People's voice. [volume] (Wellington, Sumner County, Kansas) 1890-1917, 1895-09-05
The curse Of Drink.

Upon what does the success Of the
liquor traffic depend: Depends upon
debased manhood, wr0nged woman.
hood, defrauded childhood. 1t holds
a mortgage over every cradle, a deed
written in blood over every home, a
human he'll over every human life.
Shall mothers know and keep silent:
Shall fathers understand and be in
different?
What does strong drink do? 1t
costs at least slOO,OOG,OOO year in
money. makes 50 per cent Of our in
sane, 50 per cent Of our criminals, 90
per cent OfOur pauperS, causes directly
IS per cent Of murders and sends one
every six minutes into a drunkard'S
grave. Whiskey drinking pOisOns the
blood, darkens the perceptIye facul-
ties, dulls The moral sense, Injuries
the memory and does ten thousand
other things to the man and his asso-
citations, yet meH will 20 on drinking
the yilest Of Z fixtures in the name of
freedom and personal liberty. Ifmen
were forced by decree Of king to use
the coffin yarnish called whiskey they
would bemOan their awful fate or
strike a blow at the tyranny which
would force such poison into their
system. But how long, Oh.refOrmers,
is this business to 60 on? Do you
think you are any nearer the haven OF
rest than we're your fathers thousands
OF years ago: No, it was a long, long
time ago that a wise man said: wine
is mOcker, strong drink is raging.
and he that is deceived thereby is not
wise" And from time immemorial,
men have gone on running themselves
for being foolish enough to give to ap-
petite.
The saloon is business which is
opposed to every minister in the
country, and the standing Of every
mother, the horror Of every wife and
the fear Of every father. 1t is the
business which puts out the fire on
every hearth and condemns wives and
children to hunger, cold and rags.
Drunkenness comprises all these
other vices. 1t is the dictionary Of
vice, for it includes every vice.
Drunkenness means theft. robbery,
forgery and murder, for it leads to all
these crimes, and to say that the
drink traffic cannot be prohibited in
America is treason. Satan with his
unnumbered allies, saloonkeepers,
Deyer rest from the chime Of the New
Years bells to the tolling out Of the
old. Rum and ruin influences are all
the time seeking the overthrow and
Punishment Of the guardian angel Of
state, society and home, the white
winged doves Of Christian religion
and temperance with consequent heirs
Of prosperity, home, peace and the
goal OF happiness in the far beyond.
The safety Of our homes and fire.
sides is continued labor to overthrow
this human destroyer, strong drink,
until We and not the murderer Of both
body aud soul, have control. Temper
ance songs from every prairieand hill
side must take the place Of the brawl-
ing jests Of the drunkard.
Yes, dear friends, the CRY come;
from the inmates Of lunatic asylums:
Drink is my curse From innocent
victims, wives mothers and children:
Drink is my curse" There are
broken hearts, blighted hopes, black
ened characters, crushed intellects and
lost souls as the result Of strong drink
aud not a single individual but re-
lOiceS in his escape from it. So IN:
let US take our stand for prohibition:
be like the old woman, when every eff.
fort was made by the whiskey party
OF LeavenwOrth to buy the votes Of
colored women but with very little
success. The old woman was very
poorly clad, and when asked to sell
her vote she said: No, l am naked
TO close l hab nary dress but dis NJ,