Fremont journal. [volume] (Fremont, Sandusky County [Ohio]) 1853-1866, 1854-04-14
Temperance.

lhe great question now Oeing agtateu
throughout the world is, "whether prevention
of vice and crime, is preferable to the doubt
full attempt to cure it, when already ripened
by time and confirmed by use" 1t would
seem, that a question involving so plain a.
principle as the above, would need no discus
sion; and yet il is one which has, in connec-
ton with the evils arising from the liquor
traffic, ELECTED more investigation ard discus
sion, than any other for the last twenty years.
For the repression Of vice and crime, and
the care of pauperism, England expends the
enormous sum of one hundred and frty mill
ions dollars annually France and the Uni
ted States. in proportion to their population,
spend equally as much. Were one-half this
amount SO useessly thrown away, devoted TO
the prevention of :hese evils, by legislation,
education, and providing useful employment
for The poor, who doubts, that delinquency
both legal and moral-and poverty itself,
would to a great extent, vanish from the
earth "All civilized countries alike, have
erred as to this point Of preventing the evils,
moral and physical, which scourge society so
terribly. They have put forth gigantic efforts
for perfecting their police regulations, their
aims houses their pcnitentiaries Of various
grades, and all the diverse means and meth
ods for securing the orderly portions Of the
community against the iucessant assaults of
the enemies pf law and order But as yet.
they have done comparatively little, towards
drying up the springs from which these poi
son streams are continually pouring forth, to
blight, ravage and destroy.
ut is truth conceded by all, that large
share Of the vice and crime which occupy
our criminal tribunals, and which populate
our pcnitentiares, our aims houses and even
our Iunatic asylums, is the result, direct or
Indirect, Of intemperancel The immense
sums, then, which are expended in all these
various modes. are the price paid for the traf-
iic in intoxicating liquors"
The criminals made such bv this destroy
ing traffic, we are compelled to secure and
support at whatever cost, in mere selfde
flnce. And the broken down poor, the rem
niless sick. and the pauper insane, though
their present condition be The unquesiiouabie
consequence OF alcoholic excessive are
bound, for the safety of sOciey, and by the
principles of our holy Christianity, to take
care of them The following which we clip
from tn. Saturday Evening Mail, we fully
endorse:
"But were il not infinitely wiser and bet
ter to forestal the existence of these evils, it
practicable. lhan to sustain ,he heavy chars
es involved in their coming into existerce
Are we not morally bound thus to fnrestall, if
possible? And even though the entire sum
now necessarily expended on these evils
should be required 10 be expen led in order to
secure the prevention of them, can there 6R
The slightest doubt as TO which were the bet
ter mode of expending il? Could you pre-
ven. the first divergence into those courses,
whose termination is the poor house, the hos
phal, the bedlam. ,hs prison. YOU would en-
roll among the useful and productive classes
of the community large number endowed
with Intelligence and energies in all kinds,
which are rather above than below the gen
eral average Weqlesiion whether it be ex-
aggeraIion TO estimate. that the productive
resources thus added 10 lie general stock
woull nearly orquite balance the sum above
suppose TO be expended. But the qaestion
10 fasor of prevention is at once deed db by
the religious and moral consideration, that
thus So numerous lass are rescued from
FIR worse and less fepara5le state Than phys
ical decay. and ruin. and death. A christian
community cannot ligh6nlly hes tate a mo-
ment il the premises. Ans and all ptactica-
BILE preventive measures. which fairly prom
se to accomplish their ends. we are summon
ed to adopt BY the principles q common hu.
mainly superadded to those Of christian con
science.
"If our premises be granted sound-and
we do not believe they can be nvAlidaied-
we need do liIlle else than suggest few such
preventive measures. since the readers own
thoughts win suffice for the rest.
"A prohibilory liquor Law, carefully con-
sidered aud skilfully framed, is one Of these
measures which is so obviously sug gestcd by
the cxgencIes of the cas-, and bears with SO
direct aud foscefnl a pressure on the horrible
evil contemplated thereby. That il Is difficult
10 understand how intelligent persons can OPP
| pose ii, unless from impulses entirely selfish.
We have hardly patience to deal with such
objections, as that the liberties Of the people,
their original rights DC. &c, are iniringed by
/ and, n inw Iibefties9 Ri0hts? WHY. what
are Dinstenths Of all our laws and leglsla-
tive acts but express restrictions imposed on
these liberties and rights so named p
Were but one man exist Dg. these liberties and
4fish;s would Iiand foF him unabridged sad