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Article Title: Bad Grammar and Sensational Style
Full Citation: Patricia C Gaster, “Bad Grammar and Sensational Style: The Daily Bumble Bee and the Fight for Prohibition in 1890,” Nebraska History 88 (2007): 28-41.
URL of article: http://www.nebraskahistory.org/publish/publicat/history/full-text/NH2007Bad_Grammar.pdf Date: 2/16/2011
Article Summary: Long before Nebraska ratified the Eighteenth Amendment to the US Constitution, anti-alcohol sentiment was a contentious force in territorial and state politics. The Daily Bumble Bee figured prominently in the fight for Prohibition in 1890 in Nebraska, though it survived less than one week. It ceased publication as soon as the results of the 1890 election were definitely known, having provided a last-minute boost to the pro-amendment cause.
Cataloging Information:
Names: William Eugene Johnson, Edward Rosewater, George Howard Gibson, C V “Con” Gallagher, T S Clarkson, Richard C Cushing, Sam D Cox, T S Clarkson, Bartlett L Paine, J E Miller, James E Boyd, Lucius D Richards, John H Powers, Andrew G Wolfenbarger, Artemis Roberts, Henry C Bittenbender, George W Woodbey, T J Calvin, Addison E Sheldon, Charles Watts, A Fitch, H W Hardy, F P Wigton, C Olson, Mrs Mary R Morgan, Victor Rosewater, John P St John, Charles A Coe, Edward P Roggen, George L Miller, A Lucius Rodman, M L Holt, Q H Shinn, John Yardley, Eddie Richardson, L M Rheem, Lem J Smith, F A McKenzie, George B Skinner, W B Smith, A W Lamar, C E Bentley, Charles Rosewater
Keywords: Slocumb “high license” liquor law; “dry” society; Non-Partisan Amendment League; Prohibition Party; “Pussyfoot” Johnson; temperance; WCTU; Lincoln Daily News; Lincoln Call; New York Voice; Omaha Leader; American District Telegraph [ADT]; Omaha World-Herald; Standard Printing Company; Republican Party; People’s Independent ticket; prohibition; Bumble Bee; Chadron Advocate; Australian Ballot Act of 1891; Park Place Congregational Church [Omaha]; New York State Protective Association; Nebraska State Business Men’s and Bankers’ Association; Amendment headquarters program from 1890; Daily Bumble Bee 1890 “We Are Going to Win” excerpt; Omaha beer drinkers at a saloon on Thirteenth Street between Harney and Farnam, 1886 [Omaha]; “A Clean Sweep” ad from Omaha World-Herald, 1890; Political cartoon opposing Lucius D Richards, 1890; Victor Rosewater, Edward Rosewater, and Charles Rosewater portrait
Photographs / Images: William E Johnson, founder of the Bumble Bee; Omaha Leader and New Republic excerpts; Bartlett L Paine, Prohibition candidate for governor; Omaha Bee building; printed party ticket for Prohibition Congressional Ticket BAD GRAMMAR DAI ~Y BUMBL E BEE.
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The Doify Bumble Bee was published for le ss than a week in support of a prohibition amendment to the Nebraska constitution, a proposal tha t capped a wave of temperance feeling in th e 18905.
The Daily Bumble Bee and the Fight for Prohibition in 1890
LoNG BEFO RE 1919, W ilEN NEBRASKA RATIFIED TilE before the election, pro-amendment (dry) forces Eighteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution in Omaha began publishing a four-column, four page newspaper ca lled th e Daily B1Il11ble Bee for free establishing nati onal prohibition, Nebraska's anti distribution throughou t the city. Produced underthe alcohol sentimen t was a conten tious force in auspices of the Nebraska Non-Partisan Amendment territorial and stat e politics. One of the first ac ts Leagueand the stat e Prohibition Party, the paper was o f the territorial legislat ure was to ou tlaw th e the brain child of prohibitionist William Eugene (la ter manufacture, sa le, and consumption of alcoholic "Pussyfoot") Johnson. Although his name does not appear on the masthea d, can temporal)' newspaper beverages. Although it was never enforced, th e accounts, as well as Johnson's later au tobiographi law remained in effect from 1855 to 1858, when a cal writings, identify him as th e ed itor of th e Bumble saloon-l icensi ng act beca me law. Bee .Three issues of th e Daily Bumble Bee-October 30, November I , and November3-are on microfilm Opposite: William E. Johnson [n 1867, when Neb raska en tered th e union, the ac t at th e Nebraska State Historical Soc iety Library/ of Lin coln, founder of the of 1858 remained in force. A measure enacted in Archives.:! Bumble Bee, went on to a 188 1, th e Slocum b "h igh license" liquor law, raised Nebraska has a long histOlY of short-lived tem colorful career as a U.S. lice nse fees to $500 for each saloon in towns under perance newspapers that frequently died from lack special agent and acquired 10,000 population and to $1,000 in th ose over 10,000. ' of financial support. but Johnson's Bumble Bee is the colorful nickname A wave of temperance feeling during th e late one of th e most unusual. Its turbulent life of less "Pussyfoot." NSHS RG2092-1 -4 1880s (promoted by "dry" societi es, churches, and than one week ended as soon as th e resul ts of the th e Prohibition Party) cu lminated in 1890 with a 1890 election we re definitely kn own. It had fulfilled popular vote on a prohibi ti on amendment to th e its pu rpose-to provide a last-minute boost to th e state constitution. On October 30, just five days pro-amendment cause.
