The Mason County journal. [volume] (Shelton, W.T.) 1886-1927, 1900-11-23

1
Does any one believe that the class
of men that compose the rank and file
of the army can ever be forcibly made
to abstain totally from liquol? Has
not prohibition been tried and proved
an absolute failure, measure which.
instead OF preventing the sale,of liquor,
causes men to break the laws snd to
obtain illegally that which they will
have, and which they feel, as men, it
is their right to have if they so desire?
As long as there is any liquor IN this
world the man who wants it VIII have
it aud the only rational way to pro-
mote temperance seems t" he to lesson
the desire for strong drink and TO gra-
duallv canse less liquor to he consumed
This is what the cauteen does. Aud
how does it do 1T? Buy selling no
strong drink. and no drink III quanti
ties large enough To produce intoXlca-
ton by selling beer, light wines, and
non-alcuholic drinks III wholesome,
law-abiding moral atmosphere, with
out any incentive to intoXication, or
to indulgence IN other excuses OF the
passions; in other words, by supplying
the demand for certain article in a
legimate and lawful manner without
any effort to increase the demand,
while at the same time giving back
the profits that accrue 10 better the
condition of the purchasers. Has any
opponent of the canteen ever stopped
to consider that perhaps there is less
demand for ardent spirits among men
whose stomachs are supplied with
many of the delicacies that serve TO
make MS all cOnten ted? and when we
have caused these very men to stop
strong drink, and to indulge only in
drinks yith very small percentage of
alcohol, have we not done inestimable
good?
But what will the shutting up of the
canteen mean? 1t will mean that
these very men will go back again to
drinking whisky and rum, to breaking
regulations that are necessary to mill
tary discipline, to spending their small
pay to line the pockets of some grasp
ing saloon keeper, whose one object is
gain, at any price OF manhood, honor,
and even life.
To condemn the cantCen without
having seen its practically workings is
an injustice. of which no thinking
man will be guilty. In this, as in
most other matters in lite, the maiori-
ty of us must accept the opinion of
those qualified to judge. If we are
sick we do not go to a merchant to be
told what is the matter and to obtain
treatment So in this canteen cues
ton why should we accept the perhaps
sincere but misguided opinions of those
who really know nothing about it,
when we can get the judgment of
those who h ave every means of knowl-
edge the truth about the matter. and
who are perfectly capable of forming
and expressing professional or expert
opinion? No army officer derives the
the least benefit from the canteen, ex-
cept indirectly as it aids discipline.
And the majority of our nation are
today ready to admit that the disci-
pine which means efficiency, the well
fare and the wellbeing of the men, is
the first thought of all regular army
officers. 1t is those very officers who
say that to abolish the canteen means
to encourage drinking and the break
ing of regulations, and is direct
blow at the efficiency of the whole
army-an efficiency which has been
tried and proved not wanting
Lieut.. G. w. Bunnell, Jr.. in Harper's
Weekly.