The record-union., 1894-03-31

1llct with the spirit of American Govern
nent? We answer most emphatically
that 1t is not, but, upon the other
hand, the license system is in violation
OF the very spirit of cur nation. In vio-
lation of the word of God from the be-
ginning of the same to The end. What
uoeS license TO sell liquor mean?
Take thou authority to tempt men.
Take thou authority to change them
into beasts.
Take thou authority to stain the streets
with blood.
Take thou authority to desolate homes,
10 break hearts, to ruin souls.
Take thou authority to plan murders.
rake thou authority to hatch out trea-
son, anarchy, communism, socialism and
| all the devilish plottings Of men.
Liquor men claim mat prohibition is
| impracticable.
Let US, Tor short time. notice the OBJ
Jectlons named. 1t is right to regulate
but not to prohibit. That is TO say, that
what we can in simple justice interfere
with we cannot on the same grounds set
aside. If the State can lead any traffic
with letters it virtually says thereby we
have the right to suppress it entirely. If
we can hamper we can also suppress. II
the State has the right to regulate the
sale OF strong drinks, then has it right
to suppress the manufacture and sale of
them.
Have l right to place my hand upon
the head of mad dog and restrain him
from biting my child, but no right to kill
that dog? While travelling with some
friends few years since in the southern
part of this State | saw a venomous snake
creeping slowly toward me, and with
rock I took the life of his snak keship. Had
l no right to do so? Could l hinder it in
its progress by throwing sticks in its
way. causing it to go this way and that
way? Ought l to have been content to
battle it in its purpose while it was seek
ing to steal steadily upon me?
This Government has for great many
years tried the license and local option
laws, and they have almost universally
proven themselves to be dead letters
upon the statute books. If it is at all
possible to enforce a sharp and whole
some license law, it is perfectly possible
to carry a prohibitory law into effect.
We can suppress what we cannot
regulate. You cannot regulate a nest
OF rattlesnakes, den OF wild lions,
a vicious hyena, but you can de-
stroy them and render them harmless.
You cannot fire magazine of powder
and hold it under control You cannot
compromise with the devil and get the
best end of the bargain. There is no pos
sible way of dealing with an evil in the
abstract; we must deal with it in the con-
crete. 1t is folly TO legislate against muir
der in the abstract; we must legislate
against the murderer, or rather we must
place the strong hand of the law upon him.
In order to stop murder and thieving we
must deal with the thief and murderer.
And so too of the evils of strong drink.
70 rid ourselves of them we must deal
with the liquor dealer. The liquor dealer
is criminal by virtue Of his business,
and must be treated as criminal. This
f0fr hox oth
inals.
The young man who in the indulgence
of his combative propensities walks the
streets with his beautiful revolver in his
hip pocket, and jerks it out on provoca
ton, must pay the penalty affixed TO this
action on the ground that that particular
locality OF that particular weapon endan-
gers human life. and human life must be
protected. II then the saloon-keeper's
business is of such nature as to directly
or indirectly endanger or destroy human
life property and morals, it is essentially
a crime and all that is necessary to con-
stitute it in fact is the passage of a law
that correctly defines its character and
prohibits its existence, and If this is the
case the saloon-keeper is an appropriate
object of legal treatment as any other
criminal.
1t seems waste of time to argue the
question, when we remember the sad,
sad truth that from the rising of the sun
until its going down, every five minutes
some poor drunkard is lowered into the
silence of the grave
Sad indeed the thought that there un-
ceasingly rolls upward the dull, heavy
sounds into the ears of Jehovah produced
bY the falling clods upon the coffin lids of
poor wrecked mortals, made such by the
drink demon. Ii we are to judge a tree
by it's fruit, men by their lives, then we
must Judge The saloon-keeper's relation
to society by the work he does. We ask
then, is he not the most wholesale MUIR
derer on the globe? We know of some
few whisky ky-venders who in their per-
sonal character are styled good men,
whoIe-souled men, whom every body
likes; but their business makes them
wholesale murderers. II in the days of
slavery it was wrong to traffic in the
bodies of men, surely 1t is wrong to traf-
tic in the bodies and souls of men. II is
a fundamental right to protect ourselves
against all disorder and injury Of any
kind We have right to protect our
selves from violence and death. Obedi-
ence TO law is the foundation and safe
guard of all governments. This is true Of
governments of every form, and eSpeci-
ally of republican governments. Man
kind can only be governed In one OF two
wavs: either by the strong arm of phys
lEdt 1OICGs OI Dy bHS AA1AuEuSO anu pOnGI
of moral principle. In one of these two
ways obedience TO law and rigntfully
constituted authority must be main
tanned, or there is an end to all govern
ment. In free governments, where the
people make their own laws, an appeal is
made directly TO the moral sense and con-
science of every individual citizen to
Weld that cheerful and willing obedience
to law which is Indispensable to the pub
lie good and the peace and happiness of
society. In republican governments no
more than in absolute and monarchial
Governments can men be allowed to dis
regard the binding obligations of law;
crime and lawlessnesS must be restrained;
the good OF all requires this. Intelligence,
virtue, temperance ana morality are in
dispensable to the maintenance of free
government.
Whatever tends to destroy or corrupt
these essential requisites is the proper
subject for the laws restraint. The recog-
milton of this principle has caused to be
placed upon the statute books Of every
State, save California, law closing the
saloons upon the Lords day. That is
prohibition. Then, if it can be prohib-
tied upon one day Of the week, what is to
hinder its entire prohibition There can
be no possible doubt that the Legislature
has q perfect legal right 70 restrain and
regulate by law this fruitful source of
crime and corruption. The Lords day
desecration either by common labor or
unlawful amusenlents has been prohib-
tied by law from the earliest colonial
times to this present time. The truth is,
that the founders of our Government had
most profound regard for the religion
of the Bible. Men may talk as they
please, but the fact is indisputable that
religion is indispensable to the mainten-
ance of free government. That prohib-
itory liquor laws can be enforced is evil
- l,.nt L.,