The Coconino weekly sun., 1896-03-19

Visiting members invited to attend.
G. N. BATY. Chief Templar.
1.-The editor Of THE SUN Is not responsible
for for anything that may appear in this
column.l
1t was pointed out few weeks ago
in this column that it is the cultivation
and exercise Of the spirit of the men
who have made our country's past
glorious, rather than the literal copying
of their manner of life, which consti-
tutes true patriotism 1t may he
profitable to expand somewhat this
thought.
The men who fought to make this
country free, or who faced the storm Of
battle to preserve its principles and
institutions, were men who counted
their country's need as Of higher conse-
guence than their own advantage
They surrendered the hope Of wealth,
they practiced self,denlal, they endured
hardships, they gave up opportunities
. Of advancement, they turned a deaf ear
to the call of ambition; and they did all
this that they might be used for the
nations good.
The opportunity still exists for the
employment of these virtues. Can the
man whose life is evil be truly
called patriot just because he
violates no law or votes at each cleo,
ton for the men he honestly believes
best fitted for the various offices9 Oh.
viously not, in the highest sense Of
patriotism. Just to the extent that he
fails to make the most of his oppor,
tunities or to perform his duty IN any
relation of life, just so far he has done
not only himself but the community an
injury. The man who gets drunk in
jures a good many other people besides
himself. He lends the power of his
example to the forces which make for
deterioration. He gives the weight of
his influence on the side of those who
are tearing down instead of building up.
This statement applies with especial
force to the man who is engaged in the
liquor business. While the law does
recognize his business and license him
to conduct it, and while the citizens
are thus responsible to considerable
degree for the existence of the traffic,
there is no excuse for the man who
takes advantage of this permission. For
the sake of personal gain he is willing
to thrust upon the community u bust
ness which is in every way detriment,
and which can by no possible stretch Of
the imagination be fairly said to he
benefit to any of its patrons. He is
willing to encourage in his fellows the
practice of a habit which is fraught
with great danger, to say the least, and
which in many instances results in the
ruin of body and soul. In short, he
sets private advantage above commu-
nifty we'll being, and just to the extent
he does this he is lacking in true
patriotism.
But it may also truly be said that the
man who refuses to lend his aid in
every possible way to the removal of
any evil in the community fails in the
performance Of his whole duty as
citizen. If the saloon, therefore, be an
evil-and who will deny that it isl-it
becomes of necessity the duty of every
good citizen to be up in arms against it.
But how many SIT idly by, and often,
too, those who have the greatest req son
to oppose its baleful influence, and give
as their excuse that they believe in
minding their own business" Let il
he understood, once for all, that the man
who is seeking the highest good of tn,
community according to the best of hi.
ability is in the very truest sense
"minding his own business" -that the
duties of the citizen always and foreve,
outweigh those Of the individual.
The coming city election will afford |
an opportunity for the exercise in very
practical way of this sort of patriotism
here in Flagstaff. Let men be chosen |
for Office who will see to it that so far
as the power is within their hands the
influence Of the liquor traffic shall be
curtailed Let there he no compromise
upon matters of principle upon the one
hand; let there be no foolish division
over minor matters on the other.
Whether you believe drinking a wrong
tn ing in itself or not, if you are agreed
That the saloon is an evil, do all in your
power to nullify its influenza by yo.;,