Southern Illinois Journal

              .^v«v
THIRTY-SEVENTH YEAR.
FLORA, ILLINOIS
mfmd
DECEMBER 13, 1907.
NUMBER 48
GOVERNOR DENEEN
Spoke at Opera House on Friday
LARGK CROWD HEARD
Interestiag Addresi, Qave  Closegt 'At- ^¦: tcnlioD.
i'A UrRe and rnthnslRBttc Hodtrnce . leted Qoreroor P«ne«n at I he Opera Jonee here Uet Friday on bis appear¬ ance in behalf of hin candidacy for rs- aominatloD And elrctloD.
The train which shonld have reached , here at 11:40 wag forty minntea late. | L, B Arrangements had been mad"! for din, ner at the Worthlngton, and aa the Governor wan to leave here at 2-.IS, the tlma fpr the addresa was necessarily T«ry short.
I" Hon. F. M. Chaffin of Clay City, was ¦elected as chairman, and in a few well Qhoeen senterices, introdaced the speak¬ er. With a few preliminary reiuar|s.' toncbing his early life and tha' of hie mncestors io 8outbern niinois, tbe Qor¬ ernor passed rapidly to a discnssion of the achlevementn of hi* HdminiBtration. He claimed that the tbree principal plaoka of hts platform '\iefore the people tbree years ago were tbe Chicago Char¬ ter, Civil Service in tbe penal atad char¬ itable institntions of the state, and a ¦tate wide primary law. Tbe special charter for tbe city of Chicago had been passed by the legislature bnt was reject¬ ed by the votsrs of tbat olty. Civil ser- - vice for tbe charitable inetlintions only bad been secured while two primary laws bald been passed bat were uot able to pass muster before the Snpreme Court, anrl another wak still ander c m- ^rideratlon bytbe legislatare.
Owing to limited time, tbe only snb¬ jeot discasied at length, was the tnatter of Improvement in the care of the state's] wards. And this portion of the addross contained mucb that was ntw and instractive. In fonvarding th,is treat yrork Qovernor Deneen h>t» passed over the heads of tbe politlclanii •od bosses and bas called to his aid men fully equipped to grapple with the prob¬ lems presented.
The manner in which these reforms have been bronf?ht abont and the ob- (taoles presented wers di^l-i/s^cJ at length. .   .
The attempts at Improvement in roads and road making were also toncbed upon as were tbe attempts to devise plans to restore old and worn out lands to their former degree of fertility DSiug convict labor in botb acbemes. Witb little or no attempt at oratory he confined bimself to a plain, Instractive presentation of facts, tending to eslab- Ush his claim of a basiness adminlstra- tioD. His hearers would bave been pleased to hear his views on the primary law now pending, bnt in tke midst of bia discassion. and certainly before he traa half throagh, tbe train on which fae was to l«ave came, and be wxs com¬ pelled to make a hurried clos'i and a ran for the depot, taking the train for LawrencevlUe wbere be spoke a.:;aio in afternoon.
A namber of distingnlehed visitors were present, among whom Were: Ad- jotaot Qeneral Tboe. W. Scott of Fair¬ field, Warden Jas. B. Smith ot Chester, Hon. A.C. Millspaagh of Mt. Vernon, and Bon. C. £. Hall and Hon. C. L