The Press., 1894-01-11
Number A..

who vote for the saloon either directly O
 indirectly know that its continuance is
 public calamity, and these times give mel
 pause and while pausing they can be mad,
 to think. One well known for years a.
 an active prohibitionist, was accosted or
 the streets in New Britain. on the evening after election by a group of workmen "Well, you won at last, didn't you? w
 helped you win, didn't we ?" Then ont of the group, addressing himself to his comrades, added, "Well, we ought te
 have done it, we voted for ourselves didn't
 we? We didn't want those gin shops open all this winter, getting our money
 and we out of work. We voted for our selves, didn't we?" Doubtless the New
 Britain majority was more than made UT
 by men who had beenImore or less in the habit of drinking up to the very date o
 the election, and who voted to outlaw the | saloon, partly in self-defense. The at mosphere of the place made it easy fcl them to do this. These hard times are favorable for reforms. Reformers should use them.
 Our large foreign and catholic popula. tion is no reason for Encouragement.
 Few towns in Connecticut have larger proportion of both than New Britain.
 The Germans are large and influential factor in New Britain affairs. It is said that only about 4,000 of our 21 ,0OO popu- lation is of native desent and about 7,5OC are Irish and mostly catholics. But the catholic priest and the curate and Father Doyle, one of the best of the catholic temperance speakers from abroad, at tended the great meeting at the opera house the night before election and no words were more earnest thad theirs and none more effective in their appeal for a for righteous vote. The Irish wards went two to one for no-license.
 The Swedes, of whom there are several hundred who vote in the city, also voted no-license in large majority. Americans cannot excuse themselves any longer in tolerating the saloon because of @ foreign population.
 7. The subject of temperance is not hackneyed and worn out as we are often told, but full of the deepest interest when presented in love by live man, surround ed by live men, who are patriotic lovers of the people and earnestly seeking the best interests of the community. No subject will be recognized as more vital or will easier call out the peoples enthu- siasm and support. "..
 $. 1t is promise of the morning. Some good men are going to see their power, their duty and their opportunities and to take the land for Christ, and they are surely to see that it is the merest clap trap to talk about taking the land for Christand then to leave the making of its laws and of the affairs of it's govern ment to the manipulation of the saloon and to the vicious elements of society. Sometime good men will see that that government which was ordained to estab- fish justice, to promote domestic tranquil 1ty, to protect the weak, to conserve edu- cation and virtue, to be terror to evil doers and the praise of all such as do well, must outlaw the saloon which directly an tagonizes every one of their interests.
 9. What has been done in New Britain can be done in Hartford, New Haven and Bridgeport and all the other cities of Con- necticut as soon as the ministers and churches and leading citizens of those places will take hold of the matter with the same unanimity and purpose to bring things to pass: and if you can get in @ few of the best of the old party politicians and bring them into hearty sympathy advantage.
 No man has been more influential in bringing about the late victory in New Britain than MT. Charles Landers, for many years one of the most prominent of our republican politicians, nor have any doubt that his future work will be for the good of the city and state.
 10. Connecticut cities and towns will do well to get MT. Murphy when they are able, to arouse the people, and prohibit tionists should not be too impatient if he says some things about the power of love, that seem superficial, or about the impos- slbll1ty of making men virtuous by law, which seem misleading. There is a side Of truth to such words, Let him say them if he will. They disarm opposition in some quarters and so in his month may in the end not hinder, but help the highest If you cannot get Mr. Murphy get some other temperance evangelist to fuse the people together in interest on this subject and sometime, better public acts as well as private living will come from it. JOHN B. SMITH.
 New Britain, Conn.,, Dec. 7, 1SS93.