Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1888-05-11

Wy agencies. whose function II ia - -.
Pless y, paralyzed by it's power. and ave,
pressed INTO its own service! lam tonch n
lug upon our great cause of alarm. Moth.
'nk r VI the Sind belonged to the past.
ho :: saloon keeper is alcohol's soldier.
nj 40 Amet1cas danger and disgrace. Do
tha pray you, go off into the regions Of
s sa1 abstract and dream Of the possible
e sn.uon- Keeper-the law-abiding citizen.
ora Hsea N hcit bartering, honest and hon
Study him in actual life. ,Tber. 'o ora u.
fractions of all sorts to draw man ~ tha
saloon: there is excitement Of ali sorta tn
AWAKEN Nv or increase the appetite for drink.
!. mere are oon-keepers' ORGANIZATIONS
~ me leaders in which are the brewers and
Tue Tue dlstlllers, for the purpose of continu-
Any Widening out the drink traffic and
made to it,. Fn t"sy oe
But are there not laws forbiddinp in this
tramc at least things openly nefarious. and
throwing some protection around the vic.
Ims Ihere are some laws; the saloon
Keeper laughs at them. In America there
IL class OF men rebellious to all law.
Rlorylng in their rebellion. defyins the
people to curb their power-the saloon
Keepers.
And to secure impunitv in their lawless-
ness, and to prevent the enactment of new
laws, and wish on the part. of the coun-
Try to enforce any, the saloon-keepers and
. tnsir leaders are at work to control the
politics of the Republic. The charge
needs no proof; but the people need "a
be awakened to the meaning Of the fact,
Ambitious candidates must propitiate the
gods either by sworn promises Of woman
service or limit]esss orders to treat the
"boys." Men in Office fear them; their ire
is an omen Of future political obscurity.
The traffic can afford to threaten. Il
Yields great power. tits generous, too, in
the distribution of coin. Of course, there
is great deal at stake, and present ju-
dlcious investment will secure large future
dividends. The Chicago delegate ut the
Milwaukee Brewers Congress in 1877 said
"The brewers of Illinois have expended
SIC, 1000 to beat the Temperance party in the
elections. He was too moderate in his es.
innate, and1the Chairl thought SO. Have
you observed how in the very halls of the
National Congress, amid ins ,sible
amendments and counter-f ,.nts t.
the revenue laws, one idea is ,.>so,y dis.
cernible-alcohols friends mean that they
shall be counted with? The cities, very
naturally, suffer most from the politica
N'SAo Va SAAO AltAOA tlAiuSs
The liquor men claim for themselves q
prescr.ptive right to seats in municipal
councils; other city offices they concede tt
their friends. Owing to it the government
of our large cities has become the prob.
lem of the country. The terrible conclu.
sion is forcing itself upon thoughtful
minds that in cities universal suffrage, the
cornerstone of democracy and of our pc,
culiar American political institutions, is
failure. 1t is not the people, it is the popu
lace that rule. And such populace! Low
minded, rough in manners, uncouth il
gait, confirmed in illeness, bent on crime
the terror Of well-behayed citizens-sucl
as they must be brutalized by alcohol
And in American this we are worse of
than England-the populace vote, vot,
early and late, vote Loyalty the beer ant
whisky tickets. A little more political in
difference on our part, few years more o
fatuous jokes and stale apothegms in repl
TO temperance appeals, and-well, in m!
love for free America dare not continu,
the inquiry. What does all this mean? /
means our national disgrace, that Americ,
be ruled by the liquor power. 1t mean
that Americans have not the will, nor tn
ability to enforce law; that lawlessnes
abides with us; that our legislation i
mere verbiage.