The daily Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1878-1???, 1884-07-29
Uncalled-for Abuse.
Judge BrOss the Victim of johnson
County Fanaticism.


of Judge Bross' sense and standing will
impose upon respectable people by hunt
ing up the depraved and disspated and
selling them whisky with which to debauch
our town. Such action IS calculated to
raise suspicion that the business in which
the Ex-Judge is engaged is showing its de-
morallzing effects upon him. We are dis
posed to be friendly, and encourage legiti.
mate and honorable business but that
which disturbs the peace of our town and
debauchos and demoralizcs our citizens we
cannot and will not encourage. We hope
the Judge will soon enter upon some repu.
table business, so that we will be able to
speak a kind word for him."
The Journal is the leading Republican
paper of of Johnson Co., and, as the forego-
ing indicates, is a special organ OF the
Prohibition sentiment in the party there
The editor Of the Journal, M. A. Smith, is
ordinarily man of good sense, but on the
subject of Prohibition he appears to be as
Indifferent as were the Puritan monsters of
Salem upon the subject of Witchcralt. He
looks upon drunkenness as great weak
ness, caused and fostered by the distilers
and liquor sellers-by tie mere presence of
whisky; and which can be cured only by
the utter abolition of the manufac-
ture and sale of liquors. He would
hold whisky and those who vend it re-
sponsible for the evils resulting from drunk
enness. Many very sensible people,
and highly respected members of society,
too, regard drunkenness as an evil caused
by defective moral training, which must be
cured, if cured at oil, by precept and prac-
tice at our tlresides. They hold the drunk
ard responsible for getting drunk and also
for whatever evils may attend or result
from his drunken condition. They do not
believe that the distiller is any more re-
sponsible for the evils of drunkenness or
for drunkenness itself than the pastry cook
is for dyspepsia and the evils attending that
condition, and they do not believe that the
proper way to cure g'uttony and dyspepsia
is to close up oil the kitchens and stop the
manufacture Of pie. They regard "Prohi-
biton," so called, as an insane delusion,
vicious in principle and inelficacious for
good; but they do not, therefore, entertain
bitter personal feelings toward those who
differ with them, and they can concedc to
their opponents as much honesty in their
protested convictions as they claim for
themselves. Not so, however, to M. A.
Smith, of the Journal, if we may judge
from his screed upon Judge Bross. He
cannot speak a kind word for nor respect
a man who differs with him on the subject
OF Prohibition, not even such q man as
Judge Bross whose very name is SYNONYMOUS
with uprghtness and honor wherever he
IS known; and the reason for this is, that
the Judge is engaged in the wholesale
liquor business, which Mr.. Smith says is
an illegltimate business, but which, in fact
and in law, is as legitimate and as honorable
as is that in which Mr..
Smith is engaged--a business
which may be just as much abused Jas Mr..
Smiths business may be, by INSCRIPTIONS
men seeking illegitimate gain, but which,
we venture to say, the Judge has conducted
with just as much regard for the law and
for equity and honor as Mr. Smith may
have shown in the conduct of his own bus
mess, and perhaps, even more.
Judge Bross went to Vienna to collect
money that was due. He did not 90 about
"hunting up the depraved and dissipated
citizens" of the place, "for the purpose of |
selling liquors" We are authorized by |
Judge Bross to say that Mr.. Smith lies |
when he makes this charge, but we prefer
not to use such harsh language as that. 1t
is sufficient to say, while there, in pursuit |
Of his perfectly legitimate business, he was
applied to by several Of the most proml.
nent citizens Of the place, among them
several druggists, 10 send them and Others
given quantities of different kinds of lio.
ora. He took the orders and sent the
Igor, and no man of good
sense and without prejudice will
ssy that be did wrong But the editor
Of the journal seems 10 labor under the de-
fusion that an imaginary fence built by
few extremists around community ought
TO cRec,uslly exclude everything which
may, through abuse, become dcmoralizing.
ana when they sec the utter fallacy of their
fooljs1 uotion, they become freDzied and
would blow the world into fragments
Vienna IL only experiencing what other
communities, counties and States where
"Pf9bibii0p," so-cslled, has been inau-
gufsD,sd. have all experienced before, VIZ:
tia, Prohibition does not and cannot pro-
hibit; but Mr. Smith seems to be 10th TO
believe this and will doubtless assert. that
IL Judge Bross and all the other liquor
dealers in the country were to refuse to gil