Morning journal and courier., 1884-08-09
PROHIBITION RALLY.

A Small Number of Devoted Followers Meet in English HalI-Addresses by A. R. Heath of Danbury-Temporary Officers Chosen and a Collection Tak- en. .r In out of the dripping rain and under the cheerful1y blazing lights of English hall gathered small band of men who were at I tracted by the announcement that A. R. Heath of Danbury, the Estate Prohibition organizer" {" would make an address last even ing. As the clock, which is fifteen minutes slow, drew near the hour of eight, and one ! by one the St. John men came in, the strains of the Salvation Army songs were waited | through the open windows and small man with gray hair and energetic manner called 1 upon John c. Collins to open the political
 meeting with prayer. After MT. Collins had 1 prayed for the spread of right principles, Organizer A. R. Heath was introduced by W. F. Damn. He said:
 ''Ladies and gentlemen: It is with diff dence that appear before New Haven au- dience. This is a seat of culture as well as a large manufacturing center, and to one s2tu- uated as I am, it is somewhat of an under taking to brave your criticism. I only came
 
 thoughts deducted from them and let them speak for themselves.
 "The open dram shop, an element of our Christian civilization, is attracting the notice of our quick-witted and thoughtful people They see it is the enemy of youth, the enemy of the family, an expense of $944, ,000, ,000 year. It breeds pauperism, idleness, vciiousness. Money that should be spent for necessaries is spent for liquor. Our dram shop is the parent of jai1s, 1ockups, hospitals, asylums. The license fee is only small part of the dealers earnings, and the people get nothing and worse than nothing for the rest of the money. Society needs the money and the men that are squandered and ruined on drink. The piety, culture of the North resides largely in the Republican par ty; in the South this is reversed. But we see this traffic existing when the Republican party is in power. How can we account for this discrepancy? The fact is that men for get to square their conduct by their princi- ples They do not live up to their principles. The conventions of both parties assemble, delegates go from all towns, and the great mass of the delegates have no knowledge of whom the candidates or what platform shall be, but there are men who can tell you weeks before who the candidates will be. The mass of the delegates submit to the bosses. The great 1 mass of the people have come to be govern ed by party principle which the father of our country warned us against When the Republican party was born prohibition was found upon the statute books of fourteen of our States to-day four States have prohibi- tion. Territory after territory has been formed and Congress has never put prohibi- tion upon the statute books. Wherever the American flag floats as national emblem it 10o7 f&oI1 15rYT7o 4Taf
 ''In 1872 the legislature of this State re- pealed the prohibition law on the ground that it was dead letter, and substituted our general liquor law. The number of arrests in 1881 for drunkenness increased 112 per cent. over those of 1871 and the. population increased 15 per cent. The number of saloons in 1880 was 2,S90. In 1883 there were 3,490; an increase of 200 year. These draw from 400 to 100 from respectable callings into this evil traffic. The license law of 1882 origin ated in this city. It was supposed to put the business in the hands of the better classes of saloons. But the license law is never right; they are always tinkering at it. It is found ed on unrighteousness and never can be right. It is saying that for such money you can tempt our boys, and ruin our homes.
 But we've got local option,' they say. But when the question is of great moral wrong there can be no local option. There is not local option about murder or theft. Our boys learn here that it is not wrong to sell liquor. In Orange they learn that it is. Law is an educator. Local option cramps and narrows the consciences of men. We want to fight i'll New Haven and care noth- ing for Middletown. Local option is nothing but squatter sovereignty It confuses and postpones right issues. Men vote for no i- cense, but do not think about voting for legislator who will back up their ideas Our politicians give us nothing on this question The old parties appeal to us to stand by them, and hope that some time in the far distant future, which seems to be getting more distant all the time, when they feel well and are not afraid of losing the Irish or German vote, they will give us something. They tell us we must wait till public sentiment favors prohibition. But when will the sentiment be different We l must make the sentiment. We must hold such | meetings as these. Wherever a dozen men | are gathered together in behalf of a principle l there is the beginning of a revolution. says Wendell Phillips. 1
 ''I appeal to you if have not shown that | we must not sustain the parties that lack l moral principles. You are under obligations to support party which represents princi- l pie. The Women's Christian Temperance Union said to us that they would stand by as, the only party which noticed their me morial. The women will lend an influence that cannot be overestimated. want you to organize here and in this State as the Pro n1D1GlOn party was never organized De1Ore."
 Mr. Heath is 8 pleasant speaker and made a favorable impression upon his audience, which was composed of fifty y-three men and boys and four women. J. c. Thompson was chosen temporary president, W. F. Damn secretary, and w. H. Rogers treasurer.
 Deacon Willis Smith, of Oyster Point, made short speech, saying that he had voted for prohibition for forty years.
 A collection was taken and MT. Heath passed about taking the names of those who wanted to join the club as out and out SUD- porters of St. John and Daniel. Eighteen signatures were obtained and they are as follows: Willis Smith, w. F. Damn; J. H. Perry, A. H. Hayes, T. R. Thompson, J. 0. Collins, F. s. Whitney w. c. Avery, F. Hayes, James B. Munson, J. L. Townsend, A. L. Swift, J. c. Thompson, W. H. Rogers, Q. Whittlesey, O. E. Dewey, A. M. Futile, F. L. Grumans.
 The next meeting of the St. John and Daniel club will be held in English Hall a week from next Monday evening.
 or for Newport.
 A party of resident Yale men start this afternoon for cruise in the yacht Mohawk.