S PR I NG/SU~ IM EH 2007 • 29 DAILY BUMBLE BEE. "trrutb ~rusbeb to Eartb SbaU 1Hse llgaln,"
Opponents dismissed th e Bumble Bee as prohi collected there, making it th e center o f anti bitionist sensationalism, but johnson evidently amendment feeling.I' had fond memories of the little paper. His later Am ong Lincoln and Oma ha dailies on ly the recollections and ot her accounts of the fight for Lincoln Call consisten tly favored th e amendment th e 1890 prohibition amendmen t oft en mention throughout th e campaign. advertising itse lf as th e \ the Omaha "temporary daily," sometimes wi th out "Iead ing 'for the amendment' pa per in th e stat e. n naming the pa per or noting its VCIY brief durati on.:1 Ea rly in th e campaign th e Call had rea lized that "Pussy foot" Johnson, who acquired national prohibition support ers could not succeed with out renown along wi th his colorfu l ni ckname after assistan ce from temperan ce organiza ti ons ou t 1906 wh ile servi ng as a special agen t for th e U.s. si de th e stat e. "Prohibitionists evelywhere should Department of th e Interi or to su ppress th e illega l regard th is campaign as a nati onal rath er than a sale of liquor to Indians in Oklahoma, was alrea dy stat e contest," th e paper ed itoriali zed on June 13, kn own in Nebraska temperan ce ci rcles by 1890. 1890, "a nd contribu te freely in this emergency. " 7 Born in New Yo rk Stat e on March 25, 1862, he wen I West as a young man, sett ling in Dodge County, Nebraska. P I!HTl1( rI. {I I li'lO' (/f. (lie r He taught school in rural Dodge County for a
time in the ea rly I 880s and attended th e Unive rsi ty If( .'if. Ilt (II, ;"(II,;tJ' 10 ~( r'C I'lll of Neb raska . Although he neve r gradu ated , Johnson was acti ve in st udent affairs. He managed th e rlllt; pI 0/1,1,,';0/' ~l ... 011 bo Ill ... I-Iesperian Stlldent, the college litera lY periodical , and engaged in public speaking. After leaving "J 0 h 0 S 0 0' sPa I e A I e" sc hool he went into the rea l esta te business in Lincoln. He was also on the staff of the Lincoln lett ,." (ltl a ... l." k fOl (U/IIC C· Daily News from 1884 to 1886 and worked for th e Oil tI( It. a l '"g llu alII 1ItlI" 'Ill . Neb raska News Bureau.1 Always a total abstainer, Johnson enthusiasti ca lly entered th e amendment battle in 1890. Less than thirty yea rs old and with an aggress ive On October 25, 1890, the Call lea rn ed that demeanor. he developed in Nebraska some of th e Omaha postmaster C. V. "Con" Gallagher and his bold tactics he later used in Oklahoma and else soon-to-be-installed replacement, 1'. S. Clarkson , where. Posing as a liquor dealer. he sen t an inquily were holding more than ten thousand copies of to seve ra l anti-proh ibitionists on bogus "Johnson's that day's issue at th e Omaha post office. Copies Pale Ale" lett erh ead , asking for- and receivin g of th e New York Voice , a national prohibition advice on defeatin g the proh ibitOty am endment in weekly that raised funds for and reported th e Nebraska, thus giving prohibition supporters inside pro-amendment figh t in Nebraska, and th e Omaha in formation about the tactics to be expected from Leader also were being held. The Call charged anti-proh ibi ti on fo rces, that Gallagher had poli ti cal motives fo r refusi ng to The name of his little paper was inspired by allow distribution of th e newspapers and blasted Edward Rosewater' s Republican Omalla Bee, a a conspiracy of saloon·keepers and their politi cal Patricio C. Gaster is assist leading anti-amendment influence th roughout tools (including Ga llagher and Omaha mayor ant editor of Nebraska the sta te.' Th e Democratic WorldHerald and oth er Ri chard C. Cushing) for sparin g no effort to defeat History. Omaha newspapers (with th e exception of th e the amendment:'! Omaha Leader, edited by George Howard Gibson) Oma ha postal authorities offered several opposed the amendment. Omaha, the largest city excllses for th eir delaying action. Th ey described in th e stat e. was ho rn e to several breweri es and the copies of the Call and Voice as sample copies benefited from th e high sa loon license fees that did not demand immediate delivery. Postal
30 • NEBRASKA history :-:-;-__H_A_V_E_Y_O_U_ S_E__E_N__w ~1 ~"'~ ~ ~THE OMAHA LEADER, ~ ~ ~ THE *~ :!IT-HE-LE-AD-'NG-Il-EFO-IlM- P-AP-EIl-OF- r-IIE-WE-ST.!..:..::l NEW REPUB LI C. Stre'luous l ~ Opposed to Saloo'ls and ~ I ~I~- Saloo'l Rul e, Advocating The Rights of Labor, Determ i'led t~ a t Just A Prohibition Weekly Paper. The Omaha Leader, a ice S~ a ll Be Secu red to al l. reform newspaper, and It Seeks and Spreads the Truth is Fear STATE ORGAN the New Republic, the lessly Loyal to it, its Mission is to Make it" official Prohibition Party newspaper that supported -OF THE Known. Money or th e Lack of Money can· the party's entire plaHorm, not Swerve it from Principle. lis Aim is also supported the 1890 to Do Good. A Morally H ealthf ul, Con PROHIBITION PARTY. prohibition amendment. science-Enlightening Family Paper, Ask From Flora Hamilton Cassel. ing Your S)' mpalhy and Support. While Ribbon Songbook. One Dollar per Year. t890 One Dollar per Year. Address : Published by GEO. H. GIBSON, EDITOR AND PUBLISHER. H. W. HARDY, ED .. OMAHA, NEB. LINCOLN, NEB.
