Gunnison news-champion., 1920-03-12

gall Of Rev. Anti-Jag Finch, for his
proposal to nuke the people Of
Colorado Of $375 900 for continued
campaign against the obsolete So
looms Most Of il was deserved, but
much exhibited more bitterness than
Necessary. Our friend Charles Leck-
enby docs a good job in his Steam
boat Springs Pilot, which we re-
print, aitho there is universal con-
demnation Of the scheme.
Greatest Program Rvsr Undertaken"
That is the way with becoming mod
esty, the Colorado Anti Saloon League
characterizcs its latest plan to induce
the generous people of Colorado to
dig up a small matter of $375, 900
Csoutt county's quota 50, 2,400) in order
TO keep its starving officials on the
pay roll. The league wants somebody
in Routt county to be chairman and
organize q lot Of volunteer workers to
go out and sandbag business men to
come across with the $2,l00. These
people are expected to donate their
time-the modest request is for them
to get the money, Bill. get the .mon-
ey' and send il to headquarters. How
patriots in Denver, Ia not stated, but
Il doesn't make much difference, for
the methods and objects for which
most as purposeless rs il the whole
fund was used up in administration.
gand dhotseasoning-i y
Evidently the Pilot cannot use Eng
lish in way to be clearly Understood
in the headquarters Of the Anti-Sa-
loon League. Notwithstanding what
We. thot were some comments that
were plain and direct, we are now in
receipt Of another circular from the
league asking support in putting
over" this latest graft on the long
suffering people and saying: "What is
your answer going to be! lndiffer-
encc?, There is no neutral ground.
Silence in . critical hour like this will
be constructed as friendliness toward
the liquor interests"
Bless your heart, Brother Finch,
there are going to be none Of these
things with the Pilot. Neither pas
sive tolerance, indifference nor neutral
ground. And as for the threat of
the construction you may put upon it
as "friendliness toward the liquor in
terests," that is the least Of our trou-
bles. You may get away with such
stuff with timid politicians, but not
with this paper.
The whole circular Is the most BIZ
goted, prejudiced and to our belief,
falsified statement that has been is
sued in Colorado for long time. n
pictures the liquor interests with a.
billion dollars working to corrupt, the
press, officials and the public. It
says liquor propaganda is finding its
way into the Colorado press and "fix-
ers" are already corrupting Colorado
public men.
Ard then to save Colorado from this
awful corruption fund, to set back
FIRE as it were, the dear people of this
state should between March 10th and
20 donate the princely sum Of $685.
900. The pure undulterated gall of
the proposition almost passes belief.
This money, the league says, is to
be devoted to three purposes; Law en-
forcement, ,Americanization Of foreign
ers, and worldwide prohibition.
We have officials paid to enforce the
law, and the excellent way in which
they are doing it is attested to by the
almost weekly arrests and the hun
dreds of dollars in fines that have been
turned into the treasury. The Unit
ed States government has appropriat-
ed an immense sum to Americanize
foreigners, and it is in the hands of
capable men. And as for foreign ac-
tivities, our first, care should be to
clothe and feed the millions Of starv-
ed, ragged, suffering men. women and
children Of Europe. When we get
them back to normal, when they are
again living like human beings, there
will be plenty Of time TO attempt their
moral regeneration.
The "liquor interests" of Colorado
are deader than an Egyptian mummy.
There isn't enough money coined to
induce the people to go back to the
old days Of the saloon. The press and
public men Of Colorado are not SO easi-
ly corrupted as the Anti-Saloon league
would have you believe.
ARE YOU FOR THIS PROGRAM
OR AGAINST TT" wildly shouts the
circular.
Plainly, frankly, without equivoca-
tion, and in the fewest possible words,
we are against it II the people Of
Routt county desire to contribute the
$2,4O0, they are, of course, at perfect
liberty to do so. But the Pilot will
not contribute of its space to urge
them to do so, will not fiji its columns
with the wild, prejudiced. bigoted, ex-
aggerations, and we believe, untfuth-
full propaganda that the whole moral
world is about to go down in chaos il
Finch doesn't get the coin, the S375,-
900 Of Colorado money, to "save hum
anity." We will not help to preach
it because we do not believe it.
-O0-