Birmingham state herald. (Birmingham, Ala.) 1895-1897, 1897-01-19

we cannot influence the remainder of the
community.
He referred to turf gambling saying the
jockeys make arrangements as to the
winner before the race. is run. Tips are
given out with a view to fleeing the
victims.
In closing he said the way to eradicate
the evil is to arouse the right kind of SEN
timent.
At the conclusion of DR.. Eager's re-
marks the choir sang, my Country, It's
of Thee"
Capt. w. C. Ward was called upon
and the able attorney. who is a layman
in the church, arose and made vigorous
talk in favor of suppressing the evil and
in advocacy Of the anti-pool bill Capt.
Ward said 1t was the duty of the state
to protect her people. This law is as old
| as Ancient Rome and in the days of that
memorable city it was stringently kept
| inviolate. He referred to Cicero's ora
ton against Cataline when he referred to
| the latter as dice thrower. In the time
of Henry VIII, of England. stringent
| laws were enacted against gambling.
These laws were made because gam
! bling untitled men for warfare.
| The speaker referred to horse racing in
| old times in Alabama when the fastest
| horse won and the shooting contests
| where the best marksman got a beef for
| his skill. In those days there was no
| gambling with a blackboard. He referred
to one place in this city where black
| board was used for gambling on horse
| races. He saw a newsboy put down
wager and win $780, This was his start
on a gambling career. The speaker said
| a gambler is the natural enemy of man
kind. In the days of "49" in California
| the people had to rise up and drive them
| out Of the gold fields.
One short statute of not over four lines,
saying "All gambling is unlawful and
| shall be punished" is all that is neces-
sary to rid the state of the evil. There
| are thirty-three gambling statutes in
! the laws and one could suffice for all of
! them. There is one law in the statute
book of Alabama that especially allows
| gambling in this county and excepting
it from the penalties ''Who did this?"
he exclaimed. "A legislator from Bir-
mingham." The man, he said, who did
this is now disgruntled because the peo-
| pie wouldn't send him back to the legis-
lature. Let that man hide his head in
shame" he said, land let not the people
send him back to Montgomery to do more
| mischief"
The gambler. he said, is a night hawk.
They have been doing their work while
the good people were in bed.
Mr.. c. c. Washburn, who, with the
Messiah chorus, had attended the opera
house meeting, and who had come to this
meeting, sang a beautiful solo.
Rabbi Morris Newfeld was the next
| speaker called for. In the introduction
| he was announced as the representative
of the people from whom the human race
| had received the Ten Commandments,
| one of which reads. Thou shalt not
steal'
The speaker made a strong argument.
| advancing the idea that the world was
| largely discarding the theory that the
only object of religion was to prepare
man for Immortality. His argument was
| along this line and, though brief, was
| fully up to the requirements and in &C
cord with the object of the meeting.
| Though in house of worship other than
| that to which he was accustomed and
before an audience dissimilar to some ex-
| tent to his usual assemblage from relig-
| ious standpoint, he realized the mission
he was called upon to participate in and
| made an impression upon his hearers
| DR.. AMI Golden then introduced the
following resolution, which was read and
| adopted by a rising vote:
| We, citizens of Jefferson county, Ala
bama, in public meeting assembled to
| consider the increasing evil of pool-sell-
| ing and book-making on horse races in
| and out of the state, reiterate and en-
| phasiZe our protest against the con-
| unuance of the same under legal sanction
| in the county of Jefferson and the state of
| Alabama.
| We believe that form of gambling SO
| offensive to propriety so injurious to
/ morals, so paralyzing to social life, so
| subversive of prosperity should be BAN
| ished from our county and state.
1
| jority of the members of the general as
emily favor the passage of the anti-pool
bill.
| We, therefore, earnestly and respectful
| Iy urge the judiciary committees of the
| general assembly to report said bill for
| immediate consideration.
| We direct that copies of the above pc
| tition, ETC.. be sent to the honorable
| chairmen and members and judiciary
| committees OF the senate and house, re-
| spectively.
| A collection was taken UP to deifray the
| expenses incident to having the anti
| pool bill looked after, and the congrega-
| ton was dismissed.
| AT SOUTHSIDE BAPTIST CHURCH.
| A fair sized audience assembled at the
Southside Baptist church.
| An overture opened the services, after
| which Rev. DIR. T. P. Hale offered a fer
| vent prayer on behalf Of the meeting.
and after making several announcements
and reading scriptural passage intro
| duced Rev. DR.. John Murray. Of the
| Church of the Advent. In introducing
the speaker Dr. Hale complimented Bir-
mingham on having such an able citi-
| zen in her midst.
| DIR. Murray based his remarks upon
that portion OF the scripture found in the
| 9th verse of the LIST chapter of the First
! Epistle of Paul the Apostle to Timothy:
| "The law is not made for righteous
| man, but the lawless and disobedient.
| He said by way OF Introductory.
The moral precepts Of God can only be
exemplified in the state by the legal en-
actments of men. And his authority to
| thus >exemplify them is delegated to
| those constituted of the people the
agency to formulate their laws. So in the
passage of such bill to prohibit gam
| bling, in the form of buying and selling
| pools, as has been presented to the pres
| emit general assembly of this state, there
| could not even be departure from prece.
dent. much less usurpation of power.
| 1t would but be the exercise, In the line
| constituted authority with which all leg
| islators are clothed for the purpose of
1 making concrete the Just will of God,
| as that will Is understood in the abstract
| in the mind Of every honest advocate of
| the measure.
! Furthermore. he said, as the law is mob
made for the righteous, no injustice can
! possibly be done by the enactment of
| the anti-pool bill. While the prohibition
| Of gambling would apply to all, 1t would
be imperative 50 far as the righteous
| were concerned.
The speaker said he could take no part