The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1867-03-12
Prohibition and License.

MIR. EDIToR.-I noticed something in the
Daily Press concerning License Law in Bos-
ton which is advocated by ministers, lawyers
and doctors; that a License Law is better for
promoting the cause of Temperance ss
They state there is no more liquor sold I'M
der the present Law than would be
without any. They say make a Lii
cense law for few, respectable men
Law for those unlicensed. That is to say, the
Law they have now is not strong enough.
want to ask those wise heads, if they can
make Law strong enough to stop the selling
OF liquor by unlicensed men, why not make a
stringent Law that will wind up the whole?
If rum-selling and drunkenness are on the in
crease in Boston can see but two reasons for
it, either the Law is not strong enough, or the
Police force is not vigilant enough. / should
think more stringent Law, and more active
Police would have a better effect than no
Law. "A =.
Inere is no man of common sense but would
have a Law for counterfeiting money but
which is the worse to counterfeit the souls and
bodies of men in making criminals, paupers
and drnnkards, or to counterfeit few dollars
When 1 commenced taking the Daily Press
L thought it favored the cause of Temperance
more than the rum cause hut of late it seems
the other way. Everybody ought to know that
License Law will not promote the cause of
Temperance but increase liquor selling
should think as soon of a Christians advocating
all kinds of sin as good temperance man adj
vocatng License Law. Every man of sense
ought to know that it is the greatest absurdity
that could be thought of, that License Law is
going to promote Temperance. The only way
TO stop the traffic is to make the business I'M
profitable by heavy fines and imprisonments.
rr.a- ..s w. THoRNDKE.
We give place to the above communication
in our columns with the utmost cheerful
ness, first, because we like free discussion
and would have every one enjoy his "say," and
second, because the writer kindly charges the
Press with favoring the Rum ause,"-and
such a courteous accusation we would by
no means withhold from our readers We
have taken occasion to notice similar accusa-
ton before, but do not intend to occupy great
deal of space in defending the Press against
such calumny. We presume no intelligent
reader has so thick head that he cannot see a
difference between the mere publication and
the endorsement of a piece of testimony, OF
between favoring the "Rum cause" and simply
suggesting doubts as to the wisdom and eff
cheney of untried measares, suref, II any
ones head IS too thick for such discrimination
we do not wish to waste words in argument
with him. r.af ps5 4r
voluminous testimony given by gentlemen of
Massachusetts, before the Liquor Committee
OF the Legislature, as they regard the opera
tons of the law; judges, attorneys, physicians,
divines, municipal officers, policemen and 9TH
ers, expressly stating that we did not do SO
either to endorse their views or to sustain any
view of cur own, and forthwith we find the
Press accused of taking the Rum side of the
question. and the witnesses charged with be-
Ing rum sympathizers We repel the first
part of the charge, and insist that no fair, hon
est, candid man will repeat it, while in rela-
ton to the second part of the charge, we give
the following editorial paragraph from the Bos-
ton Traascript-a paper of as high respectable
ity as any in New England. Referring to the
hearing before the legislative committee of
the petitioners for a license law, that paper
says: ~ }afntuh rfi a '
The petitioners for change have closed
their case, SO far as the presentation of evil
dence is concerned, and have offered an array
OF facts and an amount of opinion from the
most eminent men in the State,-persons dis
t1ngulshed for breadth of comprehension high
scientific attainments, and moral elevation
such as no other question could have elected.
1t is quite possible that all the men referred
to In the above paragraph were mistaken in
the views expressed by them before the COM
mittee, but if we are to be denounced for reft,s-
ing to believe them all rummies, and all dis
honest, and in confidential league with the
worst men in the Commonwealth. we cannot
help it, but shall submit with the best grace we
may. We certainly shall not feel that we are
thus forced into very disreputable company.
The duty of an honest journalist, as we un.
derstand it, is to keep his readers well posted
on curreut events, current factt and current
thoughts. To be one-sided and conceal I'M
pleasant facts is dishonest and we do not pro-
pose even for personal advantage, to do any
thing of the kind. In this matter we would be
distinctly understood. We shall not denounce
men on mere matters of opinion for differing
from us, nor shall we brand as the enemies of
all good those who do not see through our spec
tacles or measure facts with our rule and plum
met.