Blue-grass blade., 1894-04-01
"OUR JOE"
Jines Moody, CircuIates "Tem-
perance'' tracts, and makes
a fool Of Himself generally.

>u whisky guzzler i'll America, has
ned 'Gideon's band" under the preach
x of the peripatetic theological baga-
ellie. Moody, and is occupying the time
for which he is drawing pay as United
States Senator. by circulating among his
brother Senators tracts. the titles of
which are Strong drink; or the temper
ance song in Gods word" Happy
Nancy's Secret" The Song OF the Spar
row." and The Little Pilgram." Truly
change has come over the dreams of
Joseph. If, one wear ago, a United States
Senator had dared to intimate of Joe
Blackburn that the day would come
when he would 90 back OH Kentucky
whisky. the great staple to which he
owes his elevation, and by which he
has thousand times been elevated he
would have caught him by the ear. as he
did little Chandler, and yanked him out
of the back door of the capitol. with a
kick that would have obviated the
necessity of the offending Senator's do
ing any walking in order to get down
the steps.
But sich is life. If, between the cut
tings up Of Billy Breckinridge and Joe
Blackburn, the whole burned State of
Kentucky has not gone crazy, then INV
head is Just so out of fix that thev NAV
put me i'll the lunatic asylum, and | will
waive the usual formality of the writ dc
HHafidO iRqHiTtUdO.
Whether some of the "sour mash that
Joseph has imbibed has gone wrong
with him and the first part of it has
soured on his stomach and the last part
of il has mashed on Moody and Joseph
has lost his intellectual perpendicular,
or whether it's scheme for fixing his
Senatorial fences when there are SO MANY
after his golden slippers, who may work
the whisky gag on him. i'll these days
when society is being led astray by this
Prohibition lallucination, or whether
Joe is trying. under the cloak of religion,
to shirk the responsibility of having to
kill Billy Breckinridge, as il seemed
likely he would have to do under his old
code, do not know; but his case is a
striking illustration of the aphorisnl
that lit is the unexpected that happens.
Kentucky is nothing if not sensational
Even little Brother John Shelby, whose
lamb-like docility, Oh the streets of Lex,
ington, always suggests to me that he
ought to have, around his neck, blue
ribbon with bell on it, goes to Wash
ington. and, like a living travesty OF
Corbett. dashes his little fist, that fa.
about the consistency Of a mush poul
tice, into the face of all attorney at Wash
ington, where Brother Shelby had gone
on the principle that
Everywhere that Billy went
The lamb was sure to go
If Joe Blackburn intends merely to le
up on whisky, am glad to hear it, anC
think it is time he was doing SO; but i
is certainly all instance of monumental
self-conceit i'll him. to think it matte
of such national importance that the
United States must thus be so signal,
apprised of his purpose. If, however, III
proposes to go back on the Democratic
party, that pledges itself, in its nationa
platform, not to do anything against til,
liquor interest, then Senator Joe, if III
acts up to the advanced thought OH tina
line, must turn Prohibitionist; for it ha
been demonstrated that Temperance
IS on saloon-keeper have just til,
Seffect as singing psalms to a 'deat
horse. II Brother Blackburn wants t.
cast i'll his lot with us Prohibitionists al
he has to do is to tip me wink, and
will see that he gets there, with no ad
mission fee, no goat riding or dark Ian
tern busines about il.
Rev. Alexander Kent a learned Wash
ington divine has lately blasted Mood
as an ignoranus; but if in these day
when the most fundamental claims of tn
Christian religion are being knocked bac
and forth with as much sang fJ10id an
irreverence as if they were shuttle cock:
'our Joe" has discovered some ne,
potency i'll the logic of Mr. Moody, Ii
owes it to the world to get into the pul
pit or on the lecture stand. and to kee
off the stump" until the cultivate
part of the world, that is going to he
i'll hand-gallop, by the infdel route, ha
been given the full benefit of his rel
gious experience.
To be consistent with my pretenton
ought to be the last man in the worl
to throw anything in the way of Senate
Blackburn's earnest purpose of reform
but if he is getting up this simply fo
the purpose sensation, though am nC
in the habit of appealing to Die,y, in tn
name of the Commonwealth of Kentuck,
and especially of his constituency, an
for the sake of the peace and quiet whic
we all so much need, beg of him, f.
Gods sake, to let up on us until we *
over the Billy Breckinridge racket, an
have little time to rest