St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1891-09-14
AGAINST HIGH LICENSE.
Mrs. Leavitt, the Noted Temper
anCe Advocate. Talks.


Mrs. Leavitt, the Noted Temper
ance Advocate, Talks.
Mrs. Mary Leavitt, the noted temper
ance lecturer, lectured at the First
Baptist church last night. Mrs Leavitt
has travelled extensively, visiting the
principal cities of theOrient and Europe
in her zeal against the thraldom of
King Alcohol. She is an interesting
talker, and she illustrates her theme
with apt anecdotes. She spoke hope
fully of the cause, and claimed that
temperance is a growing sentiment
among the English-speaking people.
She gave history of the work the past
three or four decades, and compared it
with the abolition of slavery. She said
that short time before the war her
father, stout-hearted abolitionist.
called upon her. He said the cause had
suffered another defeat. Congress had
voted against them, but he predicted
the day would surely come when slavery
would be wiped from this country.
You may not live long enough to see
it, but it will come," he said. And it
did come, much sooner than he antici-
pated. God worked it out in his own
way. 1t was done in blood and suffer
ing and all the horrors of war.
Mrs. Leavitt made all eloquent appeal
to church members to interest them
selves more actively In the work, and
the time will come when intemperance
will be suppressed. The principles of
total abstinence is being woven into the
foundation of church life.
She disclaimed the truthfulness of
the charge that the English-speaking
people are more addicted to the use of
intoXicantS than other nations. The
trouble with those who have that i'm
preston is that they go to bed TOO early
when in other countries. When she
was in Athens she visited The United
States consul. He told her
the Greeks are temperance people
He had been there three years, and
had never seen a drunken man. Mrs.
Leavitt began an investigation. That
night, shortly before midnight, as she
lay sleepless and thoughtful, she was
disturbed by ribaldry in the street.
Throwing a shawl about her she stepped
upon the balcony. Down in the street
she saw several Greek conference.-the
said she used the term gentlemen in
the European sense, for they appeared
to belong TO the nobility-so drunk they
were unable to walk straight. They
were talking in loud tones in Greek.
She saw many such scenes, and she and
others had come to the conclusion that,
aside from moral reasons, it would
have been better, financially. for
the country were the millions of
vines uprOOted and the soil planted
to breadstuffs. When the Turks abdi-
Gated the country there were no vines
there, but following up the lines of ira
dition the Greeks soon returned to the
culture of the grapes and manufacture
of wines and liquors. All Greeks keen
different kinds of wines in their houses.
such as wines, whisky, brandy and the
like. and they all use it, and at late
hours they use it immoderately. Mrs.
Leavitt's experience taught her that the
English-speaking people are less given
to excuses. She spoke of Lyons. i'm
France. She saw more people drunk
there than she had ever seen in Boston.
She had seen large number staggering
through the streets in one afternoon.
She attacked the license system in a
drastic style. One SaIoonkeeper had
told her that he had sold just as much
liquor under prohibition law as he had
under the high license law. She asked
him why he fought prohibition then.
The reply was that he did not want to
be law-breaker, and he wanted his
business to become legitimate and re-
spectacle.
Mrs. Leavitt declared that all that high
license does is to make a MONOPOLY of
the liquor business. In one town where
she lectured a Christian gentleman
asked her not to attack the high license
regime. 1t had been a great success
there. 1t had rid the place Of nine out
of every ten saloons.
HAS it lessoned the real amonnt OF
liquor drank?" asked she.
"Well, l don't know about that" re-
piled the gentleman. II must confess
see a great deal of drunkenness"
You have merely lessened the num-
Der of dealers without lessening the
traffic."
You may be right. I'll investigate"
He went to the railroad Office and he
found that the receipts of liquors. in a
given space of time, were only one-tenth
less than under the old system of low
license. Nine-tenths of the dealers
were closed out, but the consumption
remained almost the same.
Mrs. Leavitt gave the opinion that
God gave the California gold fields to
the United States that the people might
do good with it. 1t was ceded to this
country by the Mexican treaty. The
wealth hidden there had been kept a
secret up to this time. True. European
vessels had gathered large amount of
virgin gold from the natives. They had
found it at the bottom of the streams
flowing from the Sierra Nevadas. One
vessel started back with quantity of
this gold to exhibit to the English GOV
eminent, but storm arose and the yes
sci was destroyed, and the English gov.
eminent knew nothing about the golden
wealth.
at is given 10 the United States to
Christ. Il The world. said Ms. Leay-
it,