San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1896-06-13
ABOUT SALOON MEN.
m the National LIQUOR Dealer.

| From the National Liquor Dealer.
We hear q great deal about or
ganized saloon men they had bet
ter organize, or the cranks will get
the best Of them.
The saloon keeper demands too
much for his Information about
current events upon his custom.
ers who are ever ready to impart
their knowledge.
But in this way the saloon man
only gets second hand opinions in
stead OF forming his own opinion.
Considering the important posi-
ton OF the saloon man, it is dis
couraging that he should be ig-
norant Of the current events of the
day.
Why is the saloon mans posi-
ton important? Because he ia the
last man at the end of a long line,
he must get the money to pay the
wholesale dealer, the brewer, the
wine maker, the distiller they all
depend on the saloon man.
Yet there are saloon men who
will not even support their own
trade paper. OF course these are
exceptions, but only proves that
the prohibitionists have good en-
couragement to promote their
cause, when even the saloon keep
ers don't dare to defend their own
business.
That there is ignorance among
saloon men is admitted that there
is certain amount of doggish sell
fishness Is true, and this is the rea-
SON that prohibition has chance.
The prohibitionists have an
easy victim in the saloon man,
they charge him with all the crime I;
they charge him with infelicity
they charge him with being hand
in glove with the political parties,
when in fact he is victim of polit-
ical parties, when in fact he is a
victim of policies and less respons-
Id e.for the evils OF society than
the preachers.
Yet this same saloon man will
expect that anyone W orking in his
interest shall spend all the money
over his bar, and at the same time
he will give to everything that
comes along, especially II it Is a
church. He does this because he
is either a coward or a good
natured fool. He gives to the
people who want to ruin him and
made him an outcast in the COM
munity.
The saloon man takes the papers
but he doesn't read them he takes
public opinion second hand, and
yet he gets the credit of being or.
ganized to control the politics Of
the country, when in fact he knows
less about his own interests than
any business in any other calling
In the community.
To begin with, the government
looks to him for a heavy tax to
support the institutions Of the
country; the great factories look
to him for their life; the people
look to him as their servant.
Trade, commerce, business life
look to him for support.
Yet the saloon man is, as q gen.
ersl thing, Indifferent to the ques-
tions Of the day. No wonder the
organized prohibitionist is able to
do him up.
A correct understanding Of the
liquor question will bring about a
sensible solution.
But the liquor man himself needs
more attending to than the prohi.
bitionist. The saloon man should
be able to understand the true sit
uation. He does not.
The prohibition movement is q
political one-a party one-and as
such should be met by organized
action.
No one expects the prohibition
presidential state ticket to win In
Texas. Yet local option has blight
ed one-half our state. We should
force all political parties to honest,
square work. Let the prohibition
party stand by itself and men who
work for prohibition stay in the
regular prohibition party. When
our senators and representatives
vote for prohibition measures, tn
should be called prohibitions
and treated as such.