The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1873-01-20
TERMS $500 PER ANNUM IN ADVANCE.

Ter e1ntaet 1Tst or collision. Salus pOpuH saprema
Sbpreme isaiety lwelfare) Of the people Is the
comnact ro1l The exigencies of the social
before and die aSn that such laws be executed
reason that on.ra.ll an Others. 1t is for this
nealtn, compel mere CONN.,, Whlch protect
~, ~ suolnlt 10 their control TS~ Ieguiations
liberty OF the passengers: thy restrain the
the snip, winch is the instrument operate on
merce, ana on its officers and crew ol com
lisnes oi navigation. They seize the i "a, ,ns ,,
cargo and cast It overheard. An tbosa ected
are done y u becansa ie Ioi; tnings
for the preservation of the health nrever,;"s laws
OF crime, and protection of the public weltara
must OF necessity. have full and free onera,
ton. according TO the exigency that reouires
their interference. II loss of revenue sbonId
accrue to the United States, from a dimin-
ished consumption of ardent spirits, she will
be the gamer thousand fold in the health.
wealth and happiness of the people,"
Howard's Reports, pages 50i-sss.
The right of the State to prohibit the
liquor traffic Deing established by the
highest authority known to our laws, there
can be no doubt that it is the duty of the
government to exercise 1t. 1t is plainly the
right of the people to demand of the govern
ment to protect them by adequate legislature
from every great source ofevil and the govern
'hCuO Ou tuC ObuCI uduu 10 DOQuu Oy lUS QuIV
to prohibit it and suppress everything that Is
mnaniiestly inconsistent with the general vel
fare..
There is no other evil n the State so great
as sne liquor traffic; it produces more
misery ;, and mischief to the people
.nan all other evils combined, at tn
same time, that no benefit whatever
G1nies Ta from II to the State or the people.
! Inc pretense that Prohibition in Maine mas
,allea 10 enect any useful purpose, is so shall
.aS no Ill .i.ilen oi tne State, who was ac-
qualned with Its condition in the time of
licensed grog shops, and who knows its CO.
dition now, can possibly be deceived hv =
1t is far within the fact to say that the ouan.
tlty OF Intoxicating liquors now consumed in
Maine, Is not one tenth so large as il was he
fore the Maine Law, with a much smaJIer
and the resul of this are soon
everywhere, in the improved condition of
the people, in diminished poverty, paup .rism
and crime, and the greater respect for law
and order among all classes of society.
But in some of the larger towns of the
State, there are yet some bad citizens, who
seek to continue the liquor traffic, tempted
thereto by the great profit derived from it,
and VINO keep low shops secretly, where in. :
temperate men can find the means of g,ati-
tying their dreadful appetite forstrong drinks.
But in large districts Of the State there is no
liquor traffic whatever, where formerly every
tavern and every grocery was a grog shop.
AT the time OF the enactment of the Maine
law, 1t was clearly foreseen that its penalties
were not sufficiently stringent, nor iIs
processes sufficiently summary to secure the
complete extinguishmens of the liquor traffic,
except In those parts of the State where the
authorities should be specially interested in
It's enforcement either from their view of i'm
portance to the general welfare or from hioh
sense of official duty.
But 1t was supposed at that time that the
'tringency of the law was nearly or quite nm
TO the public opinion; and it was thought to
be the wiser and better way to give opportu-
nifty 10 the law as 1t was, to demonstrate to
the people the immense benefits that would
result from it; and while the LIQUOR traffic
under its operations would become Infamous.
and would be greatly diminished in magpi.
tude, public opinion would become educated
to higher appreciation of the importance of
prohlbltlon, and to a deeper sense of the
dreadful character of trade whose sole in
tiuence 1t is to impoverish, pauperize and
brutalize the people and to fill thousands of
households with unspeakable wretchedness
which would otherwise be comfortable and
happy homes.
The late eminent English Judge, NJ. P. Hill
Of Bristol, few years ago said in a charge to
~ OA"hN caNSOs w dlC Will u ITlRDL-
ful calendar OF crime, upon which il will be
vour duty to pass. 1t will be found that al .
most all OF 1t comes from intemperance and
The liquor traffic. Whatever efforts are made
oy the wise, good and philanthfopic to ameli-
)rate the condition of mankind, whatever is
attempted to make men wiser, better, hap
,ier-"the liquor traffic starts up and blocks
he way" There was never a truer word.
The liquor tr ffic does block the way against
every good, and opens wide the way to every
taught wisdom, truth, virtue the kroe sboD
leads men to ignorance, sin, shame. We build
school houses where our children may be
taught to become good citizens, good fathers,
brothers, sons; the grog shop with a more
powerful influence, teaches them to be bad in
all relations of life. An eminent member of
the British parliament said few years ago
that ''the struggle between the grog shop on
the one hand and the church, the school, the
library on the other, was one phase of the
warfare between heaven and hell" And he
said also, that because ofit, there were 'smnre
than five hundred thousand homes in Great
Britain, where home happiness was utterly
unknown" All this Is true of the liquor traf-
ic;-every body knows it to be so. 1t is
therefore, that the people of Maine have re-
solved to suppress that shameful trade within
its borders.
AC hquOi tidlllC 10 III uCduiy EOotttty u
every interest Of the State and to every inter-
est of the people. 1t eats into society and
into the body polite like a malignant cancer
No emolient can check its ravages, nor post
pone its deadly results. The knife and actual
cautery are the only possible remedies for this
dreadful evil; and these, when applied boldly
and firmly are an efectual remedy. The liq-
uor traffic, if it were judged, as 1t ought to be,
by its effects upon the common welfare,
should be placed by law, side by side with
the greatest crimes. Do we imprison the
thief? the grog shop inspires men with the
desire to steal. Do we imprison the incendit-
ry? 1t is the grog shop that puts the torch in
to his hand Is the murderer hung, his life
being adjddged inconsistent with the general
welfare? it is the grog shop that fills his heart
with hate, revenge, madness, aud at the same
time, deprives him of the restraining power
of reason puts the knife into his hand, and
urges him in his phrenzy, to drive it home to
the heart OF his victim, who is often inno-
cent Of offense in deed orthought
In whatever light we regard it, the liquor
traffic must be adjudged unworthy to exist in
any community, and 1t ought to be suppress
ed with the strong hand, without mercy.
The grog shop shows no mercy to any; 1t re-
CARDS neither age, sex nor condition, but
wages constant, unrelenting war against all
and Its victims are put to death without pity
or remorse, amid the most dreadful torture Of
body and mind. As to this, there is and car
be no difference OF opinion; all int, lligen
men must admit that all this and great dea
more is true of the liquor traffic, in its efiect'
upon human welfare and happiness.
Although the grog shops are at present re.
duced to very low condition in the State,y ,ye
few of them exist secretly, conducted by low
and bad men, and infict upon the peopl,
more misery than they experience from al
other offenses against the laws of Coz
and men. We feel ourselves justly en-
titled to call upon the State government
to stigmatize and punish this crime more II
accordance with its immense wickedness
than itisby our present laws land we solemnlJ
sSm al rnnm all good men Of whatever party, by
their personal influence, their voice and theil
vote, to support the authorities in whateve
measure of law may bs deemed necessary fo