Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1889-03-27
ROCK AND RYE CANDY.
A New Crusade Of the woman,s Chris
tian Temperance Union.
From the Philadelphia Record.

Prom the Philadelphia Record.
No more rock and rye candy or drops OF
vine cordial confectionery is the cry of the
different branches Of the woman's Christian
Temperance union. The crusade has begun
and 1t viii be relentless warfare. 1t started
ct West Chester, and big constable
intends to seize all the rock and rye
drops, and the dealers will be prose.
cuted for selling liquor without a license
Both the Temperance Union ladies and the
confectioners are determined to fight it out ''ii
It takes all summer" On Tuesday next THU
alarming feature of the confectionery business
will be presented by several prominent temper.
ance ladies at the meeting Of the county com.
mittee Of the union, at 18th and Arch streets
ana committee will be appointed to begin q
legal warfare, IL thought advisable, against the
vendors of rock and rye candy. For some time
past the branches of the union in this city have
bad under consideration the question whether
the traffic in such candy without license wa
not illegal.
In an interview yesterday the president of the
Womans Temperance union said: If We can
do anything, either legally or otherwise, to stop
this pernicious practice it shall be done. We
have gone to good many of the small retail
the sale of rock and rye candy. Many of them
complied with the request, but it Is still manu-
featured and sold in large quantities. Even
small bottles Of rock and rye are also vended.
We certainly do object to this feature of the
candy business. Why. all our children will be-
come premature drunkards if it shall be allowed
TO continue. When once they get in the habit
OF purchasing such articles at candy stores,
they will then take nip on the sly in some Sc
Guided beer saloon.
TIPsY CHILDREN.
Only the other day lady friend of mine.
shocked by seeing them come from school
their eyes all afre cheeks inhamed and cutting
the most curious pranks. In great alarm at
seeing them so demonstratiye and unsteady,
she asked them the cause of their exubersnt
feeling. They blubbered out laughingly:
''We'se been eating rock and rye" There is q
great amount of whisky in this rock and rye
candy, and II Is OF such inferior quality 1t
easily affects those who essay to eat it. 1t is a
lsmentable fact that even candy cannot be
manufactured without placing some strong
drink in IL. just look at those wine cordials
that are sold daily to the young by unscrupu-
lous dealers. There ia a pretty little port wine
drop to suit the palate of one, there is the
sherry drop to please the taste of another. and
so on sd minimum. These ought also to be
suppressed The question to be decided how
ever, is whether the sale of such candies with
out license can be approved illegal. If We
can we will fight against II grimly."
mo one can estimate what evil those perni-
cious drops really have children" said an
other member of the Temperance union. Il
have seen them after eating it behave very un-
-eemly. Do You think can win if we take
up this fight! Well, perhaps we can: but STILL
that remains to be seen. The law like men, is
somewhat tickle and extremely pliable."
WHAT THE ROCK AND RYE MEN SAY.
The manufacturers Of cordials and rock and
rye candy claim that such action upon the part
Of the temperance ladies is a species of fanati-
cism. Why, if a child could eat ten pounds of
rock and rye candy" said a well-known confec-
toner of this city yesterday. lit would not
make him or her intoxicated in the least
admit that there is some little of intoxicating
spirits in such candy. but it is very small.
do not suppose there is one-quarter of a Thin
bleful of whisky in twenty-five rock and rye
drops. These people cannot do any harm to
us. and all their talk is mere twaddle.''
II Is said that the members of the union in
tend to investigate just how much spirituous
liquor is contained in the different kind Of
drops. and will begin a series of experiments as
70 the effect that II pound of rock and rye
candy will have on person.