authoriti es charged the Leader with offering premi Omaha with th e pro·amendment message. On ums to readers who recruited new subsc ri bers fo r OC lober 30. 1890. less th an a week before election th e paper, an alleged violati on of a federal anti day, he launched th e aftern oon Daily Bumble Bee lott e,y law. Th e Call sent staff member Sa m D. Co x into bailie against its chi ef opponen t, Rosewa ter's to Omaha to lIy to secure delivelY of th e papers, Bee. Rea ders were told that the Bumble Bee's mis and prohib ition iSIs threalened lega l action. Th e sion was to ~te ll the tru th, correct th e infamous lies Call appealed to postal au lhori ties in Washin gton th aI are scattered by a subsidized press, and give and fin al ly secured a federal ord er o n Oc tober 29 th e citizens of Omaha a chance to reach th e public instructi ng Ga ll ag her to deli ve r th e delayed copics in a tru thful manner. " It charged th e Bee and th e of th e Call and Voice. However, Galla gher did nol World-I lerald wi th treating prohibitionists unfairly prom ptly comply." and warn ed, "We cl o not propose to let Public Attempts to lise other methods to ge t the news Censor Gallagher suppress us on account of being papers into the hands of Omaha voters al so failed. sam ple copies." Johnson hired th e Standard Cox tried to hire the American District Telegraph , Prin ti ng Company to print th e newspapers, an d which regu larly delivered advert isi ng material , newsboys throughout th e city d istributed them but th e A.D.T. refused his request to deliver the free. 1I impounded issues of th e Call or any oth er prohi bi Political opinion in eb raska rega rdi ng prohibi tionist literatu re. Johnson and a prohibition tion was complex in 1890. Th e Hepubl ican Party attorn ey visited Ih e A. D.T. offi ce bul fa il ed to was d ivided on th e liquor question. A majority of persuade th e company to relenl. lO its members were dly. and Republica n state legis Johnson, a corres pondent for both th e Call lators had urged in 1889 1hal th e question of and Voice, was determ ined to reach the voters of constitu ti onal proh ibition be pu t to th e people in
S P R I NG/ SU~ Il\l E R 2007 • 3 1 Bartlett l. Paine, Prohibition candidate for governor. There were other gubernatorial candidates be Paine's business partnership with J. E. Miller eventu ally became the Miller and Paine department store sides Boyd in the fie ld in 1890: Lucius D. Richards in downtown lincotn. NSHS RG2411-5935o Republ ican; John H. Powers, People's Independen;; and Bartlett L. Paine, Prohibiti on. There were two 1890. However, there was an active wet element temperance political groups: th e Nebraska Non within the party. Two leading dailies on opposite Partisan Amendment League, formed in June 1889 sides of the amendment issue, the "pro" Lincoln specifica lly to work for a proh ibition amendment, Call and the "anti" Omaha Bee, were both Republi and th e regu lar state Prohibiti on Party, with a plat can . Democrats adopted an anti-prohibition plank form supporting not only the amendment, but the in their 1890 party platform, with many favoring Australian ba llot, woman su ffrage, direct election the existing high-license system, and concentrated of federal officers, and state ownership of railroads. on the election of former Omaha mayor James E. The Non-Partisan Amendment Leagu e sought Boyd, an outspoken opponent of prohibition, to to organize local pro-amendment leagues in every the governorship. The People's Independent ticket county, townsh ip, city, village, and precinct in was predominantly dry but tried to sidestep the Nebraska. The Prohibition Party, under the lead issue, believing that a formal endorsement of pro of Andrew G. Wolfenbarger, Artemis Roberts, and hibition would detract from its overall econom ic Henry C. Bittenbender, nominated a slate of candi objectives. 12 dates headed by Paine, a prominent Lincoln merchant, for governor and George W. Wood bey, an African American minister of Omaha, for li eutenant governor.13 Pa ine had arrived in Lincoln in 1878, established a homeopathic medical practice, and in 1884 entered business with J. E. Miller to form what later became the Miller and Paine department store. Wood bey, a se lf-educated nati ve of Ten nessee, become an ordained Baptist minister in 1874 and served churches in Kansas, Missouri, and Nebraska. He left the Republican Party because it was "too cowardly to take up this fight for prohibition," serving not only as Nebraska's Prohibition Party candidate for lieutenant governor in 1890, but as the party's candidate for Congress in 1894. He later bolted the party to endorse William Jennings Bryan in his fai led 1896 pres iden tial campaign. By 1900 Woodbey had turned to socialism and in 1902 left Neb raska for San Diego." From the beginning the Bumble Bee viewed itself as a David against Rosewater's Goliath. When the Bee criticized Wood bey as "an Omaha gent of off color, whose zest for the cause can only be measured by th e boodle in sight," the Bumble Bee leaped to his defense. Calling Wood bey "a cred it to his race ... who can stand on the platform and defend himself at any time against all comers," the paper asked rhetorically, "[W] ill the colored voters of Omaha subm it to such indignities?"IS The effects of prohibition in the neighboring dry states of Iowa and Kansas were discussed in the first issue of the Bumble Bee, that of October 30. The paper criticized Charles Conoyer of the Omaha Board of Education for his letter to Edward Rosewater's Omaha Bee, was a "wet" Nebraska teachers attacking prohibition in Iowa Republican daily with a magnificent building and statewide Inlluence. NSHS RG2341 -182 and Kansas. The letter, written on official board
