Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1894-08-15
AGAINST LIQUOR.
THE SALOON DECLARED 70 De THE
GREAT POLITICAL EDUCATOR.


Quite a large crowd assembled at
Powelrs Hall, on Church Hin avenue.
last night for the purpose OF listening to
addresses on temperance by Rev. DR..
w. J. Young and Rev. II. Il. Johnson.
owing TO an important business meeting
at his church Park-Place). DIR. Young
was unavoidably absent.
The meeting was opened with prayer
by Mr.. Fielding Pollard. after which Mr..
a. B. Cheatham assembled the rostrum
and read the resolutions drawn up by
the committee for government Of the
meeting, which have already been pub
lished.
Mr.. ]. T. Montgomery was the first
speaker introduced. lie claimed to be
one OF the pioneers Of the temperance
movement In this country. and he thought
he said. that the day was coming rapidly
when temperance would prevail through
out the land. The liquor traffic. he said.
was running the rising generation. ana
when one looks upon the Influences OF
strong drink IL is enough to bring him.
II he be a true man, to the forefront.
He declared that II the Church would
vote as il prayed the Cursed traiiic
would be put down. The Church. he said.
was not doing Its duty. ut Is not
question with me-" he said. when go
20 the polls. OF who Is going TO win. but
Of voting for the right. j hope the day
will come when men will go 10 the polls
and refuse TO vote for any party that ~
-. fraA r
REV. MR.. JOHNSON.
Rev Mr.. II. F. Johnson. of Paramount
church. was next called on. and apoio-
gized for not having prepared an address.
He opened with the one question. "What
shall we do with the saloon md argued
II at some length. Here" he said, rs
an institution established In our midst.
entrenched behind the law and backed
I'D with that thirst which so many IN
fortunates possess. We must be circuin-
spect and we must work hard in fighting
II.
FOR two centuries the government,
while II has been fostering all other bust
ness. has been cramping and tightening
its grip on this liquor traffic. 1t Is law
ful. and yet the law, while saying il is
lawful puts stamp on II that II does
on no other business. A permit has TO
be secured In order TO conduct the h,isi-
ness. Now / lay down this proposition:
If right, the traffic ought not to require
q permit; II wrong. II ought not to be
permitted. No man needs a permit TO
carry on a dairy and dispense fresh.
sweet milk.
A POLITICAL QUESTION
"This question Is now a political one.
That makes Il my question. The one great
function OF a Christian ministry is 10
exercise correctly the right of citizenship.
What We need In this country to-day
more than anything else is a conscience
which recognizes our accountability 10
God for what we do at the ballot-box as
well as what we do In church or in Sun
day school.
Il am making no attack on the saloon
keeper nor on the drunkard. pity more
than any other man / know the one who
gets down behind a bar and sells liquors
for the ruin of his fellow-man. / pity him
from the bottom Of my soul. | am not
here 10 talk about him, but about his busi-
ness. There Is a great difference between
the grog- shops IN Virginia when l was
a boy and the FALCONS OF to-day. They
both manufacture drunkards and break
hearts. The modern saloon, however. Is
great school-a curriculum wherein Is
taught our national poi.ics. Foreigners
and voters receive their education how 10
vote from our saloons. The saloon IL the
most patent factor In politics. i don't say
the saloon-keeper is the man with such
power 1t is the saloon. Ten men, TWEEN
ty men, coneregate In a saloon. ana
"A big demagogue comes in and leads the
whole gang by the nose
The speaker compared the two parties
the Republican and Democratic-with two
children on see-saw, and pictured the
| oh Cd In q
and weighing down first one erd and then
the other at his own pleasure and sc-
coriing to what was to his benefit
1.-The liquor traffic" he continued, "is
not only running our country politically.
but it Is visbly affecting our home circle. y
The government he pictured as vast
piece of mechanism revolving over an
arch, and the great keystone Of that
arch he compared with the American
home circle Continuing. he said that the
American saloon had the chissl and the
hammer. and. demon like, was cutting
away the plaster from around IT, Had
YOU" ne said. been in the Methodist
ministry for thirty-fve years, as l have,
| YOU would not doubt this. You would
| have seen too many sad instances. Du-
ring the years that l have lived l have
become more and more convinced that
| the home Is being invaded by the saloon.
am no pessimist, but l look with a
great deal of apprehension to the future
| of this government. 1t wasn't honest
workingmen who created the disturbance
| in Chicago recently. 1t was the riff-raff
| and rabble. and the American saloon Is
rapidly turning out thousands OF just such
| men as these.
| SOME FIGURES.
ct don't know that I can describe II
/ no af a
| colored brother. He said the saloon was
| ike a chinch bug. 1t wouldn't work,
and II wouldn't do anything for Itself,
| but lived off of others. How this Ameri-
| can saloon crowds Itself into politics.
| There are a million and a half people
| in New York city. There are ll.vo sa-
| looms in the city, and yet twelve out Oh
| the twenty-four aldermen are saloon
keepers. Think Of half of the city gov
| erned by such a class. About the time
that you begun this agitation spasm
| against Sunday work came over the ponce
here. Now am not arraigning the police
| They do their duty. They ought to 40
| something; they are pretty well palu ana
| pretty well clothed. l hope this spasm
| will continue. / passed bar-room on
| Church Hill last Sunday. and as ] passed
| nut my ear to the key-hole. The noise
that emanated therefrom very closely
| resembled a hornets nest after II mao
| been struck Such a buzzing and cllnk-
| ing as you never heard. ] heard 1t. ana
knew what was going on. but the police
| would never hear il. ! want you gentie-
men to keep the ball that was started IN
| Norfolk some time since rolling until IL
| goes all over our broad land. scattering
and sowing the seeds of temperance.
! Upon the conclusion Of Mr.. Johnson
| address the Doxology was sung and the
| audience was dismissed with the bene-
| diction.