The Owosso times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1897-1926, 1898-05-27
Ward, War and the Traffic.

Under the head "War Is He'll" your
Laingsburg correspondent, WARD" joins
with several paragraphs relative to the strug
gle with Spain another on the anti-saloon
war In his own village.
Ii ought not to be necessary to answer
the old, old sophistries In defence of the
license system, so often have their delusOns
been exposed. Yet, here they are once
again-the sale will go on anyway, trade
will go elsewhere. benefit will be received
from the tax, etc.
For over five years have been intimate
ly acquainted with the workings of the local
option law in "Od VanBuren" where last
October by vote of over 1,500 majority the
people expressed their opinion of the situa-
ton. The arguments stated above were
used dd ndusedm. but were met with facts
unanswerable, and an appeal to the higher
nature which can be relied on after all.
South Haven is the largest town In the
county and there has not been an open sa-
loon there for over six years 1t can be
said also that there are no "blnd tigers"
That liquor is sold we admit, but in quanti-
ties most insignificant. compared with the
sales under license. The law is enforced,
that Is all there is to it, and it could be en-
forced in smaller places like Laingsburg.
In Allegan county leading men declared
that there was ten times as much drinking.
at least, under license. Men who had
sobered up and were holding fast under
local option prohibition in AIlegan went
back when the change was made. Prose-
cutting attorney Fish gives the figures to show
that under license there was in an equal
period of time an increase in criminal cases
cordingly. Divorces also increased under
license, as compared with equal periods
under prohibition.
In VanBuren comparing period with
period the records clearly show large fall
ing off in pauper expense during local op-
ton periods, and also falling off in crimi-
nal cases. The number of persons confined
in the county Jail became small to a most
marked degree. The financial results OF
the law were shown to be favorable. Of
tenders found that they must obey the law.
Out of about ninety-seven prosecutions dur
ing the years of local option there were
over ninety convictions. Such facts could
be multiplied. The county officers carry
out the will of the people. But after all the
financial showing is not the most important.
IT the balance was in favor of license II
shames any man to support an utterly ini-
quitOus system that he may make little
more money. War may or may not be hell,
but the liquor traffic is hell through and
through To license a man to sell that
which destroys soul and body In order that
the worst of passions may be INDUCED by
those who want their horses shOd or to ge,
their milling done, to tell man he may re-
tail whiskey to ruin the young men, If be
will but help make good streets, is infa-
nous, even IL "business men" favor 1t. Two
hundred and fifty dollars for the village on
one side, and an open saloon on the other
If men will drink they will not drink be-
cause vote to legalze the traffic.
There Is moral side to all this question
Man was not born to sin as your correspon
dent suggests, but to he righteous, 10 be {
child of God. He can be. 1t Is possible
for us to place restrictions around the weak
to enforce laws as well as make them-tt
prohibit the manufacture and sale and giving
away of intoxicating drink, so as to hell
men be what they ought to be and can be
War is sometimes hell, but the absence o
war may be worse. To fight against evi
and again to fight; to enlist in the cause o
humanity, .as our nation is doing to-day
standing before the world as the only ma
ton with a conscience, is sublime. To TAX,
up the war against the liquor traffic, to wa
and yet to war, never knowing what
means to give up; to take every Opportunit.
to educate the people to the right; to refus
to listen to the specous pleadings OF thos
greedy for gain; to agitate and pray, ant
pray and agitate against every evil thing
individual and social, will mean some da.
the victory. War will have meant th
Kingdom of God.
G. DEW. BRowER.
OWOssO Nav 81. 1898.