The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1894-11-14
PROHIBITION A FAILURE"
"Bishop Nicely of Maine writes Against
the Law"

A letter to Mr.. Sllliman Blagden of
Boston, from Bishop Nicely of Portland,
appeared in the Boston Herald of the sth
inst, with the above heading, and has
been going the rounds of the papers of
the country. Will the Editor of the
PRESS kindly afford me room for such
a reply as an intimate knowledge of the
facts for many years may enable me to
make?
regret very much that my friend,
the Bishop, should write such letter
without consulting some of his friends
who are familiar with the subject in all
its phases, since he can know nothing of
it personally. AS it is, he has been
grossly misinformed and misled By per-
sons in whom he trusted. The Bishop
says:
cit is true, presume, that spirituous
liquors are much less in general use
than they were 80 years ago in Maine.
But they can still be had of very i'm
pure and pernicious quality, by all who
want them. not only in our cities, but,
! believe in vast majority of our
smaller towns and villages"
will reply to the Bishops averments
seriatim:
I.-Before the Mamie law was enacted.
there were in the state IS distiIleries.
seven Of VIII ich and two breweris were in
Portland, some of them large ones. Now,
there is no distllery or brewery IN Maine,
nor has there been one in many years.
At the same time, large quantities of
West India rum were imported; they
came to us by the cargo, many of them
every year. These liquors were all for
home consumption; now not even a
puncheon is imported, nor has there been
one in many years.
I-Our streets in Portland were lined
on either side with rumshops, having
obtruslve signs advertising for sale liq-
uors, wines and .cordials of many names
and qualities They occupied conspicu-
Gus places in our streets, always street
corners if they were to be had. Now,
All that is gone; no sign is to be seen
sale.
llI.-Refore the Maine law, it was the
general practice in all well-to-do houses
to have the sideboard well supplied with
wines. and liquors OF many kinds.
Friends, calling for few minutes or for
longer time, and strangers as we'll.
We're always invited TO drink at the,
cred rude IN any one to decline the
drink. The host would always press the
guest to drink if he did not take the
glass freely; then, even in summer,
would caution him on going down the
steps, not to Slip as If there was ice
to be avoided. They called it slipping
Now all that is gone, long, long ago.
man-all. were expected to take their
turn at the glass. Now, if doctor were
known to do SO, the sick would not
trust MIN. 1t a Clergyman was to live
in the old-fashioned way nobody would
believe in him; he would be marked
man. If a businessman is known to
drink, his credit is seriously affected; he
is marked as sure to go ashore sooner
or later.
Iv.-At all social parties in every con-
dition of life. the drink was always
present, with it's usual results to many
of the guests. Now there are no liq-
uors at any social gathering. except per-
haps among two classes of society, it at
all. Ladies' were expected to drink with
the company; now for lady to do SO
would be considered as vuiger, At all
public dinners drink abounded, often
with excessive hilarity: now, at public
dinners, intoxicants are not seen. / be-
lieve there has been but one exception
to this in many years.
V.-PortIand is the. largest city in the
state. 1t is far within the fact to say
that there is not one-hundredth partsso
much liquor sold here now as there was
before prohibition, though the city is
more than twice larger. I cannot take
Issue Is with the Bishop as to the quality
OF the liquors struggled into the state
and sold in violation of law. freely
concede that they may be as bad as he
says they are: do not know anything
OF that; | am no judge ofkit; have new
er tried them mol any other.
NL-Portland is surrounded on all
sides by large and prosperous villages
and by agricultural towns; all OF them
fourishing; where no liquors are sold.
In Saccarappa and Cum berland Mills,
In the old times, quart of West India
rum was day IS ration for all working
men,. now, if such persons drink at all,
it is exceptional; The grog shops, which
were everywhere, are now swept away,
The drinking habits OF the people are
entirely changed; instead of popula-
t1on OF exceptionally hard drinkers, we
have population of exceptionally sober
men, who have made Maine one of the
most prosperous states in the Union, as
it was the poorest in the.old rum time.
Mr.. Blaine, in our City Hall, in the Gar
field campaign, said Maine was the most
prosperous statesin the Union.
VII.-The PortlaE dsDaily PRESS, sew
eral years ago, said: "In more than
three. fourths of our territory, with more
than three-fourths of our population, the
liquor traffic is practically unknown.
An entire generation has grown up
there, never having seen grog shop.
nor the effects of one.n This was trne
now as it was true on the day when ut
tered.
VIII.-In the old RIM time. Maine
spent in drink the entire valuation of
all its property in every period OF stwen-
ty years, as the nation is now doing in
every period of thirty-five years. Now,
half million dollars will moresthan pay
for all the liquor smuggled into tie
state and sold in violation of law. 10
liquors being manufactured in the state.
The wages of labor and the profits of
business are not squandered in drink, as
in the old time.
TX The Bishop says: "There will
be, ] think, a serious reaction against
the Maine Law very soon" Yes, There
were many people expecting that and
hoping for it. 1t was time, they Thought.
for a. change. The people had been
pnched in their personal liberty, and
cut down in their drink ration long
enough. 1t was thought the numbers
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