The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1889-09-06
Cen. BOWS Latest Theory.

After another season of calm and profound
reflection the Hon. Neal Dow has revised his
hitherto tenaciously held opinions in regard
to the cause of the observation-disclosures of
the liquor traffic and settled down to the
conclusion that the responsibility rest large
ly with the church members. 1t
used to be the political BOSSES" and the
failure of the legislature to insert certain
provisions in the liquor law that were the
causes. But now 1t is the church members.
1t may be that further calm and profound
reflection will shift the responsibility to
somebody lelse, but at the present time the
General is firmly convinced that the church
members are to blame. Being so convinced
naturally enough the General is very much
incensed against these wolves in sleeps
clothing and proceeds to excoriate them
with great vigor. He seems to fully
agree with the Rev. DIR. Talmage.
another gentleman who is given to
calm and profound reflection, that three
quarters of them are rubbish and ought to
be shovelled out" or course the opinion Of
a gentleman Of mature age like General
Dow, and one who is accustomed to accept
nothing on hearsay but to calmly and pa
tiently investigate the facts for himself, free
from all prejudice or passion or personal re-
sentiment, Is entitled to great respect 1t per-
haps detracts somewhat from its value, to
know that he has entertained several differ
emit opinions on this subject. but 1t must be
borne in mind that he has been constantly
investigating and rejecting, and that this
last opinion is the result of his maturest
wisdom. The evidence he adduces
against the church members is not very con-
elusive, but the General has not been in the
habit of taking the public into his confidence
in regard to the processes by which he
arrives at his conclusions, perhaps be-
GAUGE he is of the opinion that the great ma
jority Of people do not possess mind sufi-
GENTLY calm and reflective to enable them
10 comprehend the processes of mind calm
and reflective like his own. The public
therefore are usually obliged to be content
WIN MS conclusions, and doubtless will
nave 10 De In this case. We are not going to
dispute the Generals conclusion. If IL had
been announced by anybody else we should
have suspected its accuracy. but coming
from him we should be rash indeed m ouos'
ton it.
But what is the General going to do when
he goes to Massachusetts, or New York. or
some other State, to exploit the
glories of prohibition Is he going
to tell the people OF those States
that the church members Of Maine are in
league with the rum traffic, and that thew
are the chief obstruction in the path of nro.
hibition? Is he going to tell them that "three
quarters of the church members of Maine
are rubbish and ought to be shovelled OUT
Is be going to confess to them that whereas
some years ago he looked upon the churches
as the bulwark Of temperance in his ma
turer years he has come to the conclusion
that they are the great source of its weak
ness? When the Macedonian cry Come and
help US" reaches his ears from distant States
is his response to be that prohibition in
Maine has been shipwrecked by the church