The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1897-10-27
NEAL DOW AND HIS LAW.
The Last Interview with the Advocate
of Prohibition.

of Prohibition.
Boston Letter, in the Sun.
What was probably the last inter
view between Neal Dow and a news
paper man occurred last summer. I'm
til now nothing has been printed about
it, General Dow was confined to the
house, and, indeed, almost to his bed
from then until the day of his death.
The prohibition of the sale and manu-
facture of intoxicating liquors had been
advocated by him for forty-seven
years, and he looked back on what he
and his coadjutors had done with fesl-
ings of satisfaction. limited only by the
reflection that the sale of liquor has
not been entirely stopped in the state
of Main. General Dow said that there
would not be a drop of liquor made or
sold in this country if the church mem
bers did their duty and voted against
the traffic as strongly as they talked
against it. A year or two ago he
created a sensation at Methodist
camp meeting in Massachusetts by de-
claring that it was the church people
of this country who were responsible
for a continuance of the liquor traf-
fic rather than the men engaged in it,
IL all the CIluICI UltllDtlS, lie Sulu,
"would vote and work for prohibition,
the liquor business would be driven
out of existence; but this they will not
do, and they continue to vote with
either the Republican or the Demo-
cratic party, and as the managers of
both these parties are irretrieVably
pledged to encourage the liquor inter
ests as matter of political necessity,
there is nothing to be hoped for in
either of these directions
For the reason that the church peo-
pie will not cut loose from the old
parties and vote as their convictions
indicated he sa'd, he did not hold
membership in any church organiza-
ton and would not, so long as the
| church members professed to ne
| against the liquor traffic and at the
| same time voted to continue It,
When General Dow was asked If he
| knew that liquor was being sold openly
right in his own city of Portland, he
said regretfully:
Yes, | know it, but | think the evil
has been reduced to the minimum, and
it is not the fault to the officers Of the
| law or the law itself that it is per-
| mitted. In spite Of all that has be- n
| said to the contrary, the prohibitory
| law of Maine is success; but it is
not perfect"
Then he went on to relate how he
| first became interested in the prohibit
| ton movement. In 1850, when he was
mayor of Portland he had a neighbor
| who was employed by the government
| in lucrative office. The man had a
| large family, and, in thu main, was a
| good proVider, but was addicted to go-
| ing off on continued sprees, during
which he would neglect both his busi-
ness and his family. Finally the man
was about to lose his Office. and his
| wife came to General Dow and told
| him that she had been to the saloon
! Keepers to ask them not to sell hel
| husband any more liquor, and that the
| principal offender had refused to stoT
! selling to him, General Dow agreed tC
S-e the saloOnkeeper and ask him il
he would not reconsider his decision.
| This man." said General Dow
treated me with scant courtesy RI,
said that he paid his money to the city
for the privilege of selling liquor. and
that he would continue to sI it tC
the man under consideration as Ions
as he had money to pay for it. L
made no difference 10 him, he said
what became of the mans family; thai
part of it was none Of his business
told him that if it were possible
would stop thu sale of liquor in the
state of Maine, not only by him, bu
by everybody else. and I started ou
right there and then to do it,"
Il began making temperate,
speeches, and / not only made then
at home, here in Portland, but / drov,
all through the state addressing th
people on the subject and getting re
cruits to aid me in the crusade. b,
the following year. 1851, we had arous.
such a public feeling on the matter II
the state that two days before the leg
islature adjourned we went to August;
with prohibitory bill and got it passe,
by both branches. The bill passed tn
senate by a vote of - to 10 and tn
house by vote of Sc to 40. | did no
relax my efforts in the matter. and al
though many attempts were made 4
have the law repealed they wer
thWarted, and in 1858, after the peo
pie had had nearly thirty-three year
OF prohibitory law they were in stat
OF mind to vote for a prohibitory
amendment to the state constitution
and they carried it by a majority q
1900. In 1893 some people here though
that the law had become so unsayor
that the amendment to the constitu
ton could be repealed. and the Dem
ocrats adopted liquor policy in tn
state election. This election was fo
the purpose of choosing thirty-one sen
atorS and 151 representatives. TO IN
state legislature. The Democrats faile
10 elect a single senator, and succeed
ed in electing but five representative,
Before the prohibitory law was en-
acted in 1851 there were thirty-fiye dis
tllleries in Maine, and of these tw
We're located in Portland Now ther
Is not distillery or a brewery in IN
entire state. Such liquor as come
INTO the state has to be smuggled IN
IL is not too much to say that not one
hundredth as much liquor is sold
the state Of Maine as there was befor
the prohibitory law went into effec
ana this too, with largely increass
population The law is still defectiv
in many ways, for when a man is cor
victed of selling liquor the Judges bav
considerable latitude in IMPOSING sen,
ence' and no doubt there are som
judges on the bench who have bee
elected by the liquor influence for m
very purpose Of inflicting light fines :
suspending sentences, AS l drew m
original law, the judges had no dic
cretlon In the matter, but were oblire
TO sentence a convicted rumselIer !
both fine and imprisonment. Refo,
the prohibitory law went into effe,
the state of Maine was the nonra,
state In he Union. We now have ov,
oOO'OOO population, and although as r,
| CARDS nOnIIla