their own sentence OF exter-
mlnstion. continues the Post Dis
patch
Nothing has DOM more to contrt-
butte to the prohibition movement than
the conduct II some representatives.
ri the saloon and liquor interests,
Prohibition started chiefly on account
Of the disregard Of Law by saloons and
the insolent attempt ~ some lenders
Of the saloon and liquor interests TO
control politics. The movement has
been persistently fostered ny continued
efforts to dominate parties. control
legislatures and dictate nominations
frequently hy corrupt and tyrannieal
means Political revenge campaigns
on men who have enforced the laws
ard regulations concerning the sale Of
ltquor are the limit of impudent folly
The lawneesress and insolence Of
men 81 tho Bauer stripe have made II
difficult for law abiding men OF lib
erat minds who oppose prohibition on
principle To stand firmly for their
convictions II has driven hosts Of
men. whose principles and Judgment
would normally lead them TO oppose
prohibition, into the neutral or the
prohibition camps. They cannot stan 1
for the elements which would over
ride Law and degrade politics.
"A ssiutary example ought TO he
made Of Bauer Hts venture into pol
itics ought to he the last of Its kind
IN Missouri. The question OF prohibit
ton will never be settled right until
1, Is settled on a clean basis OF sound
judgment and sound principle, unin-
fuenced by the clamor and corruption
Of base representatives of sordtd inter-