The Portland daily press., 1892-02-08
ENFORCEMENT OF Law.
4 Sermon by Rev. James G. Merrill
Yesterday.
PORTLAND PASTORS ARE AS COUR.
AGEOUS AS EVER.

The Rum Element Need Not KeJo1Ce,
Says the Preacher, Because Two Out
Spoken Ministers Have Left Portland
for Those Who Remain Are Equally
Opposed to the Liquor Traffic.
AT the Second Parish Congregational
church yesterday morning, the pastor,
Rev. James G. Merrill preached on the
prohibitory law, complimenting the ex-
cellent enforcement of it in this city and
county. His text was from Titus ILL.,, l.;
and the sermon follows in full:
Put them in mind to be in subsection to rulers
to authorities, to be Obedient.
have heard that the recent departure
of two highly esteemed clergymen from
our city has afforded to the rum element
of our town much comfort. They mag
inc that the ministers who are left or
who have lately come among us are less
radical in their views and less
courageous in maintaining them than the
men who did such valiant service during
their soiourn in Portland for the grand
| cause of temperance. 1t would be hardly
modest for the clergy now resident IN
the city to attempt to prove themselves
equal in efficiency and zeal and courage
| to those who have gone, but it is a graft
| tication to feel that the pulpit has such
power that the departure of two minis
| tiers is source of delight to those who
want TO be let alone in their nefarlous
| business and it is quite time for the foes
| of temperance to learn that the same
| spirit prevails in the present occupants
of our city pulpits that has existed in the
| past and when the places of those who
how
men who are sound upon the great mat
| ter of temperance. And this for one
| reason because the vast majority of the
church people of our city have settled
| down with the unalterable conviction
| that prohibition is right and should be
| maintained. There is abundant occasion
moreover for this opinion owing to the
fact that we have had such
Magnificent Exhibition
| of the enforcement of the law during the
| past twelve months. Having had a taste
of such good things we do not propose if
we can help it to go back to the days
| which brought us shame and dishonor.
| I saw this is the attitude of our churches
and ministers and yet would add, 1t IS
not a church matter with us. The clergy
and church members of to-day are in all
such matters of public import citizens OF
our state They would transcend their
| charter as members OF church, were
they to refuse admittance to their orga-
nizations OF expel from their churches
persons who could not accept prohibition
as the only method of dealing with the
question of strong drink. Our churches
| stand for temperance but not for techni-
cal temperance measures, and the only
| reason why we are a unit in this matter
| to-day is because as conservative citizens
| of Portland our Judgment is clear that
the laws of the State of Maine shall be
enforced in its metropolis, and that the
enforcement of the prohibitory law in
particular is for the highest advantage of
our city and commonwealth.
We can not indeed ignore the fact that
| it would be of vast damage to our
churches as such, and would ruin immor-
tai souls to substitute in the place OF the
| present state of affairs free rum OF even
| A License System,
but we have no right to demand of the
state laws which are going to Guild up
churches or save souls. The state is too
clumsy in it's operations to undertake any
4 such work as this, even if it were right
/ for it to do it. We ask nothing therefore
/ of our public authorities as churches.
| In this and all other civic questions we
are in the arena as citizens.
| am very glad that this is the case, for
if it were otherwise there would be great
embarrassment arise from the TACT that
the Bible, on which we formed our
churches, does not declare destinctively
1 for the prohibitory law as such. 1t does
| declare itself in favor of the principle of
| prohibition. 1t also lays down the prin-
| ciple of my text, which makes it neces-
sary for q true Christian to maintain the
laws which the state enacts But II a
| true Christian, living in one of our Uni
| ted States, where it was impossible to
secure prohibitory law, should vote for
and secure the enforcement OF SO called
| license law, he is no less a Christian on
| that account
| A license law when enacted for the
purpose of decreasing the damage done
| by traffic in strong drink, is indeed, in
| its principle, prohibitory. Being unable
to carry the people to the extent of max
| inc laws forbidding the sale of intoxi-
cants entirely it forbids its sale to GER
tain persons and at certain hours. 1t
| should be called, therefore, regulating
rather than license legislation. There
are license laws of a different intent from
this which are, it seems to Inc,
Utterly Reprehensibie.
They are made with the intent of re-
lieving the tax payer and are a bargain
with the evil one.
We see the iniquity of such state of
affairs in the bride, which the Louisiana
lottery is employing, to persuade the tax
payers of that state to the granting a
new lease of life to their Ubiquitous I'M
dertaking.
L know a western city which boasts of
its magnificent school buildings and the
high grade Of its teachers owing to the
fact that it pays the largest salaries to
its teachers and all this is paid for by
high licence. The taxpayers are relieved
and the children have splendid schools.
| Yes they do, and at the price of blood,
and the awful fruitage of such COM
pact is seen in the long list of drunkartls,
| the Astounding crimes, the debauched
public sentiment that make a shrewd
man ask the question whether they are
not penny wise and pound foolish who
save in the school taxes and spend in