Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1874-03-18
The Temperance Cause at Harris
burg.

SIZE OF the BHiid'ng.
The ladies of Pennsylvania are as
deeply alive to the suppression of the
liquor business as their Western Sis
tiers, they are however, organizing in
different way. Generally, they have
not inaugurated prayer-meetings in and
I in front of salooss, and taverns ard
other places where liquor is sold, but
they have gone quietly to work aud
organized societies for prayer, and now
in most of the large towns throught the
State, there are regular daily prayer
meetings held for the temperance ause.
The cause assumed an unlocked tor
phrase last Wednesday evening at Har-
risburg. That evening had been set
apart By the Committee on Vice and I'm
morality, TO hear argument, by men in
favor of repeal of the Local option Law.
The liquor men thought their case
was swimming delightfully."-, and expected
an easy conquest of the Committee.
They expected a hocse full of the ad-
herents of the traffic, how disappointed,
Such an audience as the Legislative
Hall filed with ladies' had not been
dreamed Of, their silent presence threw
confusion into the ranks of the traffic.
The Harrisburg Telegraph; describes
the meeting as follows. At an early
hour in the evening the women we're
focking toward the Capitol building in
great numbers, and when half past
seven arrived, the committee could
hardly gain adHittance. Mr. VAIN
right, the Chairman of the Committee
On Vice and immortality, accompanied
by Messrs. Robert LiddelI, VIM. J.
Friday, Marker Rush. Z. Werthaner,
T. D. asey, and James Littell, made
their way through the crowd, and Mr..
Wainwright called the meeting TO
order, aud notified Mr.. Littell he would
hear anything he bad to say.
Mr.. LitteIl came forward and said
he was astonisbed at the immense
audience. He supposed they were to
meet the committee quietly and lay
their cas-. betors the Legislature, like
law abiding citizens. He was in favor
of a fair license law which would
take the sale Of liquor out Of
the hands of bad men. l hate
drunken man as bitterly as any of you.
You cannot legislate on the srppetlte.
Teach them to cavern their appetite
and restrain themselves, and you will
then do ,uore in the cause of temper
-nee. He then excused himself for
detsining the committee and retired
under cloud.
General Pennypacker, of Chester,
was the next speaker. lie said that
legislation was safest which looked be-
yond the present feverish excitement.
He arraigued the inquisitOrial system
under the local option law, which
drags our citizens to prison, and his
neighbor has TO rausom him with hun
dreds of dollars. The law, he claimed,
is practically nulllty now, because it
was too severe, for there had been ne
prosecution before the Grand Jury Of
Chester county last term, although the
Law is violated from one end of the
county to the other. The temperance
men had formed a league and would
say to one, aYou have violated the
laws, but We will let you 90 if you pay
so much into our treasury, which be
cid, and they let him go. - They said
to another, Unles. you contribute
$500 to the school fund We will prose-
cute yeu.
They took an old druggist of Coats
vile who had furnished liquor on
doctors certificate, dragged him to Jail
and demanded $1,000 as the ransom
aud now when magistrate sentences a
man IL Chester county, he goes out of
his way to say that =" i; is not fer the
Court to question the propriety of law"
Local option has driven the people out
side OF the law, and these habits are
formed. and appetiies created which
cauno; be changed By suck enactmeuts.
Thus this irresponsible Committee con-
troll things because the regular law Of
fcers will not prosecute, and it has
thus bred Up with as spirit of law
iessness and disregard Of law which
is demoraIizing in the extreme.
NR. iiISDMAN. Of Lycoming, wa.
tho next speaker, and continued at
some length in the same strain. There
Dad been more men sent to the peui-
tentiary from this county since local
option has been q law than since it was
made county. Does that speak wei.
of the moral reform! There are
pediars who 60 around with calico, and
: jug of whisky under the calico. Does
thai speak we'll for the effects of the
lawl The Williamsport movement
cancelled all his arguments.
4 lull was here had. Mr.. Waih-
wright called upon any one else who
desired to speak, but no one responded,
and an old grsy-headed gentleman rose
4 81 y.