The Indianapolis journal., 1885-01-03
THE MODERN PLAN.

| Written for the Journal by Mary Il. CardwI1I.
| 1t is the reaching forth of the majority to-
wards higher idea Of morals that marks the
progressive steps made by any community. This
| is why advancing civilization demands increas-
ing secrecy in vice and crime Progress is ruth
less, bold detectives are crushed, and all ene-
mics to law and ORDER fearing public opinion or
punishment, become more cautious. and do
their deadly work like towards inhiding This
is the modern plan.
| In well known land. perhaps over the sea,
when man desired to have possession of his
neighbor's goods without giving an equivalent
he formerly became bandit and stood on the
high road demanding of his victim, ''your money
or your life." He always risked his own life, he
sometimes spared the poor but progress put .
| stoe to:his boldly unlawful occupation The dis
honest man gave up, to great extent, the call
| ing of a bandit when public opinion caused
the erection and use of gallows.
He now more frequently speculates on margins,
| wins by false pretenses, commits unpunishable
breaches of trust, reaps the benefit of a fail
| ing corporation which he has started. He more
invariably gets the money, and without fear Of
the gibbet. though his victims may die from
worry, loss or trouble.
In this same land tipplng is now considered dis
graceful, and would be most respectable drinkers
avoid the publicityof common drinking saloon.
They enjoy their midnight carousals in the pri-
vacy of club room, and get their daily drains in
a drug store At least John Smiths Drug
Store" is what is painted on sign displayed
| over a certain shop, in which few bottles OF
patent medicines, few Jars of tinctures, ex-
tracts, etc., and few miscellaneous ar
| tlcles arranged on the shelves or
| In the showcases. A box or two OK
| cigars, sometimes soda fountain, and always
division screen, or inner room, complete the de-
| scription of place where innocent observers
naturally suppose legitimate business only is
| being carried on. Perhaps such is the case The
men who so frequently and regularly visit this
| drug store may want only cigar, glass OF
| soda, or a dose of btters Their partiality for
the place behind the screen, for the inner
| room, may spring from their love of seeing the
| strange-the druggist mixing medicines, wash
| ing bottles etc.-or, they might find little
| seclusion a help to the enjoyment of their
| bitters. Perhaps these are the stimulants
! which give the respectable drinker the forti
i tude to walk the street so boldly: which
/ make him proudly conscious of his
/ superiority to the poor drunkard who
| staggering out of the next saloon. This
| poor, degraded wretch, the respectable drink&r
| probably reflects once patronized the drugstore
| only, and such fall from respectability he
views with contempt. He considers himself,
| moreover. genuine good fellow, gives patron
izing smiles or greetings to his cold
! quaint ntances, feels virtuous ndgnatonif
snubbed by one who knows him to be what he
/ is. We can also imagine him giving freely of
/ his money to the temperance cause and at his
/ home rejoicing the hearts of his temperance
| loving women folks by his violent ienuncaton
! of drunkenness But it is unnecessary to con-
| tinue this picture of the drug store drinker The
] feeblest imagination can follow his probable
/ future without our further entrance upon a sub
| ject so painful.
Meanwhile, the keeper of this drug store dram
/ shop continues his traffic in hearts and
/ souls while he wins his blood money without
suffering from the stigma that rests upon legiti-
mate saloon keepers. More intelligent than the
| latter; he realizes fully the ruin his rum
] shop is bringing to many families, and witnesses
weakening of character, and loss Of self-respect
] in his patrons. What can he dol He is too in.
dolent, incapable or unprincipled to make his
/ way in respectable or even a merely legitimate
/ business, so he naturally becomes parasite, or
i perhaps more properly ezcrescenee upon So
/ ciety. But it is incomprehensible to outside OBJ
/ servers, why respectable druggists permit the
honor of their profession to be infringed by this
renegade Indeed, the profession may soon find
/ it necessary to move in this matter fer the good
/ people of the land are beginning TO think that
] all drug stores should be abolished rather than
| have society subjected to the demoraizing in
fuence springing.rom John Smith drug store
NEW ALBANY, Ind.