The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1895-03-18
THE CITY'S 400 SALOONS.
REV. MIR. M4SON'S SERIES OF
SERMONS.


loon Equipment as Compared With
other Cities-The Voters and the Saloons.
The Rev. j. H. Mason delivered the
third in his series of addresses on
"storm Centers of Civilization" last ev-
ening. The special subject of the even
ing was New Haven's Four Hundred
Saloons-Do We Need Them?"
Mr.. Mason spoke in part as follows;
The New York Tribune says of the
liquor traffic: ut lies at the center of
all political and social mischief. 1t par
alyzes energies in every direction, it
neutralizes educational agencies, it ST.
lences the voice of religion, it BATTLES
penal reform, it obstructs political re-
| form" If these words are true 1t is
evidently no exaggeration to speak of
the saloon as the storm center of civil
lization. Well, we have about 400 of
these storm centers in New Haven.
The question tonight is, Do we need
| them? What would New Haven say
if its voice could be heard? But New
Haven's voice is heard once every year
and for many years its voice has been
"Give us more" Once every year the
question: is answered at the polls over
whelmingly in favor of the saloon.
And under existing conditions that
means crowd this city with saloons
and give us more and more every
year. But possibly that voice is not
final as an expression of the desire of
our citizens. We overlook the fact that
majority in the community has no
chance to register it's sentiment at the
polls. Neither women nor children can
vote. The drunkard can go to the polls
and sell his vote for a drink of whisSey
while the hungry wife and children at
home must suffer themselves to be
robbed by the rumseller to the point of
starvation without even the possibility
of a protest.
OF course our theory is that the head
of the house is the protector of his fam
| lily, but what a mockery that theory be-
comes when we put the ballot into the
hands of the drunkard. We make 400
| liquor saloons (and indeed more than
500 places where beer and liquor are
Sold, and we received last year for
| license the sum of $164696, in considera-
ton of what Isaiah would have called
"our covenent with death and our agree
ment with hell"
Let us dabble in mathematics. From
the above figures it lis plain to be seen
that there is one saloon to 225 persons
in New Haven. That is a most scan
dalous showing even as compared with
other New England cities. In commu
nifty like ours the average number of
voters is about l to of the population.
Therefore we have one saloon to As vor-
ers. Since the number of men who
support the saloons is perhaps not more
than one in three, that leaves fifteen
men to support one saloon. Do you see
what that means of extravaganza to the
man and of suffering to his family?
Again here is the saloon, the one in
stitution in the boldly open day and
night, which every man in town knows
to be curse. It supplies no necessity.
1t makes no claim to philanthropy.
1t makes no defence Of itself except that
which we allow the law to give it. 1t
is insolent and overbearing and de-
fiant. Bakers are a necessity. They
have something to live for, We must
all have bread Except the poor families
of the drunkard) But for every bak-
cry in this city there are more than
six saloons Coal and wood are a ne
cessity but for every dealer in coal
and wood we have eight saloons. Meat
markets are necessary. But would
you believe that we have nearly twice
as many saloons as markets. Grocery
stores are a prime necessity. But in
this city of 426 groceries we have laws
for example forbidding the sale of
liquor to minors. That shows how wise
we are and what fools. We are wise in
trying to protect youth; we are fools in
trying to compromise with the liquor
traffic at this point; fools to suppose
that the liquor business will respect this
law when it defied all others; fools to
suppose that 1t will let the boys slip
out of it's clutches when the business of
tomorrow must be built on the boys
of to-day. BY the most subtle sys-
tematic, persistent and demoniacal
methods it is setting its snares for your
boys. And the bright boys of this city
to-day will be the mainstay of the sa-
looms of New Haven ten years hence
and will be staggering to their graves
before the second decade shall have
closed.
But a great many of the voters who
do not vote against the saloon do not
want it. They are careless and fail to
vote on this question; or they are hope
less and thing there is no chance to
outlaw the saloon. Many church mem
bers who do not favor the saloon are
silent on this question. They fancy
that an enemy of the saloon has