The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1896-03-21
NOT WANTED.
The License System Sc
verely Condemned.
Voters Heard Persistent Ar
gumentS at DimOnd Hall.
Last Evenings Meeting Was a Very
Enthusiastic One,


about 16O. The speakers were Rev. I. III.
Decker, pastor OF the North Congrega-
tional church, Rev. Mr.. McIntire, pastor
OF the st. Pauls M. Z. Church. and Rev.
NJ. Tower, pastor of the Pearl street Bap-
tist church. The speeches were all bright
and the telling points made by the speak
ers were enthusiastically applauded and
those in charge of the meeting would
set m 10 have every reason for being sat-
isfied with its success.
Rev. Mr.. Butterworth, at the request of
Rev. Mr.. Decker, offered prayer.
Rev. Mr.. Decker presided over the meet
ing In the absence of Thomas W. Bick-
nell, who was detained at home by the
illness OF his wife. The presiding officer
spoke as follows:
"We come to you tonight in the name
of no-license. Every elector in this city
will be asked on the first day of next
month TO say whether hs favors license
or not / shall not attempt TO dwell on
the evils OF the liquor traffic. A number
| of years ago several beer dealers in Phila-
delphia tried samples OF their beer on
goat and IL died, and then the members
| OF the Society for the Prevention OF
| Cruelty to Animals wished TO have the
men punished, but the gentleman who
told the story first always marvelled why
an effort was not made TO punish the same
beer dealers for the injuries they had JIM
| fiicted on the men who drank their beer.
"When we urge you TO vote Tor no.
license some Of you may say that we are
| interfering with mans right to carry
on business, but 1 notice when / ride
my bicycle along the street the law regu-
lates the speed at which / shall propel IL
ana always places other restrictions on
my use or 1t. The city claims the right to,
and, does prevent the use of aculterated
| food. You remember recently your
Board of Aldermen passed law prevent
| ing the sale altogether of one article.
This was iire crackers. Your Alderman,
| Mccarthy, did not favor this law. He
urged the other members of the Board not
to discriminate against the small boys
pleasure on July 4.
"The Board acted on the ground that
| tire sale of these crackers was dangerous.
| Mr.. Mccarthy seid the little crackers were
| not dangerous and urged the Board not
| to prevent their sale, but his associates
| did not agree with him. The evils aris-
| ing from the sale of liquor are great
| deal more dangerous than those arising
| from the sale of fire crackers.
"lf were To ask any man here to give
| a reason why he should vote for license,
| i don't think he could give one. For the
| life of me 1 can't think of n single reason
Why working man should vote for
! liquor licenses. l wish IL there is a man
| here who does know one he would tell 1t
TO me. Do you saw that the amount of
| revenue derived from licenses Is a reas On? ?
| But i suppose there is not a man here
but knows that 1t costs the State $40 for
every one dollar II receives from this
source
"We have had, perchance, you say, pro-
hibition and then there was more drunk
enness and more liquor sold and more
| crime than under license. i have bad
workingmen tell me this and L want here
| TO deny the statement never was there
F, more drunkenness and more illegal liquor
| selling than under a license law. General
| Brennan himself tells us there are 500 un-
| licensed kitchen barrooms in the city.
| 1t is not true that no-license makes more
| drunkards and more unlicensed places and
| that high license gives us no illegal bar.
| rooms and licensed places.
81 deny that in 1856 fair trial was
| tempt made TO stop the sale of liquor.
Vastly more difficult things have been
done In this city than the stepping of the
! liquor traffic. We don't promise you that
we will stop the consumption of liquor
altogether. We don't say we will go in
to your homes and prevent its being
drank or the manufacture OF rum. We
want you to stop its sale by law.
IL have figures TO show that during
the miserable lukewarm enforcement OF
prohibition In this State there were az
per cent. less arrests for drunkenness than
under the license system. l challenge
any one to deny that in any no-license
town the number of arrests for drunken
ness has not decreased. IL 1 believed in
rumselling l would still ote for no.
license for the present system gives a
monopoly TO the rich. What FOOLS work
ingmen are TO support system that gives
so much to the rich. IL rum must be
a "a IA -. t..,.x l.
to you as fellow workman. and / say
he who votes for license is fool. The
license commissioners are in collision, in
league, with the liquor dealers.
"Do you believe in liberty? In equal
rights? IL ycu believe in the rights Of
the poor man you cannot support the
present system. We intend TO strike
down the saloon. Let no one misunder-
stand me. do not believe in the sale OF
liquor, but II IL is TO be sold do not let
anvo one have n monopoly of It's sale"
The reverend gentleman was warmly
applauded at the conclusion OF his re-
marks. lie introduced as the next spea ker
Rev. Mr.. McIntire whose remarks were
received with much favor, and who said ;
81 am glad TO address you rs work
man. The first money i ever had / ear 80
ed cleaning mortar off bricks for a cotton
mill and l worked in the mill afterward.
! know what IL is TO follow a tell other
lnhn itll.
be particularly interested in the liquor
question, as no other thing does more to
injure industry than does rum. / re-
member knowing OF the case OF n man
who had some money TO use in the pur-
chase OF a suit OF clothes, but he went In
to a beer shop and later on was picked up
drunk, his money all gone. Now the
dealer In clothes mad one suit left on his
hands. Some persons who would have had
work making a sDit of clothes were de-
prived OF making II and lost the money
that would have come TO them thereby.
"Only one clnss Of men are Benefited
by the liquor traffic and that class Is tue
lawyers. When ] told this story TO party
he replied: YES. there were two other clas-
scs; and asked him who in the world
they were. lie replied doctors and un-
dertakers. But then don't think either
OF the latter get much money OF this busi-
ness. True, the doctor has n great deal
more TO do as tte result Of liquor selling,
but he has hard work TO collect his bills.
Now, the undertaken doesn't make much
on the funerals q people who are victims