Mississippi leader. (Jackson, Miss.) 1892-1895, 1893-06-06

What should be the Attitude of
Christian Voters Toward 1t?
The last Of Series of : Articles Written 10y j.
ID. Smith, vi. d.. for the Tennessee Methodist. i
In my last article discussed the ed
ucatioual advantages that every politi-
cal campaign would afford to Prohibi-
ton If all who desire. or say they de-
sire, its contamination were organized
into one political party and also the
benefits of such an organization in
furnishing or boys a suitable politi-
cal home. In this, the last article of
the series, propose simply to drop
few random shells.
Having read the preceding articles,
some of you are just ready to straight
en- back and say: well, that all
sounds very we'll on paper, and would
be the very thing if the people would
do it; but just know they are not GO
ing to give up their old parties, and
hence | don't see any use in trying"
But where are 1.-The people," my broth
err, to whom you allude? Are you not
one of them? Or are you horse, or
mule, or a COW, or goose, and hence
unwilling to make the condescension
necessary to be identified with "the
people?" Why do you speak of what
others will or will not do in this mat
ter and leave yourself out? Is that
the course you pursue in all other
matters? Are you mere machine
that moves as it is moved upon by the
people? A cipher to be placed on the
left of everybody else and counted for
nothing? If this is your normal posi-
tion in regard to the liquor traffic, why
Gh nj Il ~ ha Il
in regard to everything else? And if
it is not your normal position in regard
to other things, why do you not talk
regard to the liquor traffic, instead of
talking about what "the people" will
or will not do? You have no right to
speak for others till you speak for
yourself. You have no right to de-
mand or expect action ON the part of
others till you act yourself. And you
have no right to make your action in
the premises depend upon the previ-
Gus or simultaneous action of others.
To do either one of these things is to
repudiate the teachings of your Bible.
You do not belittle yourself enough to
do it in any other ordinary business
transaction. 1t is only when it comes
to action on this liquor question that
you are found trying to sink your per-
sonal identity out of sight and that is
because of your blind idolatry to polit-
ical partisanism Strike that shackle
from you and make yourself free
man; and we shall hear no more from
you about what 1.-THE people, will or
will not do. Joshua like. it will be what
Il and my house will do"
When God called to Moses from the
burning bush and told him to leave off
the grazing of Jethro's cattle and go
and deliver his people from Egyptian
bondage, the first excuse that Moses
offered was that 1.-The people will not
hear me-" And God had to convert his
shepherds crook or rod into snake
and make him believe it would bite him
before he would go. But when Moses
saw the danger to himself and posteri-
ty of the snake that his idolatry to
JethrO and his cattle had brought into
existence, he Obeyed God and went.
You are going to the polls at every
election and feeding or grazing focks
much worse than Jethro's cattle. and
the practical results of your course
has been to dcvelope 100000 snakes in
the form of legalized saloons. And
these snakes arr not only threatening
to bite, but are actually biting, killing,
and damning you and your posterity
on every hand. What God said to
Moses at the burning bush he is saying
to you through that inspired example
today, and you sit down and mouth
about what 1.-The people" will or will
not do, and still claim to be believer
in the teachings of the Bible. But you
say, Il can't see it that way" No won
der you can't. "He that doeth the will
of the Father shall know of the doc
trine." You are not doing it. You
can't find an example in the Bible that
will justify you in doing thing that
is wrong in its tendency because "the
people" have not declared against it.
And yet the Bible is full of examples
condemning such a course.
Moses threw down and broke to
pieces the tables of stone on which God
with his own fingers had written the
law, because, as he said, 1.-The people"
would not do thus and SO. But God
rebuked him and demanded that he
should retract and go and hew some
more pieces on which to write the law
again. And Moses went. God did not
allow him to he governed by what "the |
people" would or would not do. He
was ESTABLISHING CHe everlasting pr1n- |
ciples of right and justice among men,
and fixing by His Divine authority in
spired examples for the guidance of
those who, in all ages, should call upon |
His name and claim His fatherly pro-
lection. But you propose to be guided |
by what "the people" will or will not |
do. What a mockery! May God help
you, my cowardly brother, to get out of
it.
Pandering to the corrupt instincts of
'the people" has been the curse of the !
church in all ages, and politics has
been the one big channel through |
which such concessions have been |
made all along down the line. 1t is
this sort of cowardly concession that
dots this fair land of ours with 100000
legalized liquor dens through which |
$4,000 grown up men and women annu-
ally descend to drunkard's graves and
DEVILS hell; that annually murders
more than one thousand wives and
mothers and reduces to mental servi-
tude, with all of it's debauching infiu-
ences, 100000 more, that fills our jails
with criminals, our penitentiaries with