Eaton weekly Democrat. [volume] (Eaton, Ohio) 1866-1875, 1872-04-18
The Temperance Mass Meeting.

49, IA ~
evening last was heartily responded
to by the citizens of Eaton, most of
whom, we have no doubt, were and
are in favor of pushing matters to al
most any extreme to enforce their
crude ideas against the use of liquor.
The first speaker was RoBT. MILLER,
Esq. Now, Robert is a very good
man-an honest, sincere and upright
person in all his doings and dealings
and withal reasonable-no fanatic
but he is terribly "long-winded" and
tedious as q speakist, and on an old
worn out subject, you may bet your
bottom stamp, calculated not to be
very entertaining, and. the result was
the audience so persistently %applauded
that he was compelled to suddenly
withdraw from the stand, after a few
brief and not unreasonable remarks.
The next on the stand was our old
friend Saround a country school
house, Col. HENDRIcKs, who can take
the dryest topic in existence and keep
the audience in q continual roar of
laughter and applause, by his uncom-
mon expressions and comparisons
He beautifully lampooned some ofour
very noisy temperance reformers, who
pretend such hatred of draln-drinking,
but at the same time vote into high
official positions regular whisky-soak-
I'd H.oar.d osraDlxy hnooacn fbau hA-
longed to their party. He said this
temperance movement would evident
ly run into a political channel, and
you might az well 'Etry to keep up a
hell without birthstone as undertake
to carry a political party without
whisky % And then there you are
again flat on your backsi 1t was
rather a "fun-poking" speech, and had
q disastrous effect on buttons and tight
corsetsi We left then.
Previous to these speeches a com
mittee of five were appointed and con-
stituted a prosecuting mini stry to en-
force the Iawlagainst abenzine" often
ders, and a large amount of money
subscribed to assist them in their
work. Many subscribed, whom in
our humble opinion, had better hus-
band their means for other purposes.
We at least, felt that way when called
upon for q quota. Those who are in
easy circumstances and have plenty,
it is all right; but the law against Of
tenders can be enforced without2ap-
propriating the hard-earnings of the
needy, and if these Regulators" are
sincere and in earnest, let them do SO.
As Mr4M Miller remarked, it is simply
ridiculous to appoint committee to
enforce a bona fde law that has exist
ed and been in force since 1854, This
law is just like any other criminal
law ofour State, any body who knows
or is cognizant of a violation thereof,
has the right to go before the proper
officer, file his affidavit of the fact, and
commence the prosecution. TT is not
LEGALLY necessary that a committee
be appointed TO SsMELB oUT" viola
tons and institute prosecutions. II
citizens who know of violations will
not voluntarily go forward and file the
necessary papers, it is their, own fault,
In fact, the, appointment of a commit
q tee in a strongly Republican eommu-
nifty like this, where it is claimed
everybody now are and always have
been .fgood law-abiding citizens" is
rather an argument against the cor
rectness of the law than otherwise
1t goes a great way to show and prove
that the ACTS which the law makes &
CRIMINAL eFFENsE, are nearly Identical
with what the people always have and
hence it is difficult to find any one
who will voluntarily become a prose
cutor. tits something similar to the
Fugitive Slave Law, once in existence
only ten times more Objectionable, ant
which many of these VERY law-abid
ing temperance advocates spit upon
deteeted, DISTRACTED, violated anc
evaded in every conceivable manner
OAACiOAOA IlIuh pIOSCSuIlOh ~
"smelling committee" will do no good
and we are further satisfied that when
ever a violation of the law occurs tina
amounts to a CRIME, prosecutors will
voluntarily appear, just as they do 70
any other, crime, and we advise thes
poor fellows who have been dupe,
into subscribing away their means t
fee some idle shyster, to Keep it i
their pockets, and let the individual
who ere SO iaw-abiding enforce
upon their own responsibility. Thes
are our sentiments honestly entertain
ed and freely expressed but of cours
the "green-eyed" and "shallow-pated
will see in them an advocate of So
looms. Be it so.
The non-appearance in the DEMO
Graf of the Temperance resolution
may induce some of our readers t
think that it was our fault. We ofie,