Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1901-05-20
REPLY TO BISHOP HALL.

Hall against the prohibitory law:
am sorry and glad the Bishop OF
Vermont has expressed his opposition
to our present temperance laws,
Sorry because he will be quoted by
every organ of the brewers and dis
| tlllers of America. What concord
hath Christ with Belial or the piety
Of the church with the cupidity OF the
| liquor traffic? Glad because radical
| temperance men will see the UPRIGHT
eousness OF imputing evil motives to
those who may differ from them on
the question of methods. While the
repeal of our present law, which the
bishop favOrs, is just what the liquor
men are strenuonsly working for yet
their motives are poles apart. Prohi-
bition loses when it adopts "black
list" or calls names. In the contest
| for and against the the law let the ap-
peal be made to reason and the decis
ion of the majority rule. Now the
bishop says "Prohibition does not
prohibit" If he means that the law
does not absolutely prohibit his argu-
ment is weak, for it proves too much.
Society is afflicted with other evils
besides drunkenness In spite Of our
rigid laws thieves break through and
steal; fallen women walk up and down
our streets and gamblers work their
trade. If the bishop means that pro-
hibition does not lessen drunkenness
[ take issue with him. There are two
sources of intemperance; greed be-
hind the bar pushing it's wares and
appetite in front of the bar. Now,
appetite will resort to kitchen bar
rooms, but much that is drunk at the
open bar is of a social nature and
among the social drinkers the open
saloon has every advantage in push
ing its business. First, the brilliantly
lighted and well furnished saloon be-
comes the meeting place of jolly good
fellows. Here mirth smiles and laugh
ter ripples and good nature finds vent
IN the treating custom. Appetite
plays a very small part in making
drunkards. No man ever started out
to be drunkard. He is simply a good
fellow who enjoys having a good time
with other good fellows and finds that
drink helps on good fellowship. The
saloon not only satisfies demand but
as the agent of greed is constantly
creating demand. Cannot a mer-
chant by advertising his goods push
his sales even beyond the natural de-
mand? Cannot a druggist advertise
his patent medicines and create a de-
mand for them? Business principles
apply as we'll to the saloon as to the
drug store. Underground saloons can
sell to the nan with an appetite but
the open and licensed saloon has every
advantage in pushing its sales among
those who are attracted hither for
social reasons rather than to crafty
thirst. Statistics also show that in
those cities where prohibition and
high license have been tried there is
much less drunkenness and crime
under prohibition.
The bishop says that "prohibiton
drives underground the mischief it
seeks to cure, making it more difficult
to deal with the evil" and that it is
"connected with hypocracy on the
part Of buyers, sellers and officials"
Underground is just the place for it.
[ feel a great deal safer for my boy
with 1T underground. High license
may be an easier way to deal polit-
81.
with license is it lets the evil have
pretty much its own way and our sons
are slain. If the bishop thinks that
licensing the saloon closes up single
underground place he is greatly mis-
taken. There will always be more
men who want to sell than can get
license and the licensed keeper, being
a violator of the law himself, is poor
watchdog to spy out and prevent
other men from violating the law. In
regard to hypocracy the saloon is
great bribing and corrupting institu-
ton, laying it's smutty hands upon
politics, upon legislatures and courts,
and it stands to reason that the more
power you give to the saloon the more
it will foster perjury. License does
not cure the evil of hypocracy it only
aggravates it. Argument No. claims