32 NEBRASKA history stati onery. was igned and circulated by Conoyer the ticket by crossing out th e unwanted person·s wi th out th e per iss ion of the board. Letters from name. George W. Winans and Henry Sibin, state superin The Nebraska Sta te Legislature of tendents of pub ic instruction in Kansas and Iowa 1889 had provided th at a proposed respecti ve ly, reluted allegations in Conoyers letter prohi bitory amendment to the state by giving a favo 'able view of prohibition in their co nstitution be sub mitted to vo ters PBOlilJJ states. T. J. Ca lvin , probate judge of Labette Co unty. on the fi rst Mond ay in Novem ber .... 'l1'lIJ/f Kansas, also deemed prohibition a success there Y' 1890. A second proposed , 81'41'11 ame ndment, providin g for th e The Bumble Bee attacked Rosewater and Omaha ....~ . II ~ attorney John L. Webster, who had recen tly warned li cense and regu lation of th e ~Qe l.. ...,(h". th e ministers of Omaha agai nst beco mi ng po liti sale of li quor, was to be ~ ""'::'1lO~G~'1lI, ca lly involved in the campaign by promoting pro sub mitted to the people at ~~'" ~ IIr, hibition from t e pu lpi t. Webster fu rther infu riated the sa me time, with the I'Q,. ~ "
Sl'tUNG/ SUMMEH 2007 ' 33 ivlany vote rs, however, were co nfu sed by th e "doctored" poll books printed by th e Republican proximity and similar initial wordin g of th e Iwo Printing Compa ny of Omaha that co ul d result in measures, and many ma rk ed ballots didn't refl ect in co rrec t recording of th e amendment vote. In his the voter's intenti ons. Th e Nebraslw Siale JOllrnal 193 1 history of th e state, Addison E. Sheldon, wh o of Lincoln point ed out that perso ns des iring to had personal memories of the 1890 election, vo te for eith er one of th e two amendments musl asse rted his belief th at not only had th ousands of "be ca reful to see Ihat they vote affi rm ati vely and fraudu len t ballots been cast in Douglas County, scra tch th e negati ve vo te relati ng to that proposi bu t th at elec ti on offi cials had deliberately held tion. " No affirmative vo te at all-as we ll as a back prec in ct ret urns so that they could manufac sc ratch of all four choices-would be interpreted ture enough addition al illega l vot es to overco me as a vote aga inst both amendme n ts. ~'tJ any adverse majority in outstate J eb r aska. ~J The Journal, which opposed th e proh ibito r)' A curious in cid ent tha i embarrassed the pro hi· amendmen t. accused proh ibition ists of circula tin g bitionists jusl prior to th e elec tion co ncerned the ballots in wh ich th e am endment "Free Grand Ba rbecue" advertised by th e Bumble proposi ti ons were illegally alt ered "in Bee on October 30 for th e afternoon of Su nday, •••• the hope that ignorance or ca reless November 2 at prohibition headquarters in ST. JOHN ness may in crease th e number of Amendmen t I-Iall at 1307 Douglas Street in Omaha. votes for prohibition," a misdemeanor Accordin g to th e Bumble Bee, Edwa rd Rosewater AT under sta te law punishable by a fin e was to be "roasted" by Joh n P. SI. John . As gave l'· of not less than fifty dollars nor more nor of Kansas ( 1879- 83) SI. Joh n had successfully AIDen~IDent Hea~~uar~rs, than two hun dred dollars and impris support ed a prohib it ion amendment to the Kansas on ment for sixty days in the co unty constitution and had been speak ing publicly in 1307 DOUGLAS ST jail. Victor Rosewa ter in his biograph y Neb raska on behalf of th e proposed arn endrnent. 11 ** of his father, Edward. wrote that However, the advert ised roast never too k place, much of the disorder in Omaha and th e Bumble Bee, on November I , announced 3 4 • :,\EBIt..I..!'KA history "We have the drunkard-makers on the run. " The Bumble Bee on November 3 tried to bury reported the incident gleefu lly, accusing Yardley th e botched affair, complaining th at it had not only of thievery, but also of dru nkenness and announced th e roast in good faith, but "the "spying" for th e p ro hibit ion i s t s. :~l Ex-Governor absolutely refu sed to keep th e The spying charge was one frequently leveled appointment , saying that while he was something against pro-am endment workers. Johnson himsel f of a cannibal, and loved the taste of human fl esh, had been accused of roaming Omaha under the yet he drew the line on Rosewater. "2\.i assu med name of Dea n, identifying himself as a The November I Bumble Bee assai led the anti amendment State Business Men's and Bankers' Association, claiming that the association had been repud iated by 64 percent of Nebraska's bankers. Headed by Charl es A. Cae, with Edward Enemies on the Run P. Roggen as secreta,y , th e newly formed group sought to defend th e commercial and industrial pros perity of th e stat e against a prohibitOlY amendment driven by what it ca lled "delusive Wolfenbarger Says t~e Amend se ntimentalism." Roggen, secretalY of state \883 87, had loured Nebraska seeking signatures for an ment Victory Is In Sight. anti-amendment statement published by Rosewater's Bee on June 21 th at also announced to th e public th e formation of th e associatio n.2i The November I Bumble Bee sought to WE ARE GOING TO WIN. counter th e claims o f "Roggen, Rosewater & C o . , ~ th at, should Nebras ka adopt prohibitio n, eastern ca pitalists would seek other fi elds in which to invest their wealth. A reprin t from th e New Yod? Voice of excerpts from Dr. George L. Miller's let The ' Prohlblttonists Have Out. ters to A. Luci us Rodman, secreta ry of th e New Generaled the Rummies at York Slate Protecti ve Association, seemed to indi cate that th e Nebraska State Business Men's and Every Turn. Bankers' Associati on was fun ded and controlled by Omaha liquor dealers. 2s M. L. Holt, who had res igned from Omahas Park Place Congregational Church to organize the city's churches on behalf of prohibitio n, defended The Bumble ·BEE met A. G. Wol th e role played by Omaha ministers in the fi ght fenbarger, the Lincoln lawyer at the for the amendment in the columns o f th e Bumble Paxton yesterday a.nd asked about Bee. Civil War veteran and Unive rsa list minister tfie outlook for probibitlon In ,the Q. H. Shinn labeled as obstructionists those who state. _. - - ' -' believed prohibition would be impossible to .,. .