The Owosso times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1897-1926, 1920-05-07
Republican Banquet.


fiayed for it's extravaganza, President
Wilson was taken to task for his
League of Nations covenant, with its
provisions for sending the youth OF
this county to foreign lands at the
beck and call of European govern
governments and for his autocratic
methods, which earned him the char
acterization by Congressman Frank
Crowther of New York of the "man
who thinks himself nearer to God than
any other living SOUL" The executive
was hit hard for what the speakers
called misrepresentation in being re-
d, elected in 1916 on the strength of his
naving kept the country out Of war,
when as a matter of fact, she kept
only two men out of war, Col. Roose-
velt and General Wood"
The women, taking part for the
first time on an equal plane with the
men at such an event in this county,
were heartily welcomed to the ranks
of the party, and were represented by
a speaker on the program.
John Y. Martin, president of the
Republican club, called the assemb-
lage to order, and spoke briefly. He
then presented S. @. Pulver who pre-
sided gracefully and well as toast
master. Mr.. Pulver stated that there
had been much complaint following
similar events in the past, that the
toastmasters had done most of the
talking themselves and taken time
which rightfully belonged to the
speakers, with the result that the
audience became tired and restless
long before the program had been
completed. He assured his hearers
that he would not do this, and he
kept his promise.
Mrs. Mary Veen Fleit of Alpena,
was the first speaker. She gained
fame in the state by her address at
the last Republican state convention,
and in her address last night, she said
that fame rested on her greeting to
the audience at that time. She greet
ed them as "Fellow Republicans" and
repeated this greeting last night. She
expressed delight at the large number
of women in attendance last night and
remarked approvingly of their whole
some womanly appearance. She was
more than glad, she said, that there
was no woman present in peekaboo or
iow-necked waists. She urged her
hearers to be true to their state ana
nation and asserted that to be good
Republican was to be a good citizen.
She spoke of the glorious feeling she
had experienced when she first became
a full fiedged citizen. Loyalty to par
ty, she said, required good American
grmption and common sense.
Congressman Crowther declared
that the people today need clearness
of vision and unity of purpose to i'm
press on the occupant of the white
house that the constitution of the
United States is still functioning and
that his title is still president and
not king. He declared that history
shows that every time the Democrats
have gotten into control, industry has
been crippled and the economic situa-
9Ion has become depressed.
The coming of the war, he said,
with great industries in this country
turning to the making of war sup
plies for the allies before this country
entered the war, prevented such an
occurrence in 1914 and 1915 and saw
ed the face of the Democratic party.
Rep. Crowthers charged the president
with deliberately putting off the en-
try of this country into the war, for
political reasons, when he knew that
we were being drawn in slowly but
surely. And it was not Woodrow Will
son, but Theodore Roosevelt, who
really awakened the people to the
danger of the situation and to the
need of this country going into the
war to defend her honor, the speaker
asserted. He asserted that when the
Democrats meet in convention, they
will be haunted by "He kept us out
of wary "too proud to fight" and
other pacifist phrases coined by the
president before the entry of this
country into the world strife, for he
said it was necessary for over 100000
American boys to give up their lives
10 wipe LIldJ SJdil VI JOO plOuu W
fight" from the American flag.
The speaker took occasion to rap
the drifting course of the American
people before the entry of the country
into the war and asserted that by try
ing to make life's path easier for their
children than theirs had been, par
ents had deprived them of their stur-
diness and initiative, yet in spite OF
this, the American boys became real
men when they got into uniform, and
won the praise of the world by their
wonderful fighting. He criticised the
tendency among girls of the marriage
age to avert housework and raped
the class of married women who, he
said, chad made their husbands learn
to eat their meals out of paper bags,
through buying so much at the delica-
lessen stores" eff a lot of these
vVoTnen ever lost their can openerS "