Lexington weekly intelligencer. (Lexington, Mo.) 1871-1887, 1879-06-28
Ions of brewed or fermented liquors.
Here he have

of 26, ,496, $50 gallons of fermented or
brewed liquors and an increase of 5, $780,
PA gallons of distilled liquors, or an in
crease of a little over nine per cent in
| the consumption of brewed or fermented
liquors and a little over eleven per cent.
| in the consumption of distilled liquors.
| Here we have an increase of two per
cent IN the consumption OF distilled
| liquors over that of brewed or fermented
liquors. This is the way lager beer be-
comes "the apostle of temperance"
This is the way 1t cures the vice of ma
| tiOnal intemperance. Do we need any
further demonstrations on this point?
Here we see that every nine per cent.
| Increase we have in the consumption OF
lager beer gives US eleven per cent in
crease in the consumption of whisky
How long would 1t take to cure the vice
of national intemperance by this method?
Will President Rueter or Mayor Over
stolz tell US? 1t is not in the interest of
temperance and sobrIety that the Brew
ers' association are working, but in the
interest of dissipation and drunkenness.
Their business increases as the drink ing
habits of the people increase, and the
| profits of their $500. 600, 900 depend up
|
such circu unstances, for the representa-
tives of the Brewers association to as
sumo the role of temperance reformers
is an exhibition of cheek that transcends
everything in that line have ever met
with, and it IS brazen hypocrisy sufii-
| cient to make Satan hide his face IN
| shame
But. President Rueter remarks again !:
| 80 A tho n nf alonhnlio cti ,lon
social custom is. however, liable to lead
to excess. and as habltual excess in their
use does great mischief to society, the
sale and consumption should be so con-
trolled and directed as to lessen the dam
ger OF abuse as much as possible. This
Is what legislation should try to do. and
all that it can hope to accomplish. To
an unprejudiced mind the substitution OF
mild beverage for strong one in pub
lie favor must appear as simple or
natural way to reach the object.'
This is remarkable paragraph. and
l wish to call particular attention to it.
If the brewers association could substl-
tute
! A MILD BEVERAGE
for strong one so far they would doubt
less accomplish a good work, but the
fact, as we have just seen, is. they only
succeed in substituting a strong bever-
age for a mild one. Do we see those
who have become addicted to whisky
substitute beer in its place? Now, it
the Brewers association could do this.
and then only permit the drinking clas-
ses. by such restraints as MIR. Rueter
admits we have right to adopt to pro-
tect society, to drink what would be
healthy for them and good for the COM
munlty, they would certainly have our
cooperation and help. But instead of
this they take the sober young men of
the community and initiate them into
the drinking habit and lead them on to
stronger drink. 1t is just here that the
greatest enormity OF the beer traffic ap-
pears. 1t takes the uninitiated and
starts them in the way to ruin. and then
when their habit of beer drinking is
confirmed they substitute the stronger
tor the weaker beverage. But Mr.. Rue
ter here admits that 1.-The use of alcoholic
stimulants is liable to lead to excess"
and of course beer is included in alco-
hollc stimulants, and that 'sthe habitual
excess in their use does great mischief
to individuals and society,"" and that,
therefore, ''the sale and consumption
should be SO controlled and directed as
to lessen the danger of abuse as much
as possible" Now, we have here a full
admission OF the legal right to control
the sale OF alcoholic stimulants, and as
beer is an alcoholic stimulant we have
right to control it 50 as to lesson the
danger to society as much as possible
1t MIR. Rueter and the association will
stick to this position we will be able to
harmonize upon it without difficulty.
The right to control in the interest of
society carries along with it the right
to prohibit. it the we'll being of society
demands it. Now let the advocates of
beer stand upon this platform and we
will soon convince them that the only
way to protect society from the evils
arising from the excessive use of alco-
holic stimulants is to
| PROHIBIT THE TRAFFIC
altogether. Will the association of
brewers unite with the friends OF tenn
perance in favor OF law prohibiting
the manufacture, sale and use as a bev-
erage OF all distilled liquors? 1t they
are in earnest. and honest in their utter
ances in their last annual convention
they most certainly will, for they, in the
fullest and most unequivocal manner,
committed themselves to the theory OF
legal prohibitions as applied to distilled
liquors. But this is the last thing they
contemplated doing. They are as fierce
in their denuncatlon of prohibition as
they were free in their praises of the
beverage of their own manufacture. The
feeble and foolish assault on the Maine
law shows their feeling on the question.
While admitting that the Maine law has
completely broken up the liquor trade
in that state, Mr.. Rueter attempted to
prove by Governor Garcelon. strong
and prominent advocate oil the re-
peal of the law, and who was not
elected by the people of Name at all
and who does not represent their senti-
ment, that greater evils have followed
in the increase and use of opium. chlo-
roform. ETC., than the use of whisky.
Neither Governor Garcelon nor Mr..
Ruster expected men OF sense to accept
such twaddle as argument. Every SEN
slble person knows that with the reduc-
ton of the use Of alcoholic stimulants,
you reduce the use of all other stimu-
lants, and this silly statement OF Gov
ernor Garcelon can only bring the cause
of alcoholic stimu' ants into deeper con-
tempt in all right thinking minds.
| MIR. Rueter claims that the manufac-
ture and sale OF lager beer is a legiti-
mate industry that ought to receive the
special protection of the government, as
it furnishes employment for thousands
OF men and pays SIC, 900, 900 OF revenue
to The government. There is but one
way in which any business or trade can
justify itself, and that is by giving to the
consumer an equivalent for his money.
The amount OF capital invested, the
number OF men employed, and the
amount of revenue paid TO the govern
ment cannot justify any business or
trade. The only law that can Justify
it is
THE LAW OF EQUIVALENT.
A business that does not give to the
consumer an equivalent for his money
is not legitimate business, Tried by
this only: the beer business is not a le-
gitimate one. for it gives to the consum-
er no equivalent for his money. In this
respect it is worse than robbery, tor 1t
not only takes its victims money, but
it fires In him an appetite that thirsts
and hungers for qualification until 1t
consumes him, destroys his body, ruins
his reputation. beggars his family, de-
stroys his mind and ruins his soul. All
this it does as its legitimate and necessa-