Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1888-11-30
IT MAKES MEN HYPOCRiTES
Col. Ineersoil Discusses tho Liquor
Question aud Prohibition.

OAs hnhues OF Judgment nelu DY honest tetn-
perance mes. who do not support the extreme
notions OF anti-liquor fanatics, the matureJ
opInisn OF such a man as Col. Robert q.
Ingersoil is OF great interest. He has vewed
the liouof question carefully from all stand
points, and to a World reporter thus analysed
the perplexlng problem. Col. Ingersoll Is a
temperance man" In the just sense OF the
phrase, but has no sympathy with the blatan
fanatics who are professional prohibitIonists.
lie said:
Ut has been decided by many courts In
various states that the traffic I'm liquor
can be regulated-that II is a police question.
IL has been decided by the courts IN Iowa
that its manufacture and sale can be pnohib-
tied, ard not only SO. but that a dstiilery or
a brewery may be declared a nuisance aud
may legally be abated, and these decisions
have been upheld by the supreme court of the
United States. Consequently, 1t has been
settled by the highest tribunal that states
have the power either TO regulate or 10 pro-
hlbit the sale OF intoxicating liquors, and not
only so, but that states have the power to
destroy brewerlcs and distileries without
making any com pensation 10 owners
80 it has always been considered within
the power OF the state to license the selling
Of intoxicating liquors In other words, this
question is one that the states can decide for
themselves. Il is not and should not be, In
my judgment federal question. 1t Is some.
thing with which the United States has moth
Ing to do. 1t belongs to the states; and
where majority OF the people are in favor
Of prohibition aud pass laws to that effect
there Is nothing In the constitution OF the
United Stases that interferes with such
action. The remaining question, then, is not
a question OF power. but question of policy.
and at the threshold Of this question Is an
other: Can prohibitory laws be enforcedl
| There are to-day in Kansas prohibit
state-nore saloons, that Is to saw, more
| places In which liquor is sold, than there are
In Georgia, a state without prohibition legis~
iation. There are more In Nebraska. accord.
| Ing 10 the populatiOn-more in Iowa, accord
| ing TO the popuation-than in many of the
states In which there is the old license system.
| You will find that the United States has
granted moro licenses to wholesale and retail
dealers In these prohibition states-a ccording
| 10 the population-than in manv Others In
which prohibition has not been adopted.
These facts tend to show that 1t is not
enough for the Legislature to say: BE II
enacted Behind everf law there must be
an intelligent aud powerful public opinion
A law, TO be enforced, must be the expression
Of such powerful and intelligent opinion;
| otherwise IL becomes n dead letter; IL is
avoided; judges continue the cases. jurles
| refuse TO convict, and witnesses are not par
ticular about telling the truth. Such laws
| demoralize the community, or Put IL another
way, demotIlzed communities pass such
! laws.n
"Wbst do YOU think Of the prohibitory
movement on general principlesin
| 'lhe trouble Is that when few Jealous
men intending To reform the world endeavor
/ to enforce unpopular laws they are compelled
/ to resort to detectives, To a system OF espion-
age. For the purpose OF preventing the sale
OF liquors somebody has to watch. Ewes and
ears must become acqua nted with keyholes.
! Every nelghoor suspects every other man
| with a bottle or a demijoh is followed
Those who drink get behind doors, In cellars
and gsrrets Hypocrisy becorses substantially
universal. Old-fashioned sociabllity becomes
/ impossible. Hundreds OF people become sud-
denly all icted with variety OF diseases for
the cure of which alcohol in some form Is
supposed TO be Indispensable Malaria be-
comes general and ii is perfectly astonishing
how long few pieces OF bark will last, aud
how often the liquor can be renewed without
absorbing the medical qualities OF the bark.
/ The State becomes paradise for patent med.
cihe-the medicine being poor whisky with
scientific name. Physicians become popular
In proportion that liquor OF some kind figures
In the prescription Then in the towns clubs
are formed, the principe object being to es-
tabllsb a saloon. aud in MANY Instances the
drug store becomes favOrite resort especial
ly on sundays.
eThere is, however, another side 10 this
question. IL is this; Nothing In this world
Is more important than personal liberty.
Many people are IN favor OF blottlng out the
sun TO prevent the grow th Of weeds. This is
! the mistake OF all prohibitory fanaticism "
"What is true temperance, Col lngcrsoliP
"Men have used stimuents for many thou
sand years and as much Is used to day in var
\ ious forms as in any other perioI OF the
worlds history. They are used without more
prudence now than ever before, Tor the reason
that the average man Is more intelligent than
/ ever before. tellgence has much To 10
with temperance. The barbarian rushes to the
extreme, for the reason that but little, com
psratiyely, depends on his personal habits.
! Now, the struggle for life is 80 sharp, compc
/ tition is so severe, that few men can succeed
who carry II useless burden. The business men
OF our country are compelled 10 lead temperate
lives, otherwise their credit is gone. Men of
wealth, men OF intelligence, do not wish 10
employ Incorporate physicians. They are
not willing to trust their health or their lives
/ with physician who is under the Influence
of liquor The same Is true with business men
In regard TO their legal interests. They insist
on having sober attorneys-theY want the
counsel OF a sober man. SO In every depart
ment. On the railways IL is absolutely essen-
tial that the engineer. that the conductor the
train spatcher and every other employee d, in
whose hands are the lives OF men, should be
temperate. The consequence Is that under
the law OF the survival OF the fittest the in
temperate are Slowly Out surely gong 10 tue
wall-they are slowly but surely being driven
out of employments Of trust and importance.
No man. IL lie knows it, will employ an in
temperate coachman, al incorporate butler.
As we rise In the scale OF civilization we con
tinually demand better and better service
We are continually insisting upon better hab.
its, upon a higher STANDARD Of integrity, OF
fidelity. These are the causes, in my judg
ment, that are working together in the drec-
ton OF true temperance
'Do YOU believe the people can be made TO
do without a stlmulautp
THE h story of the world shows that all
men who have advanced one step beyond ut
ter barbarism have used some kind of stinu-
liant Man has sought for II in every direct.
tIon. Every savage loves IL. Everything has
been tried. Opium has been used by many
hundreds of millions Iiasheesh has filed
countless brains with chaotic dreams, and
everywhere thst civilization has gone the
blood Of the grape has been used. Nothing
is ESQ, now than TO obtain liquor. In one
bushe Of corn there are ut lcas five gallons
four can be easily extracted. All starch, al
sugar. can I've changed almost instantly into
alcohol Every grain hat grows has in II the
lntoxlcat ng principle aud a matter OF
fact, nearly all of the cprn. wheat, sugar and