The Lebanon express. (Lebanon, Linn County, Or.) 1887-1898, 1891-01-23
= NrMou or run wAn-rAYn.

fftoHu Memo bfeulAeS fknsherutrd
over our friendly aud somewhat hu-
lnnfoua criticism, and. as might be IN
pectgd, lmngines that mn also exas.
pesaied Not So friend Memo. don't
know that was ever better huniof.
Yet ! am somewhat surprised a. hear
yeu reitrratc The old, stale ana thor
uughly unfounded ehaFge that the pro-
hi5itionIsis are attempting to intro
duce practice that puntius plate
could not sanction aud. which brought
John ID. Lee To Violent death at the
hands OF an outraged people. Is Il
/ possible that you are still Incapable of
! distinguishing between criminal act
aud an act 10 prevent erinit? Where
did you go 10 school, anyway?
Now there is u sense In which prnlil-
| billion had something to do with the
ttking oil OF John -. Lee. The laws
of the IT.. $. a. and her territories pro-
/ hibit murder aud John -. Lee and
| his elan had been guilty of violating
that prohibitory law by numbering
quiet and peaceahle citizens. THE pen
atty OF that prohlbotory law was exc
cated aud the old polrganlist was shot
! For once you are right, Memo; keep Il
/ up; you may stumble ON the truth
/ again, bye and bye.
/ But then you are not entitled "a
/ much credit, for what you evidently
meant was that those who seek tn pro-
| hinit the liquor traffic are guilty Of Il
| fanaticlsm which will lead men To
eommis murder for the sake of relig-
ious opinion. Now really, friend Memo.
/ you ought 20 make some little effort to
substantiate this strange pet theory OF
| yours, or then give Ii up like a little
man. You say ''they lprehibitionistsl
brand the distillers, brewers aud saloon
| men as criminals. and yet they have
| broken no law Wrong agaiu, friend
| IL Is Just because ,nen make, buy and
sell Intoxicating liquors Ia accordance
with law, that psoliihitionists want the
laws 80 changed MS Is prohibit instead
of legalizing the business The crimi-
nality rests with the people who vote
| fer men 60 make, buy aud sell as bev-
erages that which only tends 10 wreck
and ruin those who drink IL.
Again. YOU say: aChFist filled the
empty jugs and bottles at the marriage
| feast of Canaan; hnd he done so In
| Kansas he would heve been landed In
the penitentiary, Sc Now, 10 say
nothing Of your niisauoilng the scrip-
/ ture account, II i only necessary to
/ say that the wine he made WAS pure,
sweet Wine with no alcohol whatever
In 1t. To know the truth of my pcsi-
| tion as Just stated, veu only have to
/ refer TO two passages of scripture which
| he, by his spirit, had inspired men to
write, which | here quote for you.
.'Woe unto him that putieth the bottle
| 10 his neighbor's lips and maketh him
| drunken also" "Leol not thou upon
the wine wnen Il Is red, when IL giveth
Us color IN the cup, wien II niuveth
itself Alright Cor fegmentsA, for Mt the
last IL hlteth like Il serpent and sting
] eth Ike an adder = Il a suppOsablp
ease Tint he who pronounced woe
upon men for putting the Intoxicating
cup To their neighber's lips, would
himself prepare Intoxicating wine Ia
he drank at a mavinge feast? OF that
he who by divine inspiration had
warned his creatures not tu look uuan
fermented or Intoxicating wine, would
o9tfadict his own teachings by max
| Tag IL aud ordering il 10 be distributed
/ at the fyast2 IL requires an incredible
amount OF increduiity To entertain
such an idea. Now any man In Kan
sas Is allowed to take his grapes and
press the fresh, rich juice from them
and drink itaud give II to his ne'ghbor
/ To drink, and la so doing violates no
law, human or divin :: but what the
| prohibitary law of Kansas furbids Is
/ The making buying, selling, &c, of In
/ toXicating liquors.. Memo, IL Is really
/ diseouraeing to see how far YOU are be-
hind the times; wake up, ar you'll be
left by every schoolhoy IN Brownsville.
"Dlssatisiied hccauseCiod has brought
sin and temptation into the worldi2
! What mnnstrous prupnsitionl Friend
| Memo, | isegin To- see what is the mat
ter with your moral philosophy; YOU
have been letting the Oregonian do
| your thinking along the line of tenn
| perance aud thealO4v. No wonder
you are I'm such iueNtficnble confusion
Oh the temperance question. Your
| questions, "Why did not eur law
makers 90 as far as the prohibitionist,
and prohibit the manufacture Of fire
arne9' matches, cards, cut or the
/ hands of the thief, cut out the tongue
of the periurer, and then you add, "if
they would do so II would be i'm strict
| accordance with the doctrine of prohi-
/ bition in dealing with the liquor uues-
tion." Please note, friend, that the
manufacture of alcoholic poison Is not
prohibited for medicinal. scientific or
mechanical purposes. Ii is only To be
prohibited as beverage. Firearms
are all right. but they are not to be
1 used foI vicious purposes: alcohol Is all
| right, hut il is not to he used for vicious
purposes IL Is right for man to have
hands, but wrong for him 10 Use them
stealing his neiEhbor's property. Pro.
hibition as related to Intoxicating
liquors, means about the same that il
does as related to counterfeiting: the
couuterfeiter has a right to his metal,
or his paper, so long as he uses il foI
innocent and harmless purposes, but
when he seeks to turn It into bogus
currency and thereby iniure his neigh
Dor, prohibition says no, sir. The man
has a right to his corn, or his barley
or his grapes; he may even go so far as
TO make them into alcohol. should ht
want IL for scientific or medicinal pur.
poses, but il he undertakes to sell IL ol
give il to his ncighbor as drink, pro
hibition says no, sir. Now If friend
Memo cannot see this he is indeed a
hopeless case.
i Another suggestion or two and
close. IT appears to me, Memo, that
il would be well to leave off such cpl
thets as fool "idiot." &c, as they
add neither grace nor dignity TO d
newspaper discussions; besides, ouI
readers will decide for themselves who
! the idiot i'm this discussion. And
should your ire become SO intense rs to
impel you to visit Eugene on a spank.
ing expedition, please notify us in time
rs we VIII make it convenient to be
absent. leo.
STATE OF ONO, CRY OF TOLEDO, lss
Lucas COUNTY, s.
EpANE CtENEv rnotes oath tbnt no &c tb,