The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1877-04-03
The Maine Law i'm Maine


intelligence who seem to think that the liquor
trade does really promote the general business
OF the country and add to its prosperity. They
see grog shops up and down the streets of towns
where "license' is granted; they see the smok-
ing chimneys.and perceive the stihing odors of
distilleries and breweries, and they see the
crowds of people going in and out of the drink
shops, and as they suppose that oil this stir and
bluster are indications of a prosperous condi-
ton of the place. while it is really significant
only of strip and waste Of the wealth of the
people, Of the hard earned wages of the
workers.
The traveller in England in passing by rail
through Burton-on-Trent, will see many enor-
nous buildings of brick on either side of the
track at distance of quarter or half mile,
and will see immense pyramids of casks piled
up in the open air, covering many acres Of
ground. All these are the brewer:es of the
Bases and the Allsops. The Basses father
and son, have IS 100000 worth of empty beer
casks always on hand, besides the enormous
quantity filled with their beer in every part of
the country; and the Allsops have perhaps half
as many These brewing establishments rep
resent an active capital of many millions of
dollars. Side tracks run from the main line of
rails all around among these enormous build
ipgs, and long lines of cars are alwasy to be
seen there, loaded with barley and malt and
hops, OF piled up with beer barrels either full or
empty coming from or going to every part of
the country.
All this marks truly most prosperous and
profitable business for the brewers and incon-
siderate observers conclade that it indicates
also an advantageous business for the country.
Up and down the Clyde below Glasgow, as far
down as Greenock and even lower on the river,
| the traveller will see great ship yards and many
of them; he will hear the &sounding hammers
| of busy workmen, as they close up the joints of
| marine boilers or drive home and head down
| the rivets in the iron sided ships. He will see
| the utmost activity prevailing there; smoke
| from the tall chlmneys of the steam engines
| smoke more dense, from the many fOrges,
wheIe enormous iron plates arc heated prepaI-
atory to adjustment to the graceful form and
fine lines of the hulls and the ear will be pain
ed by the heavy blows of the mighty steam
hammers by which are shaped and consol
| dated the enormous beams and cranks anC
shafts OF the tremendous engines which are to
drive these big ships through every ocean to
| every part of the world
Tue stranger who observes all this looks on
with wonder at the evidence of the wealth and
power and greatness of England. Truly hel
| commerce does bring her into close contac;
| with every patton, and she gathers in wealth
1 from every quarter of the world But what il
all this amazing activity were devoted only to
| the construction of pirate ships, and that thest
| numberless vessels when flushed were to bs
employed, not in useful, lawful trade, but in
rowing every sea and preying upon the peaceful
1 defenseless commerce of other nations, or o
their own No one is so dull and stupid as nc
to see that in such cases while these ship yard
| and ships might win large fortunes to the
owners they would add nothing to the genera
wealth. they would merely gather in by vic
leuce or craft the products of the industry Q
other people, while immense values would b.
wasted and destroyed by the process and so los
to the world.
Precisely that, and no less than that, is th
liquor traffic, in every branch of it, to the busi
ness and the wealth of every community wher
it is tolerated. And to-day the liquor traffic il
England is slowly but surely eating out the lil
| of the nation and undermining the foundations
of its wealth and power To day the trade o
England is slowly and surely departing from he
| never to return, unless er rulers shall have the
| wisdom and courage to suppress and put ava.
the mighty agency which makes her the mos
6irunken.nation in the world. with more power
ty, pauperism and crime than any other. Th
| mischief of the liquor traffic is felt in ever
branch of trade in England, paralpziDg th
| hand of industry so that it can no longer com
| mand the markets of the world for the sale 0
| British manufactures. Since 1860 the popula
| tion of the United Kingdom has increased onl
sixteen per cent, but the quantity of liquor
consumed has increased nearly two hundre
| per cent, with proportionate increase of a
the necessary and inevitable evils following /
the track of the drink trade-"the eiganti
| crime of crimes" If this process shall cor
tinue in England, as it must and will, withou
prohibition to the enormous liquor trade of tn
country. it sis inevitable that the Kingdom
must cease to be a first-classspower among tht
/ nations NEAL Dow.