The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-04-29
FAULT OF CHRISTIAN VOTERS.
Miss Kearney's Views as to why
Prohibition Has no Better show.

Miss Belle Kearney, Of Mississippi, ma
tional organizer of the Women's Christian
Temperance Union, delivered a bright and
interesting temperance talk to an audi
ence of about $50 or 800 at the theater in
the afternoon. Miss Kearney was serious
and sarcastic, pleasant and ironical, hu-
morous and pathetic.
She was introduced after the opening
hymn and prayer by Rev. Mr.. Webb. by
Rev. ]. o. A. Cook, who said Savannah
was honored by having two of the ma
tional officers of the union present at the
state convention.
Miss Kearney's subject, as announced,
was 'The responsibility of Christian men
to prohibition, or how will your hands
look in the searchlight?"
She began by saying it had gone out of
fashion to rail against saloon men and
the liquor trafflc. She spoke of its spread
in many directions, and said the traffic
had wound its way around the pillars of
the capitol at Washington, as was evil
denced by the drunkenness of senator's
and representatives when congress ad-
journed, and policemen had to be called in
TO prevent open broils. In some instances
too, the traffic in liquor had wound itself
around the pillars of the church.
ION one occasion" Miss Kearney said
II took a cab in Toronto, the driver Of
which was somewhat of a wit. He stop
ped at the intersection of two streets and
showed me on one corner a school, on an
other a church, on a third a parliament
building and on the other saloon. We
call these corners, respectively he said,
Education, Salvation, Legislation and
-Damnation.'
1.-The liquor traffic is the most notent
factor in modern civilization" Miss Kear-
ney said. THE clink of gold degrades the
best citizens and palsies the hands of the
best of men. There was never a stronger
alliance made than that of the United
States with the liquor traffic Govern
S1l6,000o00 annually. Our children had
better grow up uneducated; we had bat-
ter walk over plowed ground and live
in perpetual darkness than live in luxury
derived from such a source
She made no distinction between the
degree of guilt of the man who siene.i
a liquor petition and the one who raises
no protest against the traffic. 1t was a
case where silence is treachery. Some OF
the reasons why prohibition don't pro-
hibit, she said, are amusing and interest
ISome of our states shut out liouor
by statutory prohibition, but the great
constitution Of our national government
too often breaks down the barriers and
nullites the state laws Agents Of the
national government go into a prohibition
territory ana issue government licenses,
under local option, the saloons are closed
in one town In a county but omen in a n
other: the jug trade follows. old ana
young men get on drunken sprees ana
stun the cry Is raised prohibition does
not prohibit, OF course prohibition doe
not prohibit when congressmen favor
hquor laws and municipal officers favor
saloons. Give us an out and out nrohibi.
lon law, ana officers who favor m AND
y WI pc proven that prohibition viii
Miss kearney then took up the question
o. me ballot There are ~ 90 000 voter III
'he United states, she said, the majority