The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1867-03-26
John Neal W. Temperance.

John Neal W. Temperance. '-
To the Editor Of the Press:
In Mr.. Meals first article on the Temperance
question, as well as in subsequent articles, no
took special occasion to declare himself LEI"
perance man." to have "made great sao ill.,
for the cause, Sc" and under m'S aS'o
cloak he proceeded to advise the rc""o'e VI INV
Press that in legalized iquor-sehhs 10 " "o
found a panacea for all the woes vi in'eihper-
ance. suspected then what has now been
demonstrated viz, that he had resorted to an
chronological bubble upon the meaning of the
word Temperance to foist his views upon the
total abstinence community and give to them
a weight and prominence they could not 9TH
erwise possess. Mr.. Neal knew then as he
knows now, that whatever the dictionary def
milton of the word may be, its commonly re-
ceived meaning since the days of the Wash
ingtonian reform and among those whom alone
he could expect or care to influence, has been
and is simply "Total abstinence from all that
can intoxcate''
But Mr.. Neal claimed to be Temperance
man." l did not believe him to be so in the
sense in which majority of his readers I'M
derstood the word. determined If possiole 10
unmask his batteries and compel him 10 stan"
before community in his true lght' ho' DIS d
friend of Temperance in the common accept-
ance of the word, but as against temperance
-simply champion of moderate occasional
drinking. To this end the questions OF my
first and second articles were framed, and in
his renlies expected to find evidence of the
correctness of my belief. Let us see how we
have succeeded. In his article of the 22d inst
he says, mo, am not and never have been a
practical believer in total abstinence"-"I be-
lieve that unadulterated wines are wholesome
and that undrugged liquors may be often ben
eficial to the health" Again in the 4th para
graph, "Most liquors are drugged and most
wines are adulterated--henc the need of a IL
cense law that people may not be poisoned"
and in his article of yesterday morning he
says (I p, 81 would encourage the use of an
occasional glass of wine-sound, safe wine, and
even of whiskey or brandy if pure" The ap-
plication of the simplest logic to 1. of his ar
ticle this morning shows his exact POSITION
He says, because rumsellers happen to agree
with st. Paul." Sc, and again, 81 prefer his
(St PauPs) authority" sc. Now things equal
sellers agree with St. Paul-Mr. N. agrees with
st. Paul-therefore Mr.. N. agrees with the
rumsellers and stands self-confessed just what
I have always believed he stood, viz, the cham
pion of the liquor dealers of Portland. His
fifth paragraph is plea for method to get
"better liquors" not for means of abolishing
their use. In his sixth paragraph he pleads on
ly for licensed rumseller'' of whom to pur-
chase Sound and safe liquors" and respect
fully submit to those who have taken the
trouble to read Mr.. Meals articles, that the en-
tire spirit and purport of them all has been to
encourage" not "discountenance" the "occa-
sionap drinking of intoxicating liquors as a
beverage, and that his entire advocacy of IL
cense system has rested ON it's advantages in
furnishing pure and undrugged liquors for the
use of those who practise his belief.
1t will be no wonder if Mr.. N. grows some
what uneasy and restless at the company in
which he finds himself, but he will please re-
member that no advocacy of total abstinence
or OF means to secure it has placed him there.
He must blame himself and his attachment to
the old thousand times exploded and falsifed
excuses of the moderate drinker.
And now, Mr.. Editor, have done with Mr.
John Neal upon the issue of Prohibition
against License. We have no common ground
on which to stand. He advocates License for
reasons entirely distinct from those which au-
innate the friends of Prohibition; further az
gument is useless.
He advocates License as means of "encour-
aging the occasional" use of liquors. adj
VOcata prohihiti an, n af
ing" total abstinence, and securing the annihi-
lation of the liquor traffic. We seek the at
tainment Of totally distinct ends Further ar
gument is useless. His batteries are fully I'M
masked, and the friends of total abstinence
will only smile at his efforts for the overthrow
of Prohibition, while moderate drinkers, the
occasional" tipplers and lovers of Sound,
safe" liquors, will probably praise his en-
deayors.
The old humbug of healthy moderate drink
ing has been too long ago and too many times
exploded for me to waste time in discussing it,
but when Mr.. Neal or any one else wishes to
discuss the issue of License vs. Prohibition as
means of securing total abstinence and the
utter humiliation of the liquor traffic, I pre-
sumo some friend of Prohibition will be ready
for the issue. Till then this discussion is closed
SO far as l am concerned
M. L. STEVENS