The Lincoln County herald., 1871-09-21
Tenperauce
LiNCoLN COUNTY, Sept. II

LfNcOLN COUNTY, Sept. lO.
Edius Herald; I would like to say
. fes words to the readers Of your paper
especially shose who claim to be Chris
tians-os the subject Of temperance.
Twenty o. thirty years sso it vas
thought no great crime to engage iu the
sale Of Intoxicating liquors oven some
Of our best men engaged 10 it. Blu,
nov the case 10 different. All rational,
sound thinking persons certainly are con
vinced that i. has done, and is still do
ing. Que country . great injury. II il
corrupting our whole nation, from OUT
county courts to our national congress ai
Washington Even one Of our chief mag
istrates was drunk uhen inaugurated.
Every one knows that it 10 bringing
down to dirgrace hundreds OF our mos,
talented meu Of the bar, the bsuch, the
pulpit and the halls Of congress that /,
sends thousa nds annually to our prisons
and poor houses that il reduces thou
sands Of children annually to q state
worse than orphsuage; that it brings
every year thousands down to drunk.
ards graves. Still We look upon it as
something that every one has a perfect
right to do All are convinced that it i.
curse to the whole country; still We
don't know how to get rid Of il. Some
will say We should prohibit the sale of i,
entirely, and if possible prevent any
more being manufactured or imported
into the United Stptes, when the cry
will be raised on every stump that such
q law would be "monarchial;" "it is tax
ing our rights from u.s." "it is throwing
thousands Of poor men out Of emp mploynens '
Well, suppose it does throw some men
out Of employment (such employment a,
it is), are there not honorable way,
enough to make living. II there is nc
other way to get it besides making and
selling on article that sends thousands oi
better men every year down to perdition
then say let these "poor pcu" starve =
and the sooner the better.
There is only one way to remedy thi.
evil, and that is, legislate against it, I,
does no good to go to church and pray
for the drunkard, and then 90 to tn.
polls and vote men license to keep hin
drunk. We ought to have courage
enough to coma mt boldly on one side
or the other. Az long as we remsia "or
the fence" the devil is satisfied. If W
would work as faithfully against th,
liquor traffic as the devil and his hord'
does for it, victory would be ours. Blu
We are afraid to come out boldly agains
it, because it is not popular" We ar'
afraid We will mako enemies. Some vii
say, I'VE are not strong enough" ther
are too many Influential men against US,
i've have no power to accomplish any
thing" Martin Luther might have sal,
tho same thing in his dny, when tb,
highest powers on earth were agains
him, but he did not; no did what h,
thought to be right, whether it was 'pop
ular" or not, and he came out victoriou
over his enemies, and Why not zoe, If v,
have half the courage he had. Th'
temperance cause has more friends to
day than Luther had in 1917, and no
half tho power to contend against. Nov
II We CLAIM to he Christians, moralists, OF
free American citizens of any name Of
order, If we desire the cause OF temper
ance to prosper, let Us lay aside all party
and political prejudice, and elect only
those to Office who are willing 10 pledge
themselves to 6ght sgainst the liquor
traffic. If We do this We may expect tc
arrest, and that before long, the rapid
strides Of iutemperauce.
Respectfully, HOREB.