•. enforce. Lincoln attorney Wolfenbarger, legal , "We have the drunkard-makers on representative of th e New Yorl? Voice in Nebraska, the run," said ' Mr. Wolfenbarger. predicted success in the ra pidly approaching "Webster Is growing weary and Rose election. "We have th e drunkard-m akers on th e run ," Wolfenbarger told th e Bumble Bee. "Webster wa~r is fairly crazy. Even the fat is growing weal)' and Rosewater is fairly crazy. ~ 29 and,cool ~h~mer .Roggt.>n hat!! about The Nove mber I Bumble Bee also attempted ~glvf'n up the fight. The · regist~tion to counter unfavorable publicity caused by th e recent arrest of John Yardley, a clerk employed at ,lll ., QH!,"blt!!,b.~w'l that , t~~ ~peat~,!:!. Amendment Headquarters . Yardley was su spected of embezzling funds from a previous employe r in Montreal and was apprehended and jailed in Omaha atto rn ey Andrew Wol fenbarger, a Prohib ition Party lead er, may have fully expected vic tory or Omaha, much to th e embarrass ment of his strait si m p ly p redicted victory as an election tactic. laced, pro-amendment fri ends. Rosewater's Bee Daily Bumble Bee. Nov. 1, 1890 SPR1 NG/ SU'''IE1< 2007 • 35 correspondent for Kansas City and 51. Lou is news Although prohibitionists sometimes used highly papers while gathering information useful to the visible methods (such as assembling an "ex-liquor prohibitionists. In defense of Yard ley, the Bumble legion" of reformed drunkards in Lincoln to march Bee replied th at he had not been spying-he had in a solid phalanx to th e polls on November 4), th e merely been checking voter registration lists. anti-amendment forces in Omaha were accused But the newspaper did concede that he had of using even more aggressive tact ics. On the day "monkeyed a little too much with the wine cup" before th e election, November 3, the Bumble Bee and placed all blame for his alleged misdeeds regal ed its readers with details of an attack on on the sa loon, declarin g, "[W]e will continue the Eddie Richardson, a newsboy distributing copies fight for its exlermi nation."31 of the Call and Bumble Bee on th e streets of 36 NEBRASKA history also charged with assault. Rheem was not charged. Johnson and Smith were released from jail several hours later, and Johnson eventually paid a fine of $7.50 in police court. An adulatory biography - - of Johnson by F. A. McKenzie, published in 1920, depicts a heroic young reformer rescuing the newsboy, hiding his gun up his sleeve when appre Omaha beer drinkers at a saloon on Thirteenth hended by slow-witted police, and then scornfully Street between Harney and Farnam, 1886. - handing it to them at the station " The prohibition amendment was voted down Rosewater's Bee and the World-Herald, pred ict In Douglas County by 23,918~o 1,555 votes. ably, portrayed Rheem as th e innocent victim of NSHS RG234.1-1OO , - an unprovoked attack by Johnson and Smith. -- Johnson in 1890 was described as rugged and , - "well built," with a heavy jaw and dark brown mustache. The Bee, noting that $ 11 5 had been found on him at the time of his arrest, told readers that he "looked. . like a disreputable person who had sought to work the prohibitionists and had done it very successfully."" Other incidents involving "whiskey bullies" attacking distributors of prohibiti on newspapers ., appeared in the November 3 Bumble Bee. State university students defended their professors from charges of trying to influence the student vote. George B. "Bishop" Skinner, a Lincoln livery stable owner best known for his work with th e local Red Ribbon temperance club, contributed to the colorful campaign rhetoric. Readers were urged to "Remember W. B. Smith: a U.S. Circuit Court clerk whose unsolved shooting death in 1881 was th ought to have been planned by the Omaha liquor element. Baptist minister A. W. Lamar defended his ri ghl to discuss prohibition from the , pulpit. Omaha mayor Cush ing was denounced for his declaration, "All is fair in war. Let us consider this war and defeat prohibition, if nol in one way, th en in another. "35 Also in the November 3 issue of the Bumble Bee was a tongue-in-cheek "universal directory of man kind," consisting of two classes of society: those who suppOit ed th e prohibitory amendment and those who didn't. The former included churches, wives, sweeth earts, th e Woman's Christian Temperance Union, th e "better class" of lawyers, Omaha. When Johnson tried to intervene, said the thinking businessmen, and God. The latter Bumble Bee, the alleged assailan ts, L. M. Rheem, included saloons, bums, thugs, the Bee, th e World an A. D.T. manager, and several friends, rushed Herald, the Nebraska State Journal, the Omaha Johnson. After a scuffle, Johnson and prohibition A.D.T., and the State Business Men's and Bankers' ist Lem J. Sm ith, who came 10 Johnson's aid, were Association. A separate plea for passage of the arrested and jailed." amendment carried the names and occu pati ons The Call published Sam Cox's extended of more than one hundred Omahans.'