St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1899-06-07
VOL. LXI---NO. 1919
A Temperance Address.

Music Hall was well filed last Sunday
evening to listen to the address of Judge
L. II. Thompson of Irasburg, under the
auspices of the Anti Saloon League. The
exercises opened with music by quar-
tette from the North church choir, scrip
ture reading by Rev. Dr. Fairbanks and
prayer by Rev. G. w. Hunt.
DIR. Fairbanks in opening the meeting
said the league was formed to promote
the interests of sobriety good order and
good citizenship. He referred to the for
nation of the first temperance society in
this town II years ago and said he held
in his hand the book containing the 61
names of that society. In closing he said
he voiced not only for one citizen but for
many others the work of the states at
torney and the officers associated with
him.
In introducing the speaker of the even
ing, Wendell P. Stafford said this move
ment was not crusade or anything fa-
natical, but the enforcement of law
which had been on our statute books for
80 years.
Judge Thompson spoke for an hour in
clear, convincing and very fair manner
and was occasionally interrupted by ap-
plause. He began by referring to the
fact that no nation of drunkards had
ever prospered and that the drink bill
annually was tremendous burden upon
the laboring man.
mo one thing is a greater promoter of
divorces in this state than the drink
habit; it is one of the most fruitful
sources of crime and pauperism as we'll
The state has right to make laws to
preserve the sanctity of the home for
that means the life of the state.
"The present prohibitory law is the
most efficient and most reasonable liquor
law OF any state in the Union."
Judge Thompson then spoke for few
minutes upon the use and abuse of the
town agency and explained very clearly
the wording of the law regarding the
selling or furnishing of liquor. He said
that the only defect of the law was that
the penalty is not large enough. He
! then cited number Of murder cases in
this state in recent years that were di-
rectly the results of intemperance. He
paid his respects to the supporters of
high license in the last legislature and
said that if that bill had become law
saloon could have been placed by the
side of every house in Vermont as there
was no limit as to the number of saloons.
"The passage of the bill was urged in
the interests of temperance, yet every
saloon keeper would have to furnish
$4,000 bonds to prevent any damages
that might accrue from liquor selling.
In the eyes of the law and morals the
hand that casts ballot for high license
is just as criminal as the hand that
passes the whiskey over the counter"
Public sentiment has been lax in this
state and we need more old-fashioned,
energetic temperance work. All good
government rests in the end upon the
individual. We should first do our duty
by electing good men to office, then we
should watch the officials to see that the
law was enforced. However efficient
states attorney is he must be aided by
the citizens in enforcing the law. When
you elect man to office you should
insist that he does his duty or ask him
to resign. 1t makes no difference what
your opinion is of this law; it is the law
OF Vermont and it is your duty to enforce
it on any and all occasions.
There is a great improvement in the
drink habit in this state over past years,
but there must be eternal vigilance along
the whole line. Have fixed determina-
ton that the saloon shall not become
factor in politics and if the question is
again tested in the legislature they will
hear from old Vermont."a