Mississippi leader. (Jackson, Miss.) 1892-1895, 1892-01-21

| i'm elections, or as receivers of brides
or newspaper men printing its adveT
tisements Mt an exhOrbitant rate, o
as having drawn a prize, and, strang
to say, as having lost by patronizin
it and hoping to win back what ha
been lost, or as bankers holding it
deposits or as borrowers of 1T
money. And the keen edge of publ
condemnation has been taken off b,
the license money paid to publ
charities, though every one ma.
know that it is but mere tritie com
pared with its enormous ill-gOttol
gains. The poet has said, with ;
deep penetration into the secre
workings of human nature:
'.Vice is monster of so frightful micn
That to be hated needs hut 10 be seen;
But, seen too oft, familiar with her face,
We first endure, then pity, then embrace.
And Holy Writ lays bare this innate
tendency in human nature to succumt
to evil, in describing the servility OF
the Samaritans to the juggler, Simon
"And to him they had regard because
that Of long time he had bewitched
them with sorceries." The long timt
had much to do with it.
Recurring to the true principles OF
government as set out i'll the pream-
bic of the Federal Constitution, let us
ask whether the licensed saloon ac-
cords with them. Does it tend to
unity the people? Is it not Il fact
known to all that II saloon in a COM
munity is a fruitful source of division,
strife, and riots Does it tend to
"establish justice ?" 1t is founded in
injustice. The very conception of it
is, that for Il price paid to the State,
one man may open business, the eff
feet of which is to work. manifold
wrongs upon other people. The
weak are borne down by temptation
and swept to ruin for the paltry price
of their liquor, and this injustice is
done the weak contrary to that natur
al law which Blackstone says is be-
fore all written laws. That law says
"we shall hurt nobody" The same
great writer says, "No human laws
are of any validity if contrary to
this
Nor does the saloon stop at this in
justice it destroys the hope of fami-
lies by running sons, fathers, brothers;
and, families thus pauperized are
thrown on the better part of tue
community for support. =.
1t invades the temple Of justice
with bribed juries and perjured wit
nesses, so that justice is enthFOwn.
Besides this the saloon business,
now organized throughout the land,
is constantly engaged in war, now
open, now secret, but always persist
ent,. to sieze the machinery of gov
ernment and prostitute legislatures,
courts and executive officers, all to its
passion for money. Like its natural
ally, the lottery, it joins forces with
gamblers, prostitutes, thieves, thugs,
political heelers, corrupt political
bosses, and all sorts of mOnOpolies,
not to establish justice, but to utterly
destroy justice. In furtherance of its
design, it muzzles the press, intimi-
dates public men, or buys them over
to its side by political influence and
saloon votes. The saloon is more
than drinking place, Where money
is taken over the counter and poison
handed back in" exchange. 1t is a
clubhouse where all the forces of So
ciety get together and combine. 1t
belongs to a conspiracy against law
and public morals. Establish JUS
ticeg" Never! The saloon is the i'm
placable enemy of justice.
Gentlemen, what is here charged is
not done in a corner. 1t is open to
every intelligent citizen. So much so
that scarcely u. man in all the land
has been.found to defend to saloon.
''Insure domestic tranquilityT'
Does the saloon do it? There has
not been q riot it the United States
of any proportion, but, somewhere in
it, the American saloon was a living
force. Mems blood washeated-sOnfe
real or supposed wroDg-then a reit.
Take the murder record of Missis-
sippi, or of any State, and with sick
ening frequency the saloon figures in
it. There is u crowd drinking together.
They are full. An idle word is
spoken. The frenzied brain misin-
terprets it, and there is a quarrel, a
murder, a trial, with a large cost bill
for the sober people to pay. Besides,
man is dead, another is disgraced,
homes are desolated, hearts are
broken, and childhood -blightly in the
bud. Or, it is some would be muir
derer, who must fire ap in saloon
before his courage will bear him
through the dreadful deed. The
whole land is fulf of anguish and un-
rest. From thousand accursed
spots the blood of the victims of the
saloon cries TO heaven against this
disturb of our domestic tranquility
And multiplied thousands of heart
broken, women and children. and
aged parents, righteously cry to God
against what this State, for a .paltry
sum. has authorized men to do,
"Provide for the common defense 2
1t is known to all observant persons
that instead of provihing for the com.
mon defense every saloon is strom-
centre of danger i'm community
A great part of the time of officers
and eonrts is taken up III remedying
the evils done by saloons.
''Promote the general welfare.
The limits of this paper will not al
low US to argue, the deleeterioui
effect of saloons on the community Al
large Saloons promote tieS'genera
welfare ~ rs not thinkaBle. Thi
greatest wealth of the StateH must b,
the high character of its citizens
But the saloon deteriorates the eiti
zenship, corrupts the nations blood
and constantly levels society. doYi
To. its low standard. We think o