The Portland daily press., 1870-12-26
DAILY PRESS.
ND.
Monday Morning, De ember 26 1870.


|
Prohibition.
A'ter the meeting at Slab City was over,
the crowd silently withdrew, aud stood in
groups ABOUT the house, talking over quietly
and under breath, the topics discussed by the
speakers; and as we passed through them on
the way to our carriage, we had many hand
shakings and thanks, especially from the wo-
men. The rumseller at Slab city was struck
with conviction and repentance for the evil
he had done, and without waiting for the law
TO interpose, abandoned the rum trade; and
| as MS was the only rum shop in the village,
the change in the condition OF the people was
Immediate and wonderful We did not know
this rumseller personally, and did no. meet
him al the time of our visit.
Three years after this occurrence, was ac
costed lin Middle street, in this. city, by a
stranger who introduced himself as Mr..
Blank OF Blankville; J; Slab city being the slang
name OF the place. He spoke OF our visit to
that village, and of the meeting theIe, and
Was pressing in his invitation for another.
"Why, you won't know the place at all now,
it's changed entirely; in fact" he continued,
"its as good as rebuilt. The houses are all
| shinsled, capboarded and painted, .g7r---. c,e
OF them ;the old meeting house has been L. !. =.
| oushly repaired and painted inside and out,
and we have regular preaching. every Sunday,
and all The people so to meeting. We. have
the largest and best Sunday School, in pro-
portion to onr numbers in all the region
around, for all the children and young people
attend, and many Of the men and women ;and
there is no better district school in the county
than ours. do wish you'd come and see the
change; all from selling no more rum"
,,The people are industrious and thrifty now.
live as well as their neighbors and are laying
up something besides. I come into town
now to buy goods for my store, and have my
teams here to take them home; and not ten
minutes before met you, Mr.. Blank, one OF
our men, met me here and asked ME if my
teams were in town, and it 1 had any spare
room ON them. tod him yes, and what do
you think-he wanted me to take on for him
barrel of -four, a keg OF moasses, half
barrel OF pork and two pieces of cloth; all
Of them for his ewu family use. Now when
you were at the village that mau wasn't
worth one cent, and nobody would trust him
Tor Shilling, Tor every'hInethe could scrape
was spent for rum. Now do come an! see us.
aud come to my house, and you won't have
to 60 over to Blanktown to sleep as you did at
the time of the former visit"
And did so second time to Blankville,
its Old name Of slab city being no longer ap.
Piled to ii. The people made slaves, shocks
and shingles as before, but great many mol e
OF them; the quantity they turned out was
more than doubled; and they had some little
side industries in addition. They cultivated
patches OF corn, potatoes and beans; and ev-
cry house had garden, taken care of mostly
by the women and children; and from these
large Share of their living was obtained,
with piss and poultry kept by every house
holder. The houses were nicely kept and
comfortably furnished, and the people bad
been transformed into good citizens, not only
providing Tor the comfortable support of wives
and children, but adding every year, by their
labor, to the wealth of the State.
| perfectly, the inevitable effect of the liqtor
traffic on social welfare and happiness, and
upon the general interests of people and
State. We have slab city with its one -four
ishing gros shop and its population of hea-
then, made such By the rum trade, Il peo
| pie more to be commiserated than the shea
then chinee" who i've up to their light, and
| make the best of their opportunities. We
have also Bankville, emancipated from the
liquor traffic, which had crushed out of the
people everything but mere animal life and
had reduced that to its lowest type. Look on
thispicture and on that. Now there Is no one
who does not know perfectly well, that every
village and town in the Slate would repeat
the experience of Slab City, under the same
circumstances, that is, it the people should De
brought under the influence Of the gros shops.
Let every good citizen, then, who wishes to
revive the rum trade in this State, give rea-
son for it, if he can, that shall be consistent
with the general welfare.
The effect of this Change 10 Slab city, was
no less favorable upon the character and pros
perity of Mr.. Blank, the rumseler, than upon
the people. His trade increased greatly, un-
der the new order of things; the people earn
ed great deal more, and spent their earn
ings, rot for rum, but for all those things that
enter into and make pant OF good Housekeeping
and comfortable lie. Their shanties were re-
built, calling for lumber Of various kinds, car
penters, masons. and painters. They wanted
paints, oil, glass, hardware, everything in the
building line; they bought tables, chairs, so.
fas, carpets, everything in the furniture line !;
they bought books, shoes, hats, crockery,
clothes, of different kinds, provisions neces.
sary to the co -Afort of their families; and the
most of these things came from the shop of
Mr.. Bank, whose trade was with Portland. so
that with the general thrift, ne told me, that
his business was lar better under the new sys-
tenn; and he was no longer an isolated rum
seller !attening upon the misery Of his neigh
bors, but was one with them, doing his full
share Of work for, and feeling the deepest in
terest in the general good, and enjoying his
full share OF it. Nd.
HarPcr's slagazine.
To Harpers Magazine we return with
ri hit good will the "Merry Christmas" and