New-York tribune., 1886-06-06
TEMPERANCE IN NEW-JERSEY
vvrn OF UNION AGAINST THE GROG SHOPS.
,,,xc,pIE AND PARTY INrERKsT-THE TRENTON
AND NEWARK CONVENTIONS.

RI "A. EDITOR Of The Trt0h~e.
SIN. Heretofore New-Jersey dramselers have
had little cause for immediate alarm. with one
Marty committed to their support, another divided
ama non -comm;tal, and the thirdcasting but 9.Ol3
vo,es ont of a total of 1s7,7S5-less than III ~
.hor have felt AS safe as did Bclshazzar at his
cost But the Trenton conference. like the hand
citing on the wall, foreshadowcd the downfall oil
. av,astv and its utterauccs need no interpreter
.bs contest next fall IS TO be a desperate one,
ord II behooves temperance men TO rlse ABOVE
,,iJe passlon and prejudice ana look the
facts souarely in the face, and obey the dictates
of conscience aud common sense so long as 'ney
remain divided III their present proportlohs, Dc
,n.oon three parties the saloon will be SAFE with
;ts defenders. concentration has long been rule
only deviated from for strategic purposes 90 iohg
nc temperance men vote with ana for their op'o-
rents or put their ballots where they VIII hei'nor
helm the friends nor hurt the foes OF the case' '"o
latter will win all the victories In vie" Vi 'no'o
facts is 1t not time for each aud every oppo"en'
saloon rule 10 say:
/. No matter VINO may nominate him. l VIII hcNo,
again vote for a dramSeler, or candloa'e seoo''u
by or in the interest OF dramseiiers'
Q Against such nominees will vote ior any
honest and competent opponent of the saloon, ana
when there are two or more such candidates VIII
sun,ort the one who Is most likely to defeat the
enemy.
The Democratic party in NewJersey is confess
cGly saloon party. Everybody knows that a
vote for it Is vote for the protection OF the saoon
Its temperance members are not numerous enough
even to make a fight for its control The most OF
them being restrict ionists cannot join the Prohi-
bItion party. but with the Republican party, leaV-
ing prohibition an open question and heartily
fayoring " restriction that Will restrict they can
and. it seems to me should act with 1t until the
saloon ouestlon shall have been settled. When their
marty was controlled by rebel sympathizers many OF
us best men left it and voted with the Republicans
until they considered the war issues settled. Are
rot its anti-saloon members equally courageous
Should not two of them JOIN the Republican party,
if II plants itself on the Trenton platform, for every
saloon Republican who JOINS the Democracy De-
cause of that act This and practical queS
tlon involving the ultimate well-belng OF the Dem
ocratc party, we'll as the present weilare VI tio
home and rs there is now no other vital Issue ul'o-
ing the parties, should ii not be answered promptly
~ the Affirmative AS evidence that am not mis-
taken as 10 the view of the several parties held by
the dramseller read the following from lie Ne~-
York Mail and Erprcs8 of June 2:
The uouor dealers of New-Jersey are organizing
against e big temperance movement IN progress III lhat
State Tue headquarters Of the ORGANIZATION ~ Ne"aih
One OF the leading spirits sal1 ths mornnS % tur 5 u
Understood there hard hsnt ahead ~ thein anu
they proposed 10 20 iuio II well armed iney tusaiu
the Republican party as their grea'est enemy me ~
present. ana consequently MN Jul" WIN ~ ~
throughout the state next IaL
Under these circumstances is not the duty Of tenn
perance democrats clearf
The Republican party Is at present composed
of FIVE divisions: l. Radical prohlDltlouists;
. Uucompromlslng enemies OF the saloon VINO
boheve that restrictive laws would, at present.
do more good than prohibition: 3. Iheoretical
Iestrictlonsts who are more or less lholhel-
emf abont the matter; t. Saloon sympathlzer>
who. however care more for the party thah lor 'lc
a,oon. and 5. A few thousand dramseers and men
VINO love the saloon more than they do the party.
Heretofore The last faction, which is also the small
lest has tied tae hands OF the party, but the Iren
ION Conference appears TO have cut the Gordian
lnot and the five elements Will never again act to-
pe her I'm poltlcs elsewhere, natural forces may
lie rcprcssed for awhile but ultimately irrcsSti-
ble and the evident necessities OF the SITUATION
will think, compel even the reluctant 70 assent
In an advance movement In that case, the fifth
division will retreat III body to the Democratic
camp and as Is stated IN the paragraph quoted
aboyc the most of them Will 20 whether Oh no.
They see that IN every Northern State democratic
LEGISLATORS vote almost sOldly Tor thelr pioleclloh'
and Republican legislators almost solldly against
,h,r interests and therefore, If oiice-seekers
sion of autl-saloon principles by the State
Convention the now thoroughly alarmed liquor
interest no matter what promises II mgh'
make would cost substantially sold vote lor the
marry that defends It, In snort even II 1t were de-
suable il Is no longer possible to hoodwlnK OF de-
eelye eli her sIGe and ii is 50 evident that donbte
dealing shuillng, cOwardiy policy would result III
1letrievable ruin, that Tie RepubHcah state Coh-
yen,Ion will probably be substantially unit III
favor OF the Trenton platform. The practical ques-
,,on for the poltIcIan to decide l. 1t not best
70 accept the situation gracefully ana MAKE the
best OF 1t - and Had not better DO what Can
Immediately quiet those who may DC dlsposco 10
kick. and to satisfy the temperance men in other
parties that the position we take Will be adopted
IN good falth!" Every days delay increases the
danger and makes double work necessary later III
thc season.
Nor will good results be endangered by the fact
tla, many who move forward will do so solely for
parIisan reasons As soon as the party coinmItted
itself against the saloon i'll Kansas and Iowa, the
or,msellers became a unit against 1t. but Ill
warring against the party, they transformed multi
tuoes Of tneu former friends into foes, and made
yeaIons proDlbitlonlss of many VINO had previously
been lukcwarm. 1he Republican who begins TO
fpht the saloon for party reasons is
soon ulied with astonisbment at the
strength of the arguments he uses, and wonders
that temperance men never thought OF them. Inc
gravity with which some of them suggest old (Dut
10 them new points to ola lecturers Is intensely
amusing. 1t is not at all probable that the hepuo-
lcans IN the next New jersey Legislature Will pass
a State prohlbitory law but it can be put down as
certain that every Of them will vote Tor the Dest
local option law that can be famed and which VIII
enable more than half the State 10 Tree lseh lroih
the blightmg curse Do not common sense ana 'he
interests of humanity command men hoI "
refuse 10 do what they can, merely oe
cause they cannot do all they would
like tos Is not an AppomattoX more ilhciy 10 Ioi-
low a series of victories than succession OF de-
tcatsY Is it wise to refuse to attempt the possible
;r ,r,ar tn atteupt The inpOssi BILE