The new Northwest. [volume] (Portland, Or.) 1871-1887, 1874-04-10
LOOK ON THIS PICTURE, THEN ON
THAT"

6OO3A O4t 4A4S ! 49, C---i
THAT"
Last week an unhappy fallen woman,
seeing the crusaders at their work of
rescuing men from death and destrue-
tion, made an appeal to them to save
her. A warm-hearted lady of this city
took the poor creature, struggling away
from the tolls of vice, into her own
home, and sheltered her kindly for sew
eral days. On Sabbath evening, as that
lady with her daughter and this fugi-
tive from sin were returning from
church, they were assaulted by four
armed men, who seized the woman, and
in spite of her desperate resistance, car
ried her off before help could be sum-
moned. Terribly reproaching them
selves for being, as they afterward
thought, derelict in duty in not taking
active means that very night for her re-
covery, the ladies had search made on
Monday, which resulted in finding her
they sought lying drugged and senseless
at one Of the saloons which disgrace
this city.
That is one side of the picture. The
other is this: On Tuesday morning, the
crusaders being engaged in praying in
front of certain saloon, were arrested
by the police, at the instance of the pro-
prietor, and marched off to Jail, where
they remained incarcerated for a couple
of hours, while measures were being
taken for their trial. Bail was immedi-
ately offered by the friends of the ladies,
but they refused to accept it, and de-
manded that the case be tried then and
there. Upon a hearing, the Judge de-
cided that there was nothing in the Con-
stitutiOn or laws of Oregon forbidding
persons to worship God in any place;
and as not the ladies, but other parties,
were making all the disturbance, the
case was dismissed.
Several thoughts here present them
selves. The woman who was kidnapped
could not be recovered, even when il
was discovered where she was, because
some man there claimed that she was
his wife, and she being insensible, could
not deny it. But granting that she was
his wife, has a man right to force his
wife to a life of infamy? Is this one OF
mans many rights?
Again, is that city a well-governed
one, where the police are almost never
on hand to prevent assault, even kid
mapping, to women, but where whistles
are furnished to prostitutes and saloon
keepers, that they may be the more
readily protected from the consequences
of their own crimes? Is that a just city
government which allows liquor to be
sold to men, who, going home drunk,
beat their wives, are arrested therefor,
and the beaten wife compelled to sur
render the last dollar to pay the fine i'm
posed by the Court? In this case, the
city receives money for the license to
make the man drunk, takes the money
from his family to pay itself for punish
ing him, and sets him free again to re-
peat the same round, and put more
money in its treasury. The city is
doing thriving business at that rate;
but what of the wife, and what of the
miserable husband when he at last can
pay no more into the city coffers2 Will
our city fathers please consider this
question? Disinterested parties might
call this bloodmoney, which politicians
willhave to allow isquite as bad as bribe-
money or hush-money, or any of the
other several forms of stealing.
Another thought. Which might be
regarded as the purest benevolence-
rendering benefit to lady who is de-
prived of her just support by the intem-
perance of her husband; or putting it
out of her husbands power to be habit
ually intoxicated -? Can they feel sure
they are not helping him to the means
Of further indulgence? At the least, is
not this kind of help only temporary ,
II would be good thing, indeed, if men
of all classes could be brought to re-
member the public veal, and to reflect a
little upon that old, old adage from an
old-fashioned book: "The wages of sin is
death" to people as well as individuals