The home journal. (Winchester, Tenn.) 1858-188?, 1881-03-23
What D5es Ii All Mean.
from the Nashville Christian Advocate. ]

comes tins universal agitation about the
manufacture and sale Of Intoxicating
drinks ? l. it merely a Fictitious ex-
element gotten up by fanatics? Is it
nothing more than one Of those waves
OF popular feeling that from time to time
sweeps over our land and then subsidc
as quickly as they rose? II you want an
answer 70 these questions 60 to the
Statc-prisOns and county-jails. Go to
the hospitals. Go to the insane asy-
lums. Go to the hundreds Of Thousands
Of hom : where the devil Of strong
drink has wrought his work of ruin
Go to the hcart-brOkcn mothers and
fathers whose gray hairs are going down
IN sorrow to the grave. Go to the
wives Of drunkards whose homes have
been turned into hclls. Go to the chill
drcn who, through strong drink, inher-
it poverty, shame, and vice. And, in
imagination, You might 60 down to the
bottomlcss pit aud gaze in hopeless hor-
ror upon the lost souls who died drunk
arcs and went down to the drunkurd's
he'll,
There is a meaning in this excitement
and cause for it. 1t is the writhing
Of Il body in pain, 1t is the protest of Il
people against being destroyed. 1t is
not n transient movement Of to-day,
The battle began before this generation
was born, the instinct OF selfprescrva-
tan prompting our fathers to lift up a
banner against this monster evil. They
fought it by their own methods with
more or less success here and there, but
they could only hold the enemy in
check. They have bequcathed to us
the tVi! and the battle against it. They
al ptel their own methods, and we
must adopt ours. What would our
friends who object to the present meth
obs Of temperance men propose? Would
they dissolve the various temperance
organizations? Would they repeal all
restrictive or prohibltory statutes and
let the traffic in strong drink be as free
as that in corn or cotton? Would they
let things go on as they are now, when
millions upon millions Of dollars are in
vested in the liquor traffic, and when,
with the exception Of certain protected
localities, the one ubiquitous and niqui-
tous institution IN this land is the liquor
saloon? Shall we fold our arms and
let things take their course Shall we
bcqueaih to our children this curse Of
curses? We ask questions that must be
answered. They cannot be shirkcd.
Every man who votes, every woman
who prays, every editor who writes, cv-
cry preacher who breaches, every lcgis-
Iator who makes laws, every magistrate
or other official who cntorces law, must
60 upon the record.
1 Many good men are bcwillcrcd by
questions Of individual freedom and civ
il rights connected with this matter.
They are jealous Of all Interference Of
Government with the occupations Of the
people, and look with suspicion upon
any advanced legislation for the regula-
ton or prohibition of the liquor traffic.
Some draw the line at the retail traffic
thinking it all right to close the saloons,
but are not willing to 60 farther and
suppress the manufacture of strong
drink and the wholesale trade in it.
! Let Us say, in passing, that the discrm-
nation that condemns and scorns the
saloon kccpcr and cxempts from all cen
/ It,r thn "a l,,l u, do, l,r tn, t,,n
us. Secondhand guilt is guilt all the
same. The manufacturers sell to the
wholesale dealers; they sell to the re-
taiIers; they sell to the drunkard who
beats his wife and beggars his children,
to the young man who is just starting to
pcrIition, and to anybody who can cx-
change nickel or dime for drink. 1t
is a chain Of evil doing, and it takes ev-
cry link to complete it. The Church
that excludes the man who sells whisk "
by the glass and retains the man who
sells by the barrel stultitics itself before
God and man. The conventional code
that tolcratcs the one class of liquor
dealers while it outlaws the other can
not stand the light of sober reason for
moment. That which is wrong in little
cannot be right in much. The whole
sale and retail trade must stand or fall
together That is the inevitable logic
of the case, and must be the ultimate
outcome in the adj tment of this ques-
ton. 1t will be clearly seen by all
that it is child's play to attempt to dry
up the rivulets while the fountain still
flows. Looping the branches of the
upas marks one stage Of this conflict,
but the tree itself must be cut down if
thorough work Is the object in view.
This issue is now before the American
people, and it mist be met. The great
underlying principles that must control
N deciding it must be studied out by
The masses. When they see the right
hey will follow it. All false issues will
DC eliminated, and the naked question
will be acted on. 1t matters not that
many persons are engaged in this traffic
Who in everything else are good citizens.
matters not that among the opponents :
# the traffic there are men whose advo-
acy Of any cause is disadvantage to l
t. There isa principle involved. There {
) right and wrong side. Sophistrics
'll be swept away. The timid will be
onstrained to renounce their neutrality. 7
he ballot will be invoked and the peo-
he will decide to suit themselves. In
he meantime, the Church, which is :.
iod's appointed agency for saving the
'orld, must do its duty. 1t cannot af-
)rd to lag behind in such n work II