Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1884-09-10
The Old Political Parties Have Ont
lived Their Usefulness-Pr ohibi-
ton Prohibits.


LADIES AND GENTLEMEN -The evils
Of the liquor traffic aud the proper
remedy therefor is the greatest ques
ton In American politics. Already
constitutional prohibition has been
enacted In Iowa and Kansas, while
statutory prohibition has existed In
Maine for more than third of cen
tury. la some twenty other states
constitutional amendments have been
presented In the legislature, and In
one state, Ohio, the question was at
the last election submitted to the peO-
pie, and received the extraordinary
vot OF 33U000 for prohibition. Fully
as strong prohibition sentiment eX-
lists In Indiana, Illinois, Missouri,
Texas and other states but thus far
the prof siOnal politicians have ig-
nored the sovereign right Of the peo-
pie to vote on the question. In other
states the work has gone on under To-
cal option laws until to-day more
than 0ne-half OF the territory Of Geor-
gia and nearly all Of Maryland Is UNI
der prohibition.
This great and growing public senti-
ment took shape on the sd OF July
last at Pittsburg, Pa, where one OF the
graudest conventions which ever as-
sembled In America nominated Gov
st. John and Mr.. Daniels, two Of the
purest public men Ia the nation, for
president and vice-president, and to-
day we have put out an electoral ticket
for them In Texas.
There isa reason, my fricnds, for
the extraordinary interest that the
American people are taking In this
question, aud it may be found
In the gigantic proportions Of
the liquor traffic, and the
cnomity Of the evils flowing from II,
About 5000, O00,OOO are annually eX-
pended In the wholesale and retail liq-
uor traffic in the United States, The
labor of the men engaged in this
traffic, If employed In something use
ful would be worth $500 900 600, while
the products OF labor aud capital am
uually destroyed In the form Of grain
and fruit distilled and brewed is
worth 100000, 900, making a grand
aggregate ofSl ,7OO, 900 900 Of the labor,
capital and products Of the country
annually destroyed by this terrible
tfailit.
And what do W. get In return for
this enormous consumption of the
labor capital and products Of the
county"
In the frat place the politics and
public service Of the state and nation
arc completely prosjituted 10y this
traffic. The mOuOpolles, through the
medium OF the saloon, manipulate the
political parties and fill the offices
with demAgo5ues and dishonest men,
and the result IL tn most reeking eN-
travagance and corruption In all the
denartments of the government,
> secondly II IA IA conceded fact, proven
by all criminal statistics, that from
three-fourths to nine-tenths of the
crime which cur8es the country il the
result OF the liquor traffic. This ne
cessitates expensive criminal courts
ana prisons, and consequently high
and expensive taxation.
But have not yet stated the worst
effect OF this deadly traffic.
out of the one million of regular
drinkers in the United States, 10 per
cent, or 100 900, annually sink into
drunkards' graves, after having wasted
their substance, aud leave their FAINT
lies TO drift on through poverty and
ignorance into vice and crime The
vacancies in the army of regular
drinkers are filled from the grand
army Of moderate drinkers, aud these
Ia turn recruit from the boys o. the
famil les aud schools of the land. The
saloons are the DEVILS recruiting agen'
ClCs, TO entice the young men and boy,
into the rAuks of the moderate drink
era, and in due time they pass INFO tb,
ranks OF the regular drinkers, anC
many OF them finally into drunkards
graves.
My Goa is there no remedy for M
evil which is destroying 80 much life
and property, and the homes and hap
piness OF the people, which like
mighty Contlagration Is burning NJ
the very vitals of society," Is not the
fundamental object OF government 4
protect person and property TheI
why should not the state intervene {,
protect the people against n traili,
which is doing more injury to person
and property than all other causes ant
agencies combined
am answered by the professional
politician that "this IL not politica
question; YOU must rely on mora
suaslon,N | reply that recognize TIN
necessity Of moral suasion to save.
possible, the drinker from this terrible
nHhii, and 10 create II healthy puhli
opinion as to the evil; but mora
suasion has again and again accom-
plished this work within To
past thTee,fourths Of century
and yet the evil continues and In
creases, Is IL not an alarming fac
that Notwithstanding all that mora
suasion has done the evils of the tralll
exist today in greater proportion
than ever before in the history OF tn
country More liquors are sold an,
NOSE crime results from 1t than eve
before. Glance over the columns o
any daily paper and the heart sicken
at the murderOus details. A quiet
sober physician is murdered In his OF
flee In FOrtWorth, "a peaceable laborer |
shot down like brute in Dallas, al
unsuspecting woman is raped In DEM
son, young girl as she returns from
marty Is shot by a drunken rOwdy Il
Pilot Point, woman IL ravlshed an,
murdered In Galveston, and so with
out end the murderous procession
moves Notwithstanding liquor beln
the steam power and the saloons tn
machines OF the DEVILS agency on tn
earth
Is il not apparent 20 every thlnkln
mind that moral suasion must be SUI
plemented by legal compulslon, or 50
ciety IL ruined? Moral suAsion vii
never reach the liquor seller noihin
hut the heavy hand of the lQxp Wi