Morgan County Democrat. (McConnelsville, Ohio) 1886-1943, 1935-11-14
LARGE CROWD AT DEMOCRAT
MEETING DESPITE THE RAIN

Notwithstanding the rainy, dis
agreeable evening, the crowd at the
Women's Democratic club meeting
Monday evening taxed the capacity
of the large Maccabee hall, it being
throughout the program. Fully six
times as many were present as
at the last Republican meeting held
in the same hall.
The newly elected president, Mrs.
Flo Strahl, presided, and after call
ing the meeting to order, turned it
over to G. A. Gaylord, chairman of
the program committee, who intro
duced those having part in the
program. Instrumental music was
furnished by Mr.. and Mrs. Henry
Hopkins, violin and piano, and j. F..
Niceswanger, guitar; vocal selec-
tions, by Mr.. and Mrs. John Chris
tie specially numbers, Dwight
Price, who very cleverly performed
a number of original stunts with
his musical instruments. Ronald
CHRISTIE also sang a solo, and he
and his father, John Christie, a
duet; and Fred McInturf gave a
reading, all of which were splendi d.
ly received. Preceding the meeting
an excellent six O'Clock dinner was
held at the Malta hotel, covers be-
ing laid for 48.
Congressman Robert T. Secrest,
the speaker, spoke at length, and
was given rapt attention. He spoke
of the $14, 900, 100000 this country
loaned European countries of which
they refused to pay back a dollar;
and also called attention to the fact
that foreign nations unloaded on
us 10 billion dollars worth of
worthless bonds for our good mon
ey. Mr. Secrest said he would nev-
er vote for cancellation of the for
eign debt. During the period 1920
1892, 1000 banks closed, and H.
100000 people lost all, or part, of
their lifetime savings; and then the
collapse Of the stock market, and
poorer and poorer became our peo-
pie, forcing the mortgaging of
homes and farms in order to get
money to live on-in all amounting
to ten billion dollars; then to keep
going came installment buying, and
another 10 billion dollars debt was
piled up, so that when the farmer
sold his wool, or cattle, or any of
the product from the farm, it all
went to pay on the mortgages and
installments; and he was only get
ting &c for wool, 40c for wheat;
cattle from &c to &c, it was simply
impossible for him to make ends
meet, and thousands of them went
to the cities to find jobs, in order to
make money enough to live on. Mr.
Secrest said that during this period
a mortgaged home or farm was be-
ing sold every ten seconds; and that
nothing tends to so destroy morale
of citizens as seeing their most
cherished possessions-their homes,
being sold.
Then the speaker discussed the
home owners corporation law which
was passed at the request of Presi-
dent Roosevelt and which saved
millions of homes and farms, and
gave people the opportunity to pay
their indebtedness at a lower rate
of interest, and on easy terms; and
now they are meeting payments
with soc wool, 90c wheat, and all
other farm produce proportionately
high compared with the low price
back in the year 1882.
| The speaker next took up the
| bank insurance act which fully
guarantees deposits up to $1,000 to
each depositor, thus putting conf
dence in our banks, and increasing
the deposits. He also discussed at
| length old age pensions, and Sc
curity acts. He looks upon the for
mer as sort of dividend-that it
is not a gift, since during the years
they worked they created wealth
beyond what they received this and
| the social security bill he classed as
the greatest humanitarian acts ever
passed. Mr. Secrest said that he
never voted for a measure which
gave him so much pleasure as when
| he voted on the social security mea-
sure-a measure which also secures
| more help to crippled children and
| for dependent children. He also dis
cussed the coal mining bill, which
does away with the company store
where miners had to make all their
purchases at prices double that
charged at regular stores; and the
miners being obliged to live in COM
pany owned houses, etc. He said
that coal brings more money into
this district than any other indus
try. AS to the potato bill, he said
that while he did not approve of it,
since it was tackled on to another
beneficial measure he voted for it.
He said: "You can raise all the po-
tatoes you want for yourselves, and
not pay a cent of tax and stated
that Ohio only produces about three
percent Of the potatoes consumed.
| Concerning the securities ex-
change bill which was passed, he
stated that some peiple didn't like
it because they could not unload
worthless stock on the innocent
public. While conditions are not
yet what we want them, Mr.. Secrest
said look back to the year 1882
and compare conditions then with
those today when farmers, who are
the backbone of the country, are
getting more than five billion dol
lars more for their produce than at
| that time.
Through the road measure, which
Mr.. Secrest had large part in get
ting passed, the improvement of 700
miles of dirt roads in this district
is being made, and he said that be-
fore this measure was passed not
nickel of federal money was ever
spent on county roads.
During his address, Mr.. Secrest
digressed long enough to state that
little paper in Caldwell attempted
to fight him along certain lines, and
these same articles were published
in certain other papers in the dis
trict; and that the more they pub
lished such things, he observed, the
more votes they seemed to make