The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1881-04-22
NEAL DOW In BEL AIR.
Temperance Meeting at the Cou
House.

va evening lHe SOuIt I1ouse WIS
filled with an audience assembled to hear lee.
ture from Hon. Neal Dow, the famous temper
ance orator, of Maine. Mr.. Dow, who was the
guest of Rev. b. f. Benson, pastor of the VI. P.
Church, Bel Air, came into the hall about eight
o'clock, and took his scat at the Judges desk,
along with Rev. Mr.. Benson and Rev.
W. T. l.. Kiefier, pastor of the Presby-
terrain Church, Churchville. Mr. Dow is
about seventy eight years of age Of medium
height, rather spare figure, with gray hair and
gray side whiskers. His step is firm and elastic,
and carnesness of purpose and individuality of
character are stamped upon every feature ofhs
face.
The meeting was opened with an earnest
prayer by Rev. Mr.. Kieiler, after which the ora
tor was introduced by Rev. Mr.. Benson, as "the
author of the Maine Liquor Law, and the apostle
of Prohibition in the United States" Mr.. Dow
said:
The London Times said that Great Britain has
pestilence and famine. great many people who
read this thought 1t to be original with the Times,
but it was not so. One hundred and fifty years
| ago French poet had said the same thing
of the human family. We can say of the people
of this country that they have suffered more from
| intemperance than from war; pestilence, famine
or all other evils
The question of teetotasm has come to the
front not only in this country but among English
speaking people everywhere to see what can be
done to relieve the human family from the mis-
chief of intemperance. No intelligent man can
deny that strong drink is bad-that infinite mis-
chief comes from 1t to millions of people. You
neighbors, friends, fathers, brothers, going to
the devil by strong drink, yet you are not afraid.
Every moderate drinker thinks that in his case
there is no danger, and the whole mass of moder
ate drinkers keep in the same course. Every in
teigent man ought to know that the greatest
the world
by strong drink from Alexander the Great down
TO our day, William Pitt and Addison were ex-
amples of this kind. Now, can we say that are
greater men than Alexander, and there Is no
danger of our being destroyed by strong drink
| Can we say, they were fools; we can restrain our
appetitesf There Is no possible safety except in
| tectotalism. 1t Is u fact that teetotalism Is
wiser and better way Of life; Did you ever hear
| totaler? You have seen harm coming to millions
OF people because they were not teetotalers
Twenty years ago 1t was conceded that alcohol
was stimulant but in later days 1t has been
| found not to be stmulant. 1t paraly2es the
| minute blood vessels, and then the heart beats
| more rapidly, just as steam engine runs more
rapidly when the belt breaks A man under the
influence of alcohol cannot endure so much cold
| or fatigue as before taking 1t.
! Mr.. DOW related several anecdotes showing the
advantage of teetotalism in pecuniary point of
a moderate drinker and the other a teetotaIer.--
Now the teetotaler Is wealthy and respected,
| while the moderate drlnker died drunkard..
| Also of a drunken journeyman tailor, In England,
who became a teetotaler, prospered in business,
was elevated to positions Of honor and became
the Young people to Join the temperance move
ment. and picturing the evils of alcohol, said
| Who is the wise mamie who refuses to touch
J 1t In Maine, said he, we found that talking
about 1t would result in no permanent good, ex-
from the grog shops. Put them away and you
abolish the evil. We had grog shops in Maine as
you do. We imported molasses and converted 1t
| tillery a brewery or wine factory in Maine.
small quantity of liquor s brought into the State,
concealed in sugar, meal, &C., and 1t is sometimes
wells, &C. But it will all be swept away when the
laws are screwed little tighter In Portland we
have four sher.ffs, who hunt rum dealers as rats
are hunted by ferrets in England. 1t Is not true
that as much rum is sold in Maine as ever. The
Now IL Is not more than half a million, and
ga 0oOOU are saved every year lhrough me
Maine law. The people are better educated they
live better, and have better houses and barns.
Mr.. Dow alluded TO Senator Bayard's letter to
member of the Delaware Legislature, in which
is of doubtful constitutonality, and that his in
formation In relation to States where prohibition
wss NV ta ev Of the
liquor traffic could be reduced by stringent IL
cense law Mr.. Payard, said the speaker, permits
he is totally ignorant. The assertion that local
option laws are unconstitutional has been put to
English language is spoken Mr.. Bayard has fall
EN- into an extraordinary error In his statement
In relation to the condition or those states where
prohibition prevails. In England. In Scotland and
In Maine good results and no evil have come from
prohibition.
The liquor traffic has inflicted thousand times
more evil in Maryland than comes from grand
larceny, arson or assassination. In heavens
name, are we not authorized in dealing with this
crime as We deal with other crimes
In answer to an enquiry from Rev. Mr.. Benson,
Mr.. Dow said that the treasury of Maine had not
| been impoverished by the prohibitory law, but
on the contrary $24 600 900 were saved every year
Maine suffered less from the great financial panic
| than any other State and 1t was because of
prohibition
He closed by exhorting all present to help on
the good cause, by putting down that trade which
lives only by converting fathers, sons and hus-
bands into drunkards and predicted that in five
years prohibition would prevail over the entire
United States.
Mr. Dow is not an accomplished orator, but
he has blunt way of speaking, which with his
great carnestness ensures him an attentive audi
ence. On Tuesday evening he lectured in Oar
| lington, where he was the guest Of Mr.. David E.
Thomas, President of the Hartford County Tenn
perance Alliance, and on Wednesday evening in
Havre de Grace, At the latter place he was en-
tertained by Mr. Jesse nilles.