· account of the incident, noting that both Johnson Newspaper rh etori c from th e closing days of and Smith were charged by Omaha police wi th the heated amendment campaign of 1890 sou nds carrying concealed weapons, and Johnson was strident and bigoted to a modern ear. The prohibi SPRING 2007 37 tianis!s were well aware that Nebras ka's heavy eth. A OLEAN SWEEP, nic vole would work agai nst them. "It is horri ble to think that so many saloon keepers are of fo reign birt h," said th e November 3 Bumble Bee, noting in a separate article that of th e 129 names of an ti amendment ministers published by Rosewater, "only two Am ericans [were] in the wh ole 10 t.":1; Rosewater, in turn, complained in his Novem ber 2 speech at th e Omaha Colise um th at he had received numerous threatening letters and rea d to his audience a recent one postmarked Nelson, Nebraska: If prohibitio n is defeated, fo ur of LI S have decided that you must die, and Webster, too. It will take time, but we will not let you sl ip, nor him, either .. .. We thought we would give you and him one chance for your worthless carcasses, and only one.:"" Despite all th e effort and invective th e prohibi tionists could muster, the amendment drive failed. Th e stat ewide vote on proh ibition was 82,292 for th e amendmen t and 111 ,728 aga inst it. In Douglas AND A GOOD RIDDANCE, TOO. "The whole city Coun ty th e vote lVas 1,555 for and 23.91 8 aga inst. is given over to The amendment to make the licensing of saloons a constitutional measure also failed to pass. With The "wet" Omaha World-Herald c e tebrated election the whisky mob. both amendments defeated. th e stat e was left with results with a cartoon showing Nebraska Democ racy the existing high license reg ulatio n. James E. Boycl , sweeping prohibitionists out of the state. Morning World-Herald, Nov. 5, t 890 There is riot the successful Democrati c nominee for govern o r, and bloodshed recei ved 71,33 1 votes. Powers, th e People's license sta tut es. ll Independent candidate, received 70, 187. and However, many pro-amendment campaigners in nearly Ri chard s, the Republican candidate, 68,878."" seemed stunned. The Coli had claimed in August B. L. Paine of th e Prohibition Party waged a that fOLlr hundred of the six hundred Nebraska every ward." vigorous campaign to th e end, receivi ng 3,676 newspapers favored the amendment. As late as votes. Considerab le excitement was caused by th e November 1 Wolfenbarger, ever optimistic, last-minute discovelY that a number of Prohibition predicted in the Bumble Bee a sweeping majority Party ti ckets had been sen t out with the name of for the amendment, boasti ng, "Th e Prohibitionists gubern atorial nominee Paine scratched and that have outgeneraled th e rummies at eve!), turn ." of Republica n candidate Hichards written in. Paine More than th irty-fi ve years after th e electi on denied forcefully that he had w ithdrawn in favor Johnson still insisted that in th e late I 880s public of th e Republican candidate, and told the press opinion in Nebraska had been ;;overwhelmingly" he would continue in th e race until th e polls were in fa vor of prohibition, as evidenced by the growth closed.1') of th e Proh ibition Party and the favorable declara Anti-prohibitionists, espec ially in Omaha, were tions of church bodies and oth er organizati o ns. 12 jubilant when the res ults of the election beca me A noti ce of cont est was riled almost immediately known, al though some were surprised by th e amid denunciati ons of conditi ons surrouncl ing th e la ndslide vote agai nst the amendment. Th ey had voting in Omaha and accusations of a conspiracy predicted th at, if passed , it would discourage new by wet politi cians to defea t the w ill of the people. set tl ement in Nebraska , drive out ca pital, ca use Shelclon recalled an election day in which prohibi property va lues to decline, and th row laborers out tion work ers at th e polls were beaten and dri ve n of work as businesses failed. The Stale Journal away. The New Yorl? Voice said in a dispat ch from welcomed th e decisive defeat of prohibition, not Omaha, "The whole city is given entirely over to ing that th e people of Nebraska seemed to prefer the whisky mob. There is riot and bloodshed in regu lating th e liquor traffic by th e existing high nearly every wa rd." Post-e lection complaints by 38 • NEBIl·\SKA history th e Call ( which prohibitio nist C. E. Ben tley praised contested election commenced at Li ncoln on as the "only daily in Lin coln anel Omaha that December 4, 1890, and th e last two wee ks of championed our cause firmly and effective ly to th e December were devoted to taking testimony in close") accused anti-amendment forces of attack Omaha. It revealed that th ere was considerable ing prohibitionists with fists, rocks, tin ca ns, and irreg ulari ty at the polls, but th e la rge am ount of eggs.13 conflicting information collected in each city did However, Vi ctor Rosewater, who with his father not res ult in any action that invalidated th e elec had lived through th e 1890 amendment campa ign , tion. l:' later railed against the "base fabrications concocted Nebraska voters did adopt a prohibitolY amend and published by import ed prohibition campaign ment to the state constitution twenty-six years later ers," who he believed had impugned his fath er's in 1916-a complete reversa l of sen timen t since good name and motives in opposing th e proh ibi 1890-and it took effect in May 1917, two yea rs IOIY amendment. The younger Rosewater accused before the Ei ghteenth Amenel men t to the U.s. th em of harping on "Rum , Roggen and Rosewater" Constitution outlawed liquor nationwide. and of wiring se nsa ti onal stori es to eastern news Johnson went on aft er 1890 to other temper papers, espec ially th e New York Vo ice. Most of the ance and prohibition battles. From 189 1 to 1895 problems with the election in Omaha precincts, he lived in Kansas City, where he worked as a he wrote, resulted from th e driving away from the polls of peddlers of bogus party ballots intended Republican candidate for governor lUCius D. Richards 11 finished third, tosing both wet and dry voles by refus to increase th e vote for prohibition: ing to lake a stand on prohibition. Morning World Th e tak ing of testi mony in th e case of the Herold. Nov. 5. 1890 MR. RICHARDS-"THE TWO FACED MAN." SPRI NG/SUMMER 2007 • 39 newspaperman and reformer. In 1896 he moved the repeal of nati onal prohibilion, 'bul not in our 10 New York Ci ty, where he joined the staff of the time, "~9 Voice (after 1900 th e New Voice). He became a prominenl member of Ihe Anli-Saloon League, NOT ES eSlablished in 1893, working with th eir American Issue Publishing Company, and his efforts as a 1 Ernest Hurst Cherrington, Albert Porter, William E, Johnson, 'dry" campaigner in dozens of stale and local and Cora Frances Stoddard, eds., Standard Encyclopedia ofthe Alcollol Problem (Westerville, Ohio: American Issue Publishing elections were often a determining factor in their Company, 1925-30),4: 1870; Joe A. Fisher. '"The Liquor Question success. His career as a special agenl in Oklahoma in Nebraska. 