Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1899-08-09
THE ARMY CANTEEN.

Olence ana a merclful kindness to the
soldier. In fact, the army canteen is
more dangerous than the battlefield.
Scars upon the soldiers body are
honorable, but the rotting drunkard,
manufactured by the consent, if not
by the active efforts, of government,
is curse that disgraces both the SOL
der and the government long after
war has ceased. 1t is dishonor that
the United States should betray a
mothers, wife's or a sisters conf
dence by upholding a nuisance and a
peril which peaceful citizens at home
are fighting without & Northwest
ern Christian Advocate.
~
AS is well-known, congress passed
a law during the winter to abolish the
canteen, Attorney General Griggs,
after studying, twisting and interpret
ing, finally interpreted the law to
mean that liquor could not be sold in
the army by soldier but it could be
sold by a common citizen, thus making
the law of no avail, says the Christian
Advocate in it's issue of April %.
How any one qualified to occupy
such position could expect to de-
celve the people with such puerile in
depreciation of the law as Attorney
General Griggs makes is inexplicable.
We do not wish to impugn his motives,
but we cannot understand how Mr..
Griggs could render such a decision
in the face of the explicit prohibition
of the law, except upon the theory that
he deliberately intended to nullify it
in order to continue the sale of liquor
in the canteen. If this was his inten-
tion-and the weakness of his state
ment of reasons for so doing will in
duce thousands of the American peo-
pie to believe that such was his pur-
pose-he has committed a political
blunder and a moral crime, and is un-
worthy to occupy position where he
can perpetrate such an outrage and
insult the American people, in re-
spouse to whose demand the african
teen law was enacted.
The president should at once revoke
this notification and give effect to the
law by exercising the power which he
possesses as commander.in-chie of
the army. and issue an order absolute
ly prohibiting the sale of liquor in
any encampment, fort or on any prem
ises used by the United States for
military purposes. The responsibility
for such action is manifestly now with
him. The request made of the attorney
general by the secretary of war would
seem clearly to indicate that the latter
official is not in sympathy with the
law and desired to evade it's enforce
ment, if possible, by an unfriendly de-
cision. This having been secured
from the attorney general, it is not to
be expected that the secretary of war
will take advantage of the power vested
in his Office and issue an order pro-
hibiting the sale of liquor in the can
teen.
But such sale must cease. The an
ti-canteen law was enacted by congress
at the demand OF the people, and the
people will not submit to a continual
ton of this Infamous institution. The
president should realize that upon no
question has there been more feeling
among the thinking people of the
country since the bred Scott decision
| than there has been upon the trans
forming of the army posts of the
| United States into liquor saloons.
If this is not stopped there will arise
a storm of Indignation that will sweep
over the country and sweep out OF
power those who may attempt to resis,
it.
This administration has evidently
reached crisis upon the liquor ques.
ton, and President Mckinley has the
opportunity to strike a fatal blow to
the liquor traffic such as came to Abra.
ham Lincoln when he gave the death
blow to American slavery by the
emancipation proclamation. The fate
of the nation may be involved in the
decision Of the president in this matter
Abraham Lincoln, discussing the pos
sible downfall Of the American repub
lie, said:
AT what point shall we expect the
approach of danger? Shall we expec
some transatlantic military giant tt
step the ocean and crush us at 4 blow
Never! All the armies of Europe
Asia and Africa combined, with al
the treasures of the earth our owl
excepted in their military chest, will
q Bonaparte for d commander, coult
not, by force, take a drink from tn
Ohio or make track on the BLU
Ridge, in a trial of thousand years
At what point, then, is this approach
of danger to be expected? I answer
if it ever reach us, it must spring VI
amongst US. 1t cannot come iron
abroad. If destruction be our lot, W
must ourselves be it's author and fin
isher As a nation of freemen, W
must live through all time or die b.
suicide 1.s.& r..
/ = . i - ,- b