Birmingham age-herald., 1894-09-16
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society. Turning aside from models shall notice an Associated Press matter published in several dailies dated Au- gust 24, from St. Louis, saying that the Liquor Dealers Benefit association, of St. Louis, have asked Mayor Wal ldridge to close the camp meeting now going on in that city.
 They declared that it was disgrace to the city and menace to the morals and reputation of its citizens, that the language used by Sam P. Jones when he was here recently would not be tol- erated in any decent community which was self-respecting. The saloonkeep- CTS whom they represented paid their taxes and were law-abiding people, and the idea of an evangelist be- ing allowed to come here and abuse them was repugnant, therefore they asked the mayor of the city of St. Louis to abate the nuisance, all of which gives me all opportunity of saying something along this line that ought to be said.
 With malice towards no man, but with benevolent wish for all men, declare it to be my honest conviction that there is nothing this side of hell and nothing inside of hell so corrupt ing, so debauching, so infamous, so vile, so Notwithstanding, so soul-damn- ing as saloon. There is not species of meanness that earth can concoct or man can accomplish that whisky Won't help and saloons do nQtrfoster.
 Whatever may -6efhe resolutions and requests of the St. Louis Liquor Deal CTS assoGfation, however much taxes they 6ay pay, however law abiding they may be in their own estimation, yet, the facts stand forth that every saloon is a menace to the morals and ruinous to the reputation of it's citi- zens.
 I don't suppose that against any other thing has the human language been so exhausted for epithets and ad-' jectives, as it has been exhausted in denunciation of the saloons.
 Men run the saloons simply and only for the money that is in it. 1t is but an expression of the avarice which stood under the dripping curse of Jesus Christ and stripped the garments from His suffering body and stood there and gambled for them in His dying presence. It is but an expression of the avarice that watches the destitute orphans crying for bread unmoved. 1t is but an expression of avarice which nerved the arm of Rube Burrows and J. A. Murrell for their deadly work. It is but an expression of avarice that robs God, filches from the poor and withholds from the needy.
 They are in it for the money that is in it, so was Rube Burrows. regard ed Rube Burrows job the most respect able. He would flag down the engl' neer with red lantern; when the train slowed up and stopped in the midnight hour in lonely place he would say to the engineer: ''If you touch that throttle until tell you to I will blow hole through your body" The engineer replied: q obey your order"
 Rube then steps on the train, pushes his gun into each passengers face and says; Give me your money which of course they do When he had robbed every passenger on board the train he stepped to the door of the car and said: Good night, gentlemen; I wish you a pleasant journey" He stepped onto the ground again and waved the engineer ahead.
 Rube was after the dollars he only got the dollars of the unfortunate pas. sengers; he didn't touch their reputa. tion or character; he didn't unfit them for making more money; he didn't de. bauch their souls, but simply robbed them of the little cash they had on their person en route; but the saloon. keeper .robs the wretch of his last dol lar and pauperizes his family, incapaci. tates the poor drunkard from earning more money and damns the poor wretch both soul and body in hell for. ever. If these are not cold facts, then wouldn't know cold fact if I were to meet it in the road. I have never complained at the saloonkeeper be. cause he made money, for God know, if any class of men out of perdition ought to make money it is the saloon keeper.
 First, he knows when he enters the business that it is the lowest-down business in all the wcs5(l; he knows that he must deal with the lowest. down men in all the world; he knows that if he dies in that business he must go to hell as surely as that the stars shine at night
 If he does not make money out oi such business he is the biggest fool that ever started out in life.
 grant you that the law does not protect the profession and divide the profits with the Dalton gang, or Bur. rows, or Murrell as 1t does with the saloonkeeper. It is a disgrace to this ! government and an eternal stain upon her laws that she ever receives dollar of the blood money pushed over the saloon counter by the victim of drink.