The daily morning Astorian. [volume] (Astoria, Oregon) 1883-1899, 1893-04-01

thdnh you IOr lne puDllcat1On OF
my article in yesterdays issue of your
paper j now ask your Indulgence for
few words more on this important
subject. You say my position is alb
solutely and absurdly wrong throughout
that deal in the theory that humanity
should consist Of demigods or angels" /"
There Is no intimation Of any such
theory in my article and such a state
ment does does not detract in the least
from the right of my arguments. 1
state very plainly that we do not ex-
pect that any law can be perfectly en-
forced or that any crime can be entire
ly prohibited. If such a thing was pos
sible then there would be no need of
courts of Justice and the city and state
would be freed from the enormous
expense of prosecuting criminals. We
realize fully the weakness Of human
nature and do not believe in pander-
ing to these weaknesses, but we do
believe in, as far as possible, protecting
the weak by bulwarks of civil law.
We realize too the viciousness and
avariciousness of human nature and be-
lieve in curtailing these by the power
of law.
am glad Mr.. Editor, that you realize
that religion is a progressive power,
keeping in the van of advancement"
Do you intend the intelligent people
of Astoria to understand by your po-
sition on this question that you con-
slider the license of gambling or any
other evil as an advancement in NOR
ais? If you do you have failed thus
far to convince them of the correctness
of your position. 1t is true that relig-
ion has never swerved from is course
in the onward march of progress but
has been uncompromisingly arrayed
against evil of every name and nature.
The ideal civilization then Is where
vice and crime have been reduced to
the minimum not by the sanction but |
by the enforcement of civil law. You |
say that ''it is filthy beastial criminal |
lty, acquired by years of degradation
and nurtured by vile associations that |
prompts men to murder or rapine."
Does the writer mean for one moment
to class the weakness of gambling on
4 level with these? Does he intimate
that murder is prompted from the same
source as gambling? Does he not
know that while one is crime the
other is a passion? What is it that
prompts murder? Does it not grow
1ut of one of two things as a rule?
First, the desire or inordinate greed
or gain-secondly, the result of anger
passion of the human soul. We have
,ut few Jacks "the ripper who COM
nit murder for fun. What is it that
eads men to gamble? Is it an inherent
principle planted in human nature?
Not by any means. 1t is the desire
or gain, this desire gratified becomes
lfter awhile a passion. There is not
hen so great a difference in the source
# these two evils as my friend, the
ditor, would try to make out Take
way from gambling, the glimmering
ope of gain and it is robbed of it's
.ttraction at once.
If am not mistaken, under the laws
f Oregon and almost IL not every other
tate of the union gambling is placed
nder the ban of the law and punished
s q crime and the plea Of human l
reakness no more avails them than in
case of murder.
Now sir if any key is pitched "a
ouple of notes too high" yours is GER
ainly couple of notes too low; sup :
ose then you come up little and let
s meet on a common level and join |
ands for the suppression and not the
galizing of this blighting curse in
lis city. We are not after the "unob-
Unable or the gliding of dross and
llling it gold" nor are we willing to
lrow away the gold because there is :
little dross in 1t but we are in favor
applying the purifying fire of civil .
w and making the gold as pure as
ossible. Yours truly,
G. A. LANDEN.