St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1886-11-08
DISCUSSING THE SALOON.
The Labor LYceum Debates The
Wfde-Open Policy TO and Con.

The Labor Eyceum Debates The
Wfde-Open Policy TO and Con.
At the st. Paul lyceum last evening the
ouestion for discussion was resolution
offered by Vice President Eyles, to the
effect that the much-boasted wide-open
Dolicy of ST. Paul is a detriment to society
and its citizens. MI. Eyles opened the dis
cussiOn, and objected to the saloons being
open on Sunday, because this induced other
places of business to remain open; that
men who worked seven days in week
tended to keep others out of employment,
leaving idle men and reducing wages. He
spoke of the bad places in the city which
are resorts for young men, and drew gen.
eral conclusion that in cities where the
wide-open policy prevailed there were
fewer marriages, tending to the demOraliZa-
ton of society. He favored quiet Sunday
with part of Saturday for recreation. He
did not favor the Old-fashioned, iron clad
Sunday observance but thought the labor
ing men should study to reduce the hours
of labor.
Mr.. Gieske believed it a good thing to
have the devil preached sometimes. because
without the devil there would be no use for
preachers and churches. He argued from
his experience in Joliet, H., that there
were more arrests in the city when there
we've eleven saloons paying $1,000 each
than there was with f0rty-seVen saloons
paving 500 apiece.
e. St. Julien Cox denied the right of any
man to take from another any enjoyment
he wished. He understood the opposition
10 the wide-open policy would deprive the
laboring man of enjoying himself OH the
only day in the week he could enjoy HIM
self He thought Sunday was a day of
rest, Tefreshment and enjoyment, and peO-
pie had a right to enjoy themselves as they
pleased in a free republican government.
Mr.. Gieske drifted into condemnation Of
Che location of the second state prison,
which he understood would be at Mankat0.
and Judge Cox characterized the law eStab-
fishing the prison as an insult TO the stone
maSOnS of the state.
Mr.. Laid thought it was. perhaps. fail
urre in attempting TO get this question be-
fore the house, because the evening had
been frittered away with little talk to the
point. lie thought the more whisky man
drank the worse Off he was in any position
in lie. and the more opportunities there
were 10 buy whisky the worse off the coun-
try was. Nothing was going to fill the
pockets Of the laboring man like closing
and Theoretically sealing all the saloons of
the country.
Secretary Pates said he could pick out
hundreds of men in this town who could
have had homes of their own if
they had saved the money they
spent in saloons. Liquor also
stimulated men to do evil. This was a
country of free speech. where the majority
rules, and if the majority made law it
should be enforced. He could see nobody
but the manufacturer and the dealer who
was benefited by the liquor traffic. These
people who talked about protecting the
laboring men cared nothing about them ex-
cept for their dollars.
MIR. Gieske pictured the gigantic beer in
dustries of this country, and the number of
people that would be deprived of support
if these industries were stopped. Secretary
Pates responded to him briefly, when further
discussion was postponed until next Sunday
evening.