1 88o-1890~ (master's thesis, Municipal University for th e U.S. Deparlment of of Omaha, April 1952),6. For more information on early anti· alcohol efforts in Nebraska, see "Nebraska Prohibits Alcohol, the Inlerior to suppress 1916,w Nebraska Studies hup:/lww"".nebraskastudies.org' the illegal sa le of liquor to 2 Standard En cyclopedia, 3: 1410, 4: 1874: Fred A. McKenzie, Indians from 1906 to 191 1 MPussyfool - Johnson, Crusader·Reformer-A Man Among Men made the name of ' Pussy (Chicago: Fleming H. Revell Company, 1920),4 1; -A Colonel in Hard Luck: Omaha Daily Bee, Nov. I. 1890; -A Prohibi tion foot" Johnson, a household Slugger,- Omaha Sunday Bee , Nov. 2. 1890, TIle Bumble Bee of 16 word in America: November 3 noted that there would be no issue on November After the Eighteenth 4. election day. Amendment establishing 3 Standard Encyclopedia, 3: 1410; McKenzie, ~PussyfootW national prohibition was Johnson. 41 ; "A Mighty Man of Water,w Moming World-Herald (Omaha), Nov. 3, 1890; Mr. W: E. Johnson. A Ufe-Sketch by an ratified in January 19 19, Indian (Madras: India Printing Works, n.d.), 6; -William E. Johnson went on the Johnson." The Anti-Saloon League hnp:/lwww.wpl.lib.oh.us/ leclure circuit. By the time AnliSaloon/Leaders/williamjohnson.html. of his death in 1945 he 4 Standard Encyclopedia, 3: 1408, John W, Flenner was said to have bestowed the nickname "Pussyfoot" on Johnson while a was also a familiar fi gure reporter for the Muskogee (Oklahoma) Times-Democrat. in foreign countries, where William E. Johnson to George W. Simpson, July 29. 1942, T. F. A. he joined forces w ith Williams Papers. RG2824, Nebraska State Historica l Society (hereafter Williams Papers); "Necrology-John Wintrode Flenner organizations trying to ( 1875-1933 ).~ Chronicles ofOklahoma 12 (March 1934): 117. control intoxicants. During 5 John G. Wool1ey and William E. Johnson, Temperance his career he made three Progress in tile Cenlllry (London, Toronto, Philadelphia: The trips around Ihe world as a Unscott Publishing Company. 1903). 156-64; Standard Encyclo pedia. 3:1408-10, 4:1873; McKenzie, -Pussyfoot W Johnson, 36-37; lecturer and worker for Ihe Addison E. Sheldon, Nebraska IIle umd and (fIe People temperance cause. 17 (Chicago/New York: The Lewis Publishing Co.. 1931), 1:690-9 1. Johnson spent his retire 6 S. D. Fitchie, "The Fight for Prohibition in Nebraska," ment years in reading, Nebraska History, 6 (Lincoln: July-September 192 1): 84; "Campaign Reviewed,w The New Republic (Lincoln), Nov. 20, writing occasional prohibi 1890; Flora Hamilton Cassel, White Ribbon Vibrations (Hastings: tion articles, and compiling W.C.T.U. Song Book Publishing Association. 1890). For informa· a Johnson family history. tion on the later career of journalist·reformer Gibson. see Samuel Walker. "George Howard Gibson, Christian Socialist Anti-prohibition forces He spoke in Lincoln in Oclober 1927, and visited Among the Populists,W Nebraska History 55 (Lincoln: Winter won, but Victor Rosewater old temperance friends there. One 01hi s last visi ts 1974): 553-72. (seated, right, with hi s 10 Nebraska was in November 1933 to assist in an 1 Sheldon. Nebraska, I :692; "The Temperance Campaign in father Edward, left, and unsuccessful ca mpaign to retain statewide prohibi· Neb r aska.~ Lincoln Daily Call. June 13, 1890; "The Daily CaW brother Charles, standing) advertisement. Uncoln Daily Call, Ju ly 19. 1890. believed prohibitionists tion after the national law was scheduled to end in December. Nebraska was nol one of the thirty S Robert E. Wenger, "The Anti-saloon League in Nebraska maligned his father with Politics, 1898-191 0,· Nebraska History 52 (Lincoln: Fan 1911 ): "base fabrications con six states (out of a total of forty-eight then) that 268; "Anarchy Reigns in Omahar Sunday Morning Call, Nov. 2. cocted and published by voted to ralify the twenty-first amendment 10 repeal 1890; "The Omaha Conspiracy: Uncoln Daily Call, Oct. 28, imported ... campaigners ." 1890; "More Supression,· Uncoln Daily Call, Oct. 29,1890; "Riots national prohibition, but in November 1934 , w The Ute and Times of in Omaha. Uncoln Daily Call, Nov. 4,1890. Nebraskans did vole to repeal the slate's constitu Edward Rosewater 9Ibid.; "The Papers Re l eased,~ Lincoln Daily Call, Oct. 30. tional prohibition by a 60- to 40-percent margin." 1890. Near th e end of his life Johnson seemed IO~ Anarchy Reigns in Omaha,~ Sunday Mortling Call, Nov. 2, resigned 10 these defeats. He made no apologies 1890; "By Hired Thugs." Sunday World·Herald. Nov. 2, 1890. for th e drys, confess ing that he had been as zeal \I Daily Bumble Bee (Omaha), OCI. 30, 1890; McKenzie. ous as the rest in pursuing th eir agenda, even when "Pussyfoot W Johnson. 41. il had ceased to be supported by th e rest of the 12 Sheldon, Nebraska, 1:687-88; J. Sterling Morton and Albert country. 'It will return some day," he sa id after Watkins. Illustrated Hisrory ofNebraska (Lincoln: Western Pub· 40 • KEBIl,\ SKA historiY lishing and Engraving Co., 1913), 3C: 228-29: Fisher, ~ Uquor from the coliseum b}' the angry anti-amendment crowd. Question: 11 2. 27 Ibid., uNebraska Bankers," Daily Bumble Bee, Nov. I, 1890; 13 Standard Encyclopedia, 1:349,4: 1871,5:2290,5:2890: Fisher, "Farmers Are Almost Solid for Prohibition: nle New West "Liquor Question," 97,103-104; Prohibition Party sample ticket. (Grand Island), July 2, 1890: "A Sober Appeal to Thinking Men," The New Republic, Ocl. 30, 1890: "The Jim-Jam Brigade," Daily Omalla Daily Bee. June 21. 