, 1874-06-13
mn LEWIS ON PROHIBITION.

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do LEWIS ON PROHIBITION.
Dio Lewis, tho champion Of tho recent Tom
pcranco Crusade throughout Bovornl OF tho WoBt- |
trn Btates+ has boon making tour Of tho 8sato |
Of Maine to obseryo tho operations Of tho pro- |
hibitory Law, and communicates tho roHult Of his !!
observations In 1ettor to tho Cincinnati Gazette.
Thoae aro, to soy the loaBs. worry remarkable, not
alone tor tho information contained In them,
but alao hocauao thoy Indicate a very radica |
c]ange In Mr. Lewis idoaH concerning tie aBon-
clos which can DO most profltnbly employed for
tho suppression Of intemperanco. Tho first
conclusion to which ho has arrived is
that loRialat,on is powerloss to oheck In
temperance. suya Lewis IA little more than
twonty ycarn ago we began to leglalato
against the aalo Of Intoxicating drinks. sinoo
that tino temperance sentiment has rotrograded."
Furthermore, ho regrets that the women OF
Ohio have dropped the "dyinc agencies" aud
that thoy have boon aeizod with tho mndnesa Of.
regulating temperance by law. and says: "In tho
plane OF politics tho rum purity will beat tho tem~
porauoo party ovory time; and If, perohanoe.
here aud thore, tho temperance votora aro In tho
majority, the rum party will boat them oil the
asrne-not in voting, but in dodging." Unfor-
tunatsIy, however, the Same difficulty lies In tho
way Of tho divine agonoioa," as sIr. Lewia calls
them, TINT hindcrs tho operation Of logiela-
tion, aud that is the Incorporate zeal
Of tue roformors themselves. SO long
as thoy studiously iguoro the fact,
ffnkn
human nRtures aro not constituted altho, sock to
make a mnn temperate by oompulsion. invade
, private aud personal rights, and run counter to
national habita Of lifo, just long will thoy not
only fail to accomplish any immediate effect for
good, but alRo do harm to the CAUSE Of temper
anco. Tho 1esults OF the pervorsity and rcok-
| loaa zoal OF tho crusaders arc now shown In tho
! plentiful crop Of suits for damagos which aro
| aptinRing up ali over tho State, instituted by
| druggists and othors whose business hns been
injured.
There ID another point made by Dlo Lewis,
which also gocs to show tho folly. OF compulsory
measures. In Bangor. place Of 49, 600 people,
he states TINT there arc 800 placoa whore drinks
are sold, or one for ovory' fifty peop1o. men,
women and children, and this In city whoro
tho prohibitory law is supposed to be enforced,
aud whoro 1t has been on tho statute-books 70,
at least twsnty-d yoars. It should be furthor'
moro remembered that this persistent drinking
tn spite Of law is dono, not by transient vsitora
nor by new oomers, but by tho staid peopl
thcmaolves, whose legislators hayo mad
tho 1awe. Tho population Of Maino doe
not increase On tho other hand 1t is dooroaHing
and, aH 1t decreases, tho consumption Of ltquo
inoreasos. In Chicago, whero there Is no pro
hIbitory law, there are 8. 100 saloons. or one tt
about 1870 people, mon, women and ohildron, ANT
this in great cosmopolitan city, throngod con
etantly with atrangera from every part Of th
country. DR.. Lewis Maine trip has apparentl.
convinced him of tho uttor futiltty of prohib
itory legislation, which loada hin to say, ~ au
sure the friends in Ohio arc sufficiently interest
cd IN the temperance oauaa to send committee
to Maine to apond week or two inyostigatiu
tho Workings Of the prohihitory law; an
IT am sure thoy would bo amazed q
the facts. And yet did moi SEQ an open drink
ing-p!aco while waa In tho State, Thera Is NJ
doubt that the traffic has boon driven unde
!, cover and there is not shadow OF doubt th<
the consumption Of drinks in Maite is eno,'
/ NOUS" In view Of such facts as rloso, whic
demonstrate tho folly Of attempting to max
, men temperate upon eompulaon, would 1t NO
, | bo at onoo both moro BenBibla and FRACTION
/ for tempersnco psopls to recognize them an
, direct their efforts against drunkeuneas b
advocating the mao Of those drinks which NJ
, harmless, and which are in constnnt use
countries whore drunkennoaa is oomparatlvsl
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