Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1891-10-07
For the SPECTATOR.
THE RECENT TRAGEDY NEAR
MIDWAY.
THE LESSONS IT TEACHES.

1
Mr.. Editor:
| The very unfortunate tragedy near Mt
Carmel church recently gives rise to many re-
Elections and teaches many plain lessons tha
should not fail to be needed. That tragedy and
the consequences that flow necessarily from
| 1t, are due to the fact that man had been IL
ceLsed to sell liquor at Midway. When the
application for license was made, the people
of the neighborhood. who appreciated the evil
of having liquor sold at that place. earnestly
protested against it. and did all they could te
induce the Court to refusel the application
For a while they were successful, as I have
been told that the Court at first did not grant
1t. but afterwards, for some reason unknown
to me. he granted the license. The Judge. nc
doubt, acted upon his best judgment, but, oh!
what cruel mistake 1t was. and how deeply
he must now deplore it. This should teach
him never TO grant license when the citizens
of the nelghborhood, who are more interested
in the preservation of good order. and better
qualified than any one else to judge of the eff
feet of the sale of liquor in their vicinity. pro-
test against it. This is the first lesson; and q
second one should be learned, and that is that
there is no suitable place to sell liquor to be
drunk at the place where sold: The next is
that no man should vote in favor OF license.
have been told that, in the recent local option
election in that district, all those who were
Immediately engaged In that difficulty which
resulted in the death OF one white lan. and
the serious ir jury of another, and the impris'
onment five colored men to be tried under
the charge of murder or homicide, voted for IL
cense. The result shows what mistake they
made, and all who voted likewise. This lesson
Is for the voters generally, and, II wise. they
will heed 1t, and never again vote for license.
The amount of misery that has already been
caused. to say nothing Of that which Is yet to
follow, Is Northumberland what good has
been caused by that license? None. 1t has
been the cause of ''evil, and only evil, and that
continually" and SO it is with others, and so
1t will continue to be so long as they are grant
ed. But the revenue! The State gets the reve-
nue.! Who would balance the evils with the
paltry amount of the license tax! 1t Is an in
suit to the State to offer such reason. What
mother would have her son debauched, and
ruined in character, and murdered in body
and soul for few dollars! Virginia is the
mother of her cltizens-they are her sons-and
shall her SONS insult her and disgrace them.
selves by saying that she prefers the revenue
arising from tn granting of liquor-license to
the salvation of her sons! Perish the thought!
But how will stand the account Of revenue in
this case? VIII the mother have revenue
balance in her favor, after she has paid for the
imprisonment and trial of the five colored
men who are implicated in the killing of Jas.
Lofts, and the beating of Henry Weeks! Will
she not find that the license, like the Indians
gun, will cost more than 1t will come to-
Will she gain by getting 500 and paying
out $500? have been told that the colored
people in that nelghborhood voted unant-
mously for license. They should now see the
great and grievous mistake they. made, and
should resolve never again to repeat it.
Since jotting these reflections, have Heen In
the VIYdic ltor of Sept. 18th, the following
pregnant paragraph which 1t says was writ"
ten by a clergyman of the vicinity of the trag-
edy referred to-
Here then is the result of a bar-room which
the citizens of this community made an earn
est effort to close at the last license term of the
County Court-one man killed upon whom
q mother, two sisters and three children des
pended for living; another man. who has
wife and two children. badly wounded; and
seven cOlored men ordered to prison, two of
whom have families. How much sorrow and
trouble this disturbance will cause, and how
much public money Qiquor license taxesD will
be expended in the trial of the parties, remain
10 be SEEM
That paragraph speaks trumpet-tongued in
of liquor-license, and 1t Is time
the hearts of the people should be stirred and
their minds inspired with determination to
abolish thu liquor traffic. CIV1S.