The spirit of democracy. [volume] (Woodsfield, Ohio) 1844-1994, 1874-08-11

ished intempPrance or decreased the
number of saloons; suppression thus
far having been the only legal action
that has proved reasonably successful
1t may help to decide the propriety
and benifcence OF a license law, by
noting who the men are that are fore
most in urging its adoption, 1t is safe
to say that no vote on this question can
be wrong which Is the very reverse OF
that commended by the liq,f6r traffic -
Phe great license meeting held at Ex
position Hall, in Cincinnati, reported to
have been attended by ten thousand
persons, was publicly heraldcd as an
Anti47cmpafanoe meeting, and leading
liquor dealers and ssloonists were con-
spicuonslysl&esent and enthusiastic
In. the Constitutional Convention Of
1874 as In that of 1851, the liquor In
terest was solidly in favor of license
There is not distiller, wholesale
dealer, 8 would be respectable saloonist,
restaurant proprietor, hotel keeper,
moderate and genteel drinker, who
does not c!amor for license. The heay-
lest dealers are the most clamorous.-
They are not alone. Honorable and
true men second the demand. But is 1t
not significant that the first cry of these
men, as the storm Of woman's uprising
has shaken their trade and broken .its
backbone, is for license law2 Do
these men really desire regulation or
restriction of the trader Do they ask
for license because they suppose that
will diminish the consumption? If so,
the whisky traffic must make men won
derfully unselfish and generous, pure
minded and large-hearted. No these men
know very well that license will not di.
minish their sales itwould give thettl
a legal bulwark behind which to fight
every popular protest.
The old argument in the Convention
of 1851 has never been answered, and
never will be: eff the traffic is right il
needs no license, if tbs wrong it ought
not to have one" Government has no
right to enter into compact with in
iquity, receiving revenue for its rccoe.
milton and protection. The heather in
|, the heart of Hindo stan plead for the
suppression of the dram shops, and we
talk about license! Paris tells US that
the commune was Graded in the saloon,
and had brandy for its inspiration, and
we talk about license! The one dark
blot on recent English history is the
forcing of the opium trade upon Chi.
ma in the face of the government pro.
test; we talk Of invoking the sanction
of law for running our own nation! II
is strange that while we have come to
repudiate governmental regulation and
protection for stealing, gambling, bull
batting, pngilism, and lotteries, we con
tinue the anomaly Of legislative sane
tion of an evil whose crimes are thou
sand fold greater, and pocket yearly
revenue therefrom. Shall the curse o
license be fastened upon us2 In 1861
Ohio said no by majority of nearlJ
! nine thousand, after twenty years ex
perience in license. Let the common
wealth, carefully viewing the ground in
1874, bury license SO deep that the
ghost of its departed presence >shal
never disturb us any more. And ir
the place of license, let us herald as ou1
platform the suppression of the dram
shop! 'af h@t sFlas aaa
To the foregoing facts and arguments
from the pen of Mr.. Bchrends, ! vii
add two brief paragraphs, The first i:
from E D. Mansfield, an old and able
correspondent Of the Cincinnati Gazette
The other is from the Essay" of David
Tatum, an able lecturer on temperance
and a member of the Society of Friends
I'm Massachusetts, after the prohi
bition act, they fell back on beer shops
and that depended on vote. I viii
cite case or two. In 1871 the city o
Taunton voted mo beer The numbel
of arrests for drunkenness from May
to December 81, 1871, was 290. II
1872 the city voted in favor of the sail
of beer, &C.. The number of arress
COR drunkenness from May i to Decem
ber 81, 1872, was 492, being an increas,
over the previous, year of 202, or abou
20 per cent, That will do fol. an exam
pie, but here ii another. In. the grea
emergency of the Boston Fire, ever,
precaution against disorder and riot be
came necessary. An adict OF absolute
prohibition against beer and all intoxi
eating drinks was made. The Chief o
Police, Mr.. Savage, says: for the tel
days preceding the order, viz, from
November 2 to November II, inclusive
the records show the whole. number b
arrests to be 1,169. For the ten day
in which the order was in force, frou
November II to November 81, .inclu
sive, the record shows the whole mum
Der Of arrests to be 675. That is oal
GO per cent. Of the former number"
i "Governor Perham, OF Maine, say
in his message of 1871: The Prohibi
tory Law of this State, so far as I ca
Judge, is as effective in the Suppression
of the liquor traffic, as are other GRIN
inal laws against the crimes they are in
tended to prevent; and all the Senator
land Representative in Congress fror
that State, jointly testify that the Ia,
of itself, under vigorous enforcement
of its provisions, has created a ten
perance sentiment which is maryelou.
and to which opposition is powerles.
In our opinion, the remarkable temper
ance reform of to-day, is the legitimat
child of the law"
And have We not daily evidence, i
Cadiz, of the suppression of drunger
ness by the closing of dram-shops 2
Compare the quiet and sobriety of th
1st of June, 1874, When the circus wa
here, with the drunkenness and rowdy
ism of former nowadays, when til
lshops were open. d.
There recently died in Belgium lad
of fortune named Madame Monser
who had q singular mania for the hoal
ding Of articles of dress. After hs
death an examination of her effects r
vealed an unusual state of things :
There were mountains Of dress goot
uncut, and, bearing the, tralesmen
price labels. besides hundreds Of boz
nets, dresses made up, cloaks, shawl
{ and various specimens Of the modiste