Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1877-09-21


gard to the sale Of liquor in Brattleboro,
aud il is understood that upon tue testino-
ny furnished by them indictments have
been found, under the Stale law, against
all the hotels, drug stores aud saloons in
this village and against the hotels at West
BrattlebUro. While not In any way ques-
tioniHg the honesty Of purpose which has
actuated the persons upon whose complaint
this action has been taken, we cannot re-
sist the conviction that the final result will
prove this course TO have been an ill-advis-
cd one, which, judged by the result Of like
experiments in the past, can hardly effect
any permanent good, while ii Is morally
sure to stir up a strife and ill-leeling in the
community that may not soon he done
away with. If we believed that the result
of these prosecutions, with other prosecu-
lions which may follow under the law, in
case of its further violation, would 10 TO
lossen the sin of intemperance in this COM
munity, to save our young men from form
ing drinking habits, and TO make strict
temperance the rule of the town, we should
then heartily bid the movement good
speed" But, unfortunately for the faith Of
candid and unbiased minds in the working
of method like this, the result of expert
ments OF this kind, as they have been tried
in nearly every prominent town in Yer
mont, has not been such as to encourage
full confidence in their practical aud final
benefits. There are lew towns Of this size
in this section OF New England that have
not seen an attempt TO enforce strict prOhi
bition tried with much zeal, and with per-
feet honesty of purpose Gnt, in every in
stance, little by little, the tone of public
sentiment has weakened, little by little the
old condition OF things has re-asserled it,
self, aud, in The end, the better element of
society having, as it were, Withdrawn from
the contest, the baser and grosser element
has shown its hand with a greater degree
of boldness and arrogance than, in the be-
ginning, it would@nave thought Of sssum-
ing.
The fact Of the matter is that the condi-
ton of Brattleboro, as regards the liquor
traffic, has for many years, been an excep-
tionally good one, as compared with other
towns of its size-better we believe, than
many of her citizens have fully realized.
The local authorities have kept the control
of the business steadily within their grasp,
strict rules and regulations have been laid
down for the dealers, and the dealers have
fully understood that they must obey them
or suffer the consequences. The result has
been that we have not had low "grog-
gerry" or rum shop in town, there have
been, by comparison, remarkably few cases
of drunkenness, there have been almostno
street brawls, and there has been au almost
entire absence OF those noisy, drunken
demonstrations which disturb and disgrace
so many communities after niehtfall. In
saying this we do not in any wise wink at
or overlook the sin of selling aud
rum-drinking. We fully realize the hor-
rors of intemperance, and we candidly be-
lieve that, the national sin OF slavery hav-
ing been done away with, the one great evil
which lSesets this country is the curse of
intemperance, and we have for years
watched with unfailing interest and solicit
tude every effort which has been made TO
solve the question as TO how this evil shall
be lessened and subdued. But, knowing
that this evil does and must exist, the fact
must be locked in the face, and the real queS-
ton for this community is as TO how it shall
best be managed and controlled. When we
say that the liquor traffic is well conducted in
Brattleboro, it does not in any way excuse
or palliate the fact that very large amount
of money is spent at our bars for liquor
that only Injuries and degrades those who
| drink it, deprives families of the support
which is their right, and robs creditors of
their honest dues. But the ugly fact still
remains that those persons who are deter
mined TO follow drinking habits will have
the means of supplying their appetite, if
not in one way, then in another, and the
real question is as 10 whether, for the good
of the community, the traffic had not bet
ter be conducted openly and above board,
under the strict supervision OF the local
authorities, rather than that il should be
driven into corners and low, out of The way
places, whose keepers must inevitably he
| neither respectable nor responsible, or,
perhaps still worse, that ii should come TO
be the case that drinking clubs should I've
formed, taking in both old and young, or
that every lippler shall have his own pri-
vate jug or keg to which lie may resort
when he will. If conclusive argument
were wanting for the affirmative of this
PAOPOoihiOhg IL NOulu III Tue well
known fact that the worst cases Of intemper-
ance and drunkenness in this community
| exist in tho persons Of men who cannot,
| under any circumstances, obtain a drop of
liquor al any bar in this town. Where the
supply comes from which works upoL
| them sn CHI terrible results can only he con
jecIured.
1t is understood that there are commnn.
| tiles in this county where trict prohibition
| really prevails, and it is a gratifying fact
that in any of the smaller towns such a rule
can be enforced. When The public senti-
| ment of BrattlebOro, or IN any other place
! OF lis size, becomes proportiOnately what 1t
is in the smaller temperance towns, then
can total abstinence be made the rule Of
our people, and not till then. II is a Sig
nihcsnt fact that the two great temperance
reformers of the present day, Osgood and
Murphy, do not wage war upon rum-sell-
ers, but strive 10 educate the people up to
habits OF strict temperance, and everything
indicates that the general temperance sen.
ument OF the country inclines to this meth
cd. Such being the case it seems unfortu-
nate that at this time, movement should
be started here which does not meet the APP
proval of any large proportion of our peo-
pie, and which threatens TO practically do
away with the temperance reform work, so
enthusiastically established here under the
leadership of Messrs. osgood and Drew
We believe that we make fair statement
OF the condition of public sentiment in
Brsttleboro on this question when we say
that four-finhs Of our people would prefer
to see the liquor traffic remain as ii has
been nndar Strict and ahsoI,,,o l<a.t -.-.