1890: Savage and Bell, Cit)' of Bumble Bee, Ocl. 30, 1890. OmallO, 181. ~~ "Hideous Hypocrisy,~ "Capital Com ing: Daily Bumble Bee, H A. T. Andreas, History oftile State ofNebraska (Chicago: Nov. I , 1890; Savage and Bell, City ofOmaha, 180,327-28,336. TIle Western Historical Co., 1882), 1075; Dedication of ti,e Bartlelf L Paine Memorial Parlor, and the Unveiling ofthe flis 2'J "Rev. Holt's Defense," "Men Who Say Can't," "Enemies on (oricol Plaques (Lincoln: SI. Paul Methodist Church. 1967): the Run: Daily Bumble Bee, Nov. I. 1890. "Pa ine the Man," Lincoln Daily Call, Aug. 28, 1890: "The One ):I "Find a Mares Nest, " Daily Bumble Bee, Nov. 1, 1890: "A Great Issue," Daily Nebraska State Journal (Uncoln), Oct. 29, Colonel in Ha rd Luck: Omalw Daily Bee, Nov. I. 1890. 1890; Robert Fikes, Jr., African American HistolY Vign€Ue: George Washington Woodbey (/854-?) hllp:// 31 Ibid.; "Adding fnsult to lnjury.~ Omaha Daily Bee, Oct. 31. faculty. washington. edu / qtay/or/ aa_ Vignettes/ 1890. TIle Yardley "expose" in the November I issue of the Daily woodbeY-8eorge.htm; Gail Madyun and Larry Malone, ~Black Bee also report ed that Johnson refused to bail Yardley oul of an Pioneers in San Diego, 1880-1920," Journal ofSan Diego His Omaha jail after his arrest. tory, 27.2 ( 198 1) http://www.sondiegollisrory.org/journal/ Jl "The E.x·Uquor Legion: Daily Nebraska State Journal, Oct. 81 spring/blacks.hrm. 25, 1890; "A Dastardly Brute: Daily Bumble Bee, Nov. 3, 1890. IS '11le Ji m-Jam Brigade," Daily Bumble Bee, Ocl. 30, 1890. lJ "More Outlawry: Sunday Morning Cal/, Nov. 2, 1890: "By 16 Ibid., "Ues Nailed," "Evidence of Kansas Judges." Hired Thugs,~ Sunday World-Nerald, Nov. 2, 1890; McKenzie, "Pussyfoot" Jolmson, 42-45: Andreas, HistOlY, 793. 11 James W. Savage and John T. Bell, History ofthe City of Omaha, Nebraska, and South amalIa (New York and Chicago: 31 -By Hired Thugs" Sunday World·Herald, Nov. 2, 1890: "A Munsell and Company, 1894), 180; Victor Rosewater, "The Life Prohibition Slugger: Omaha Sunday Bee, Nov. 2, 1890: "A and Times of Edward Rosewater" (Omaha: typescript), 165-66; Dastardly Bru te: Daily Bumble Bee, Nov. 3, 1890. ·0 Consistency Thou Art a Jewel.~ Daily Bumble Bee, Oct. 30, 35 "Whiskey Bullies,~ "Roasting the Bee,~ "Suppressed by the 1890. Bee,~ Daily Bumble Bee, Nov. 3, 1890: Standard Encyclopedia, -1:1870; Andreas, HislOry. 711-12. I~ "They Were Disgusted," Daily Bumble Bee, Oct. 30, 1890; "Rosey Squirms: Unco/" Daily Call. Oct. 29, 1890: "The Colored :.16 "Universal Directory of Mankind,~ "An Omaha Appeal: Orator,· Chadron Advocate, Oct. 31, 1890; -The Great Debate," Daily Bumble Bee, Nov. 3, 1890. C//(/dron Democrat, Oct. 30, 1890. Sheldon's recollection of the :11 "Blame the Law Makers," "What Nationality?" Daily Bumble event in his 193 1 history of Nebraska doesn't mention Bee, Nov. 3, 1890. Wood bey's name or his presence in Chadron during the de bate. Sheldon, Nebraska, 1:691. ~ Savage and Bell, City of amalia, 182; Rosewater, "Ufe and Times,- 168. 19 "This Should Appear on Every Ticket,~ Daily Bumble Bee, Nov. 1. 1890; Savage and Bell, City ofOmaha. 178. l'.l Morton-Watkins, Hi!;toIY, 3C: 230-31. . "Watch the Tickets," Sunday State Joumal, Nov. 2, 1890; 40 "Gossip From the Ranks," Moming World-Nerald, Nov. 4, Daily Bumble Bee, Oct. 30, Nov. 3, 1890; Fisher, "Liquor Ques 1890; "The Roorbacks Are Ready, ~ Daily Nebraska Srate Journal, tion," 106, 112-13; Savage and Bell. City ofOmaha, 178. Nov. 4, 1890. II "The De feat of Prohibition,~ Doily Nebraska Stare Journal, 21 Rosewater, "Life and Times: 169-70; Savage and Bell, City ofOmalw, 185; "Watch the Tickets: Sunday State Joumal, Nov. Nov. 8, 1890: "The Prohibitory Amendment: Lif/coln Weekly 2, 1890; "The Roorbacks are Ready,n Daily Nebraska State Jour News, Nov. 6, 1890. nal, No\'. 4, 1890; "Look to Your Tickets.~ Daily Bumble Bee, 12 "Some Startling Facts for the Farmers," The New West, June Nov. I, 1890. 18, 1890; "Enemies on the Run," Daily BUlllble Bee, Nov. I, 1890; Standard Encyclopedia, 4: 1872. 2"2 ~The One Great Issue," Doily Nebraska State Journal, Oct. 29. 1890. 41 Sheldon, Nebraska, 1:691; New York Voice quoted in Savage and Bell, City ofOmaha, 184; "The Omaha Plan," Lincol" Daily n Ibid.; ~The Jim·Jam Brigade: Ooily Bumble Bee, Oct. 30, Call, Nov. 5, 1890: "Campaign Reviewed: The New Republic, 1890; "Outrageous Fraud," Tile New RepUblic, Oct. 16, 1890: Nov. 20, 1890: George Talbot Hunt, Control of tile Liquor Traffic "The Omaha Conspiracyr. Lincoln Daily Call, Oct. 28. 1890: in Nebraska, 1855-1890 (Uncoln, 1932), ISS. Sheldon. Nebraska, 1:692. For more information on the 1890 census in Nebraska, see Dr. Edgar Z. Palmer, -The Correctness 11 Rosewater, "Ufe and Times," 167-69. of the 1890 Census of Population for Nebraska Cities,~ Ne .f5 Ibid., 169-70; Savage and Bell, City ofOmaha, 183--84; braska HistOlY 32 (Lincoln: December 1951): 259-67. Fisher, "Uquor Question," 3-4. Zl Savage and Bell, City of amalia, 180-8 1; ~Free Grand Barbe ~ Standard Encyclopedia, 3:14 10-12, 4:1875. c u e~ advertisement, Daily Bumble Bee. Ocl. 30, 1890. H Ibid., 3:1412-13. In the early 1940s Johnson donated memo z:; Ibid: -SI. John at Amendment Headquarters" advertisement, rabilia from his foreign travels to the Nebraska State Historical Daify Bumble Bee, Nov. I , 1890; "A n Apt Reply: SUfldayMom Society. Correspondence to and information about Johnson are ing Call. Nov. 2. 1890; "A ~Ionster r.,·ieeting," Omaha Daily Bee, also found in the Williams Papers. Nov. 3, 1890. I ~ "'Pussyfoot' Johnson Spends a Day at His Old Home in ~ Savage and Bell, Cit)' ofOmaha. 180-81: "AI the Coliseum: Lincoln: SundoyStQreJoumal. OCt. 23. 1927: -The Noble Daily Bumble Bee, Nov. 3, 1890; "A Mighty Man of Water,~ Morn Experiment," Nebraska Studies, hltp:/www.nebraskasrudies.org/ ing World·Herald, Nov. 3,1890;"A Monster Meeting," Omaha Daily Bee, Nov. 3, 1890. The Bumble Bee of November 3 fO.1 Ibid.: ';'Pussyfoot' Johnson, Early Dry Crusader, Ex·Nebras- claimed that after reading the telegram Watts had been chased kan. Dead," Uncol" Star, Feb. 3, 1945. SPRING/SUMMER 2007 41