Worcester morning daily spy., 1898-01-24
TWO STRONG ADDRESSES.
Drs MccuIIagh and Gunnison at Union
Service at Plymouth Church.

The congregations of the First Uni
versalist and Plymouth churches united
in a temperance service last evening,
and the combined choirs rendered an
exceptionally attractive musical pro-
gram, which included Bucks XLVI
Psalm and Parker's magnificent Re-
demption hymn. Rev. Dr. Archibald NC
Cullagh delivered the first address, and
said in part: 1.-The liquor traffic, in its
legislative and practical aspects, is the
most serious question that confronts US
today. 1t is the prolific source of most
crime, and the fountain of the major
part of the miseries of society. Were 1t
wiped out of existence we might almost
close our prisons and poor-houses, the
great cause of insanity would be re-
moved and many a home would be
turned from a pandemonium into a
paradise. We are all agreed that 1t IS a
colossal evil, and that it takes its vic
Tins from all classes of society. By II,
we have all seen strong arms made
nerveless, noble brains unstrung and
kind and affectionate men transformed
into fiends.
Richard Sheridan was one of the
most eloquent men that Ireland ever
produced. Burke said of his speech
against Warren Hastings that in 1t
could be found the purest sam
pies of all the arts or rhetoric.
As much as SIS was gladly paid to near
him speak in London, yet he was re-
duced to poverty and disease by the
drink habit and was only saved from
the poor-house by the intervention of his
physicians Burns thrilled the national
heart of Scotland as no poet ever thrill
led a nations heart before, and yet ne
was laid in his grave at the age OF S 81;
wrecked by liquor. How long, tneh, WIN
Christian people put by their votes the
saloons. those traps of He'll IN the way
of the Young? We must call upon all the
ethical sentiment in the city to unite for
the humiliation of this colossal evil.
DIR. Gunnison spoke somewhat as fol-
lows: T. is well that we should anticipate
the distant election and begin by THESE
temperance services a vigorous cam
paien of education. once appeared be-
| fore an excise commission to attempt lo
prevent the location of saloon IN the
vicinity of my church. On that occasion
a saloonkeeper said to me: Il can un'
derstand why you are here IL IS pc
! cause the church is the relentless enemy
of the saloon" That enmity is not hare
to understand, for the two things stant
I in diametrical opposition, and why
should we build churches at grea
cost and suffer other institutions II
arise which beat down the verJ thing.
for which we are striving The church
stands for righteousness, individual anC
public. The saloon is the breeding place
of vice and the source of socialism ant
anarchy | once asked a policeman
what proportion of crime came from tht
saloon. He answered that he was {
drinking man, but yet he must say thai
all crime could be traced to the saloon.
Some good people object to prohibition
on the ground that it is an infringement
of personal liberty, but all law is pro
1 hibitive. The ten commandments are
prohibitive; conscience itself is prohibi-
tive Today the state exercises minute
supervision over all Industries, our Goa
is weighed for US, and even the purity
of our milk is guaranteed. l am moi
even allowed to trade in Bibles on Sun
day, and | may not maintain on my own
premises that which is a nuisance tt
others. Why then should we not prohibit
the greatest nuisance of all, that which
makes jails and prisons necessary ant
compels us to mainain the costly ma
chinery of repression and public de
fence?
1t is said that the liquor traffic is herr
AMI we must regulate it, and, moreover
by the license system we add 100000 t
the municipal revenue. But that 500, 90
is a paltry return for millions taken
from the city. 1t is condition anala
gous to that in New York city unde
the Tweed regime, when millions wer
stolen and the public was blinded by ;
paved street or a park. Why should w
sell our characters, the virtue of gu
children and public security for a pal
try 100000 paid by the ghouls an(
vampires of society?
Prohibition is better than license, TO