Daily Kennebec journal., 1879-01-07
aoraI ann State Nrms.
TIE Curse of Rum.


In place not far from our city. few nights
since, young man who has a wife and sew
eral little children went from our streets to
his home drunk. abused his wife. drove his
ia nilv from his house. then collected his
wife's clothes, carried them out, hung them on
a stake, saturated them with kerosene oil. and
set them on fire. This young mans drink
ing proclivties are known to every man on
our streets who sells poison. | learn further
that the friends of the young man demanded
of the man who sold him the poison that he
paw the damage, and he handed over fifty dol
lars He is one of our most accomplished
nuisances.
In another part of our city. family may
be found suffering from like causes. They
entreat the rumselcrs not 10 sell, their parent.
vet they persist in doing it. and the little
ones are left without care to suffer. Near TO
them another still is mourning for love and
friendship turned to ashes. and a home des-
olated by these enemies of God and man.
With facts like these multiplying on every
hand. our city authorities throw up the sponge
and declare themselves powcrless-that they
cannot prevent these cruetics. Is the ques-
ton asked IF there be no remedy for such
crueties 2" | think there is a remedy. Ii is
with the men who are doing legitimate busi-
ness on our streets. They have the means.
they can command the power that can relieve
these sutferingS, and they are cruel if they
neglect TO do it. Law protects you. gentle
men-invoke it, protecting arm in defense of
the suffering and defenseless homes above
n itced. and all others.
Letus look at few facts that ought not only
to starte the business men of our city but every
man. and cause his cheek to mantle with
shame that the good name of our city is so
imperiled. There has been four hundred and
two commitments to the county Jail during
1878; three hundred and torty-fiye of them
for drunkenness and vagrancy, and nearly
one-half of the remainder for assaults. atfrays
and other disturbances coming from the same
cause--rum. Indeed, the gentlemen most
c,nversant with the history of the men com
mitted believe but for rum. not ten would
have been committed during the year
Two hundred and fifty of those commitments
q e charged to Augusta, leaving one hundred
and fifty-two for all the rest of the county.
The population of our county in 1870 was
53,203. The population of Augusta was
7,s0s. So you see that Augusta, with less
than one-seventh of the population. is charged
OF the criminal calendar of the county with
five-eighths of the crimes of the county whilst
the other six-sevenths il charged with only
thrce-eighths. Augusta is charged with one
u III every itlitN-lNV VI Utf UopiidtlDI,
whilst the balance of the county is charged
with one crime in two hundred and ninety
seven of the population. assume that the
citizens of Augusta are AS good as those of
China, Litchiield. Manchester, Monmouth,
Farmingdale, Fayette, Winslow, Readfield,
Mt Vernon. Windsor and Belgrade, towns
Containing more than fourteen thousand peo-
pie, from which not one person has been com
mitted in the same time.
| further assume that no worse people visit
u, only as we pander to the appeites and
passions of the vicious. by allowing to exist
amonst us dens where yiciousness finds its
qualification, and the young are inducted into
ways that always end in crime. For the sup
port alone of the four hundred and two crimes
our county ha. paid more than seven thousand
dollars. The criminal costs of the county are
more than twenty thousand dollars. Here is
sum more than three times much as our
city pays for her common schools. What do
We get in return for all this burden of taxa
ton! Answer to yourselves. fellow citizens
and as you value the reputation of our city,
if you would have life and property more se-
cure, your children freed from temptation, the
humblest child protected, beseech you to
rise in your strength and drive this great
crime, this great wrong, from our city.
G.. II.
Augusta, Jan. 6.