Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1881-04-23
rat FIanigan.s Lnrio.

Patrick Flanigan," said the Dis
triet attorney one day in curt,
''stand up and plead guilty or not
guilty 10 the charge the Common
wealth hath preferred against
you"
When Pat had complied with
the polite request thus made by the
officer of the law, the attorney pro-
ceeded to read from Il paper in his
hand a very graphic description oi
a certain transaction in which Pat
had been engaged a few days be-
fore.
@What say you? Are you guilty
or not guilty ?" asked the attor-
ney.
6Pm not guilty of half thin
things you've read to ne,o said
Pat, looking at the Court, 'tbut /
did have a bit of a row last Sunday
was a week ; an | dunno just what
/ did, fer We see was stavin' drunk
on the meanest corn whisky yer
honor liver tasted"
"But, Patrick, we never taste it."
said the Judge, while a smile Turk
ed in ambush behind the grave in
dicial countenance.
"Sure, now, don't we, though ?'
said Pat, with a look of mingled
surprise and incredulity-"don't We
though Well, thin We ought TO,
jist once, to know how it acts, and
to know how to pity a poor fellow
that does. Sure We honor grants
licenses, an how do we know the
mischief yer doin' to houeSt men
like meself unless We take a drink
now and thin, jist to see how it
makes a man behave hisself."
"WhO gave you the liquor, Pat
rick" asked the Court, on a voy-
age of discovery.
well, / dunno watts his name,"
SAID Pat, too honest to turn intor-
mer, while Il CLEAN of true native
humOr twinkled in his eye. "But
/ know l seed a license hangin' be-
hind the bar. Ne see, Judge, /
was wrOughtin' for the city, ON the
streets, jist close by, an | was
drouthy, an it was so handy ]
whit in an took a drink that orient
to have hurt a baby, am in tin sec
Onds l was crazy drunk, an |
dreamt that | was at a DennybroOk
fair an that's all L remember till
mkt morning, Whin | was bnardin'
at Sheriff Ryman's hotel"
"But," said the Court, ''you are
charged with perpetraitiDg an ag-
gravated assault and battery on Mr..
s., the hOtel-keeper."
swell, yer honor" said Pat, "it
/ did, l only gin back jist watts in
his own whisky; an if yer honor
hadn't give him a license | would
not we been drunk; am if / hadn't
bin drunk | wouldn't we got into
the fight; an if hadn't we got in
to the fight l wouldn't we bin here
this mOrnin', Onyhow."
This was a process of reasoning
new to the Court. 1t was a self-evi-
dent truth dressed in plain clothes,
and while the law was with the
court, Pat evidently had all the log
ic, and he here summed up the
mischief of the license system in a
few sentences.
Scores of lei + made drunk
every day, just because it is so easy
to obtain liquor. The law places it
in reach of every man. On the
SIreeJS Oh our tOWiS anu cities are
hung notices of "ChOice Liquors."
"CoOl Lager, ""Ale," and Fancy
Drinks" to tempt the laboring
man to come in and spend for
strong drink, the money that his
family needs for bread.
On the path he must walk to and
from his daily occupation he sees
these temptations on every side.
The licensed saloon and grOg shop
afford him every facility to become
a drunkard. His appetite, renew
ed and kept alive by indulgence
urges him on. There is no obstacle
on his road to ruin; on the OTHER
hand that road is opened and made
plain and easy by the law. What
wonder is it that the rum shops
flourish while the families of their
victims starve ?-Er.