The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1890-12-04
w. C. T. U. DEPARTMENT
For God and Home and Nutice Land
The IRE prCs sihle Conflict

The IRE pres sihle Conflict.
When that golden image was erect
ed on the plains of Dura, every time
server bowed himself in the dust be-
fore it at the kings command, but the
Hebrew children, seeking to please
God rather than man, refused to bow
and endured the fiery trial. Every
citizen Of Nebraska who was induced
by the appeal to his pocket to vote the
ticket advocated by the whisky trust,
the Brewers Alliance, and the saloon
keepers of the state, in the recent cleo
ton, bowed down in dust before the
golden image. We do not hesitate to
say that such voters, it is charitable to
suppose in ignorance, voted against
God, and in opposition to the best in
terests of their country. There was
mourning when the tidings of the de-
feat of prohibition came, in all the
homes of righteousness in the land, in
the churches of God, and among the
angels of heaven. There was Joy in
every distillcry, every brewery, every
saloon, every brothol and gambling
den in tho country. Nay, there was
fierce citation over the victory they had
won 'among the demons under the sea"
1t is passing strange to us that there
can be any hesitation among men who
fear God over the right side on such
question. Does any one know of any
good that was ever done by the saloon?
Is it not plague more desolating than
the locusts of the desert wherever it
takes firm root? We do not hesitate
to declare that the most deadly enemy
of our race, and the greatest menace
to our civilization at this time in exist
ence is the saloon. It dominates can
didatea, carries elections, makes up
corruption funds. puts it's creatures
into Office, sends it's rulers into the
legislatures and into Congress, secures
the subscrvience of great political par
ties, and dominecrs in state and ma
tional legislation. AS a specification
under this last charge, let our readers
note the fact that the whisky leaders,
during the last session of Congress
stifed the effort, as they had done in
the former congress to create COM
mittee to examine and to report upon
the effect of the liquor traffic upon the
morals, the welfare, and prosperity of
the people of this nation.
But our object is to ask our readers
to note the fact that of all the advec-
saries which fight against and threat
en- the church, the saloon is by far the
mightiest and most to be feared.
Whether we are conscious of it or not,
the deadly grappl, has already begun,
and the fight must be fought out to
the bitter end. Even as this country
could not permanently exist with one
half it's area slave and the other half
under subservience to the saloon. In
the end either the church as power
in the land, must go, or the saloon
must go. There is no concord between
Christ and Belial; there can be no
peace between a church faithful to
Christ and the saloon.
The saloon already recognizes these
facts. It is already arrayed in deadly
hostility to the church. 1t is the focus
of opposition, the resort of scoffers,
the Rendezvous of those whose lusts
make them haters of Christ. It filings
open its doors upon the Lo, DIS day in
defiance of the laws of both God and
man. Tho mel who inscribe upon
their banners, Down with the church."
are the true a I'd faithful lie 1en of
the saloon. The vast army Of boys and
mn who spend their Sundays in the
beer gardens, the beer halls, the CON
c,rt saloons, the club houses, and the
thousand and one, resorts of which IL
q ,or is an essential part, pass by an d
avo'd the church as they would the
lair of an enemy. On the other hand,
the church is only half aroused to the
fact that deadly struggle is upon it.
The modern saloon is only about fifty
years old, and it has taken the harvest
of poverty, desolation, crime and
wretchedness, which is the fruit of it's
sowing, to half way open the eyes of
the morality and religion of our G. I'M
try to the fact that it's breath is more
deadly than the upas tree. Despite
its waste, havoc and decentralization,
there are good religious men who
would still temporize with it, regulate
it, bind the Samson with green withes,
and preserve it. For the benefit of
any friend of righteousness who would
pursue this temporizing policy, we beg
to state few incontestjble facts.
Miss Greenwood, National Superin-
tendent of Evangelistic work for the
w. G. T. u, discloses in an address
that cit is estimated that there are
100000 young men in the United
States, and that of these 100000 new.
er enter church, while out of every
100 arrests, 81 are young men,"
We might continue these citation
OF facts. We might speak of the snares
to catch the feet of the boys in order
to ensnare them when they become
young men. We have said enough to
show that the saloon and the church
are rivals. They are engaged in eager
competition. One seeks to destroy,
the other to save; the struggle may be
ended by the destruction of either the
church, or its adversary. Which shall
be brought to nought7 Shall the
church with one united voice demand
the destruction of the enemy of God
and man?
We believe that whenever the church
gets in solid earnest and refuses to
temporize longer, the saloon will be
destroyed. There are more than 49,
100000 members of evangelical
churches in the United States. When
their families and those under their
influence are counted we will have
numbered more than half the popula-
ton of the nation. Nor in this esti-
mate have we included the Catholics
who are beginning to show signs of a
break with the saloon power, nor tens
of thousands of moral and temperance
men who have their eyes open to the
evil. All this mighty host should reg
lister an oath, like that of the boy Han
nibal in the temple at Gades, that
they will pursue, with eternal enmity,