The Minnesota pioneer. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn. Territory) 1849-1855, 1853-03-10
49, Fer the Pioneer fa
The Hon. James Wells and His Speech!

E~ Fer the Pioneer. ~ - ~
The Hon. James Wells and His Speech.
Ma. EpIroa: Have YOU lead the speech o.
the member of the legislature from Wabashaw
the Hon. mes Wells. on The liquor qnes"p! Il
you have not, would advise you to do 80 lire
very first opportunity; for more cogent, and
powerfully reasoned document, probably neve'
before issued from the lips Of man. Mr. Wells N
certainly ordinary parsonage, and should no.
be surprised if, before long he should be classed
in point of ability. with some Of The most renown-
ed men Of our country.
But | am OBTAINING YOU too long from the many
striking points in his ,peech. The Hon gentle
man opens with this sage remark. 81 intend,
says he, ''to express my sentiments. independent
| of all other considerations. Yes, the Hon
member is not the man 10 lis,en 10 the voice OF a
majority ofihe people of the Territory, when this
vocie conflict with his more mature Judgment. M
not he. lie scorns every thing of the kind. Tie
= too democratic for that He is too much Of a
freeman He has drunk too deeply Of ''ihat lib
eriy which was waered by the blood Of heroes
saints ard martyrs; which was waered BY tbs
blood of Montgomery, Dekaib, and PulasAi," Il
be guilty OF so great rneanness.
! He then goes into the argument, and here he
is as lucid us he is conclusive. lie opposed Ia
the law, first, because Of the ntanner in which
il has been advocated by its friends Yes, the
merits of the law, in his judgment, have nothing
to do with the question. The majority of .ht
people have shown too much zeal and carnestnes.
/ in the cause for his Bonapartean stomach; and
therefore they must be snubbed. They have got
entirely above their business, and therefore the,
must be pat down. The ,che!p@ Of bill they had
so anxiousy prayed for must be kicked. out o.
/ the House.
A second argument Of the Hon gentleman is
that the people are not pure enough to carry oc
the law Inch they have pe,Itioned for and there
/ fore they have no right 10 II. Brave and pairi
o,ic old renilemln, How strange it is that ,hC
people OF the Territory have not before heard o
YOUR iransccndant merits? But Cromwell die
not give evidence Of the powers within him I'LL hs
had attained The age of forty, and Washington
was not in he full blaze Of his glory, ill he hac
alta med TO your agei
But, Mr. Editor, the iior member seems 10 BE-
not alone in his deep deductions. He aye~s tina
/ the law has been time and again denounced by
the acisost tribunals of the country. BY those
wisest tribunals Of the country ! presume he
means principally our learned Territorial Chic
Justice # certainly he cannot mean such niser-
able authorities as Messrs. Chief Justice fancy
Justices Mclean, Catron, Daniel, Woodbury.
and Grier, OF the Supreme cour, Of the Ln'te1
States for they have all declared prohibition,
liquor law Constitutional.
The next argImeat the Hon gentleman bring
forward am taking Them Up in their orders,
''lhat il Is 10 the higher laws doctrine upon ih,
subject Of slavery, that The friends OF this reform
appeal, when The constituted Authorities of the
land declare agains, ihem." Now, MI Editor
this Is indeed a clincher; for YOU know veIv we.
that the only ground the friends Of the law have
had 10 stand upon, Is the very one they never
dreamed Of the Higher l. " doctrine How
appropriate, then, the Hon. gcntlemln's aiusior
to Tins Higher Law doctrine.
Bu, The Hon. gentleman goes n step farther il
his argument. "If,'' says he. 'ihe use Of spirit
uous liquors be an evil ii IS moral evil. and mus
be reformed, il reformed al ali by moral mems >
Here YOU cnuno: but he struck with he force Of ih
mcsferly posuate; for theft Won knoH is mara
e,.l, and SO Is murder, and they are prohibited
by penal ena ctmen;S. X therefore follows, Il,
u matter Of course, that the free use OF spiruou,
liquors, which Is also moral evil, should not h
prohibited by penal enactment surely the
Hon. gentleman must have pored over the
elements Of osic 10 some purpose in his younger
days Could not the Professor>hp Of h.c il
the University Of Minnesota be rendered 10 him,
Convince a against his will.
Ard he Is Of the opinion still
Noa doubtless ask why ! Introduce this couple
here; Really, / do not know, except that The
/ Hon. gentleman introduced it IN the same con
neciiOn, and therefore, 1t aust be 0pbropriaie
You know the gentleman j, 4 veiy deep nan
and most excellent rheioriii i'm. and Therefore
there must be great deal more in the quotation!
than can ia,hom. Probably he may conde-
scend 10 cniighten as
! But have not presented allrhe sledge- hammer
arguments the Hon. gentleman has adducol
AGAINST the bill, there remains yet one more. and
Il Mo-. :
quite rs iaconfrorertib{c rs the others !. is as
follows: = II II be truly SAID that these liquors
are poison 10 a well man, ask in the name o:
Escuapus and Gaen, if lhey be not death 10 the
SICK nIdn. y, Consistency thou art Jewel >
How lnconirovertlble An EScalapjus OF Galen
would never lhlnk Of prescribing dose Of ipecac
or arsenic 10 wei Ipan, lnr they would prove
posoEoSs to hIu. He could however, prescribe
the same TO sick nan, and 1t Nigh. prove very
beneficial How certain then j. The conclusion
that sprI,uous liquors which, like ipecsc and
arsenic, might be poisonous TO the well man,
would, Ike them, be dcah 10 Tie sick ,nau-
Gould anything be cuarer:
g How fls, the world advances,
How liuic man improves. "-iWclls' speech.
The Hon. gentleman however shines brshtes,
when he deals with the scrin!ur0l port,9ns 81;
his arsu0rn,. Here he seems perfectly i, home
No one probably could show more honest con-
vic'ion If ihc ruth of the Bioc than he No
one probably over showed IA more earnest desire
10 be guided by It's precepis
But, Mr.. Editor, my purpose has been TO draw
The attention Of the public 10 The great merit Of
the Hon. gen'ieman's speech, and if / have at
tanned Tins, nay ohjec, is gained
LOGIC
It. Paul, Mach 8
The Hon. gentleman, an Informed. termed the
second Bill that introduced, Ptr Of the old btch
THE ERICsSoN CAIoRIc ENGINr-rho Ca