The Weekly Kansas chief. [volume] (Troy, Kan.) 1872-1918, 1880-04-15
WHERE LIES THE BLAMEt


"H AHs' A
=,
m q, shnsr bne tSat o. drnLe,i u .ons
oth. youlendeavor 10 SNOW that lhe urunkaru aohe
respohsioie Ior ms arunhenness anu .he eYIis re
surfing thereiroin, WINE tne saoonkeePeL Is per
iecy innocent oi any oiaine resulting ifoh Tue
IN iquor AT the same time, You admit the crime
Irouuchs enee's VI ,i Gun you even auis :
lhil man may get arunh ior lne very purpose oi
committing Srlne. Aho.her Iuhission You clnn1t 40
Nou, anu .S ne Is no que hnoms oes'er G .iin an sne
ueaeIs III rum tne uIsas,rous resui's oi tne trailc
anu anu yer ihey, showing lnese d,re eonseqetces OF
thelr uaue; are IN no way 10 plane or respohsiDe
lor !neii. i9u may urge that me ue;Ier IN any CIV
en- instance does not knor that the drinker eonenl-
plaIes crime; or tnat the drinkns OF the gwen dran
VIII result IN crime oht the liquor deaier wen
KNOWS that drunkenness enhances the haoihiy 10
commit crime two or three hundred per cent. Now
IL were any tnihS else inah hquor tIat ulunene1
people INTO tee commission @ OF crime hardly ihihS
the vendor OF IL wouid hhd an aPoiosst or eiehu
er IN so stauneh ana orderteaehins journal Us the
Chtg.
But whether the saioon-keeper Is Responsible or
ncl, there must De responsibility somerhere IN addl-
uoh 20 'hat OF lhe drunkard. II the saloon man can
pleau hnocehce Oh ths uruhkehness anu It's results
OF CRIME then part oi the responsibility must IAN
PACK upon the community that uphoids or toerates
that crime producing commerce III drink " -
ANA why not nod the community responsible, mat
VIII sustain or allow rating factory that
constantly letting loose upon itself horde oil rum
lnIurated drunkaras II an incorporated town toi-
crates maddogs IN Its streets 1t justly lays itself IL
aoie 10 an action AT law Tor damages from hydropho
bia Ii allows Its bridges or sewers TO get out Of
repair, u Is a9le 70 damage Tor ilie, lmo and prop
erty, resulting from their criminal carelessncss NOw
if a community is bound to protect its members
against maddogs hydrophobla, rotten bridges, clog
gedP sewers why not from the tenfold greater evils
resulting from the liquor tratc! II city is bound
TO protect Its street walkers from the bite OF mad
dog why not protect innocent wives and children
from tine assaults oil q mad drunkardl III innocent
ours nave 10 90 nuzzied IN hydrophoOla times, why
not put the muzzlc on innocent lquordealers, and
an rnerr egdy ad innocent @ ana harmless , liquors % Every
they see sneakins cur dodging the corners of the
streets Let them cry, with a hundred-fold more
emphasis 'Muzzle that whiskey' "Muzzle that sa-
loon!" "MuZzle that rum deaerr This they
bound to do, and not leave the other undone.
Inc Chiy says that the saloonkeepers compel no
man TO buy and drink their liquors and therefore the
inference Is they are not responsible II the drlnker
does get drunk, bangs his children, and kicks his
wife INTO the streets There is no compulsion to
drhk anu therefore IL Is none OF the deaer business
what the drlnker does under the inspiration OF the
drink which he sells to him, because he did not COM
pei hin 10 drink, II the dealer compelled him to
drink, why. then he would be responsible. COmpul-
SION beng absent responsibility is not present SO
man may innict an indefinite amount OF injury up
on another, and through him, upon the community,
and his own Kindred provided he can get his consent
10 the ihnicuon, anu pays him well Tor 1t besides
why, the confidence man, the threecard monte man,
eonlpets no man TO listen TO him. or take hand at
his game and is he therefore innocent and blameless
or swnding unwary travellers out OF their last dol
iari Is gambling right, and is the gambler blame
less, because he comPeis nobody TO stake Their all
upon tne haLards OF ms games ana are the laws
restraining the operations OF these swlndlers all
because people are free to patronize them or
let them alone
, Again, the th,sf says saloon men seldom even so
ncit people 10 drink, anu therefore IL people VIII
drink drink without being asked, why, saloon men can't
help II VI course, they would little rather they
Wouu drink Dnt II they don ask them 10, they are
not 10 blame IL they do Wen, now, suppose 1t Is
true that saioonkeepers do not solicit patronage of
people: does even that exeuipate themf And will
that plea exonerate ererytody engaged IN doubtful
Dusinessi rake, ior instance, those moek-auction
men IN our large cities they seldom "even solicit"
patronage from the streets The police would get
ater them II they should. Well, If they do not ask
70 pid on their worthless wares do they not
Win the Tools whom they swindle IN the blame
anu guit connected with their swlndng operatlonsi
And take those other or similar classes that have
the under % man the gambler the cour
willing IDIOTS: are they innocent, when they get
opportunity to fleece their victims without soliciting
their patronagei But is it true that saoOnkeepers
do not solicit patronage, the other business
men do Ii not, then what means the glitter, the
show, the music and dancing, and all kind of atrac
tions, which tend to draw the multitude into the
meshes OF the destroyer What these but adver-
tisementsf And what are advertisements in any
business but solicitations of patronage!
The argument that the Chief offers, based on the
reformation of drunkards in spite of saloons, is not
quite conclusive. The drinking and the reforming
said to be the drinkers own acts This is true
but II is not the rhote truth. There is truth be-
hind this that should not be lost sight of The
whole truth would embrace those helping agencies
which led to the drinking and the reforming. With
out these auxiliaries, it is doubtful if many men
would ever learn to be drunkarls; and having thus
learned to be drnkards, IT is still more doubtful if
many would ever learn TO reform without them. So
the drunkenness and the reform result in part from
the drunkards own act, and in part from his sur
ronndings-infiuences brought to bear upon him.
The Chief says truly that it is not in the power of
saloOnkeepers to make reformed men drunkards,
unless they first made willing But the objection
TO this fact is, that they ought to be made willing
They are too easily made willing But even this ad-
mission ought not to be made without this very i'm
portant counter statement: reformed with clam
orous, raging appetes for drink, sometimes, through
the enticemens of the saloon, will drink and fall,
through the weakness OF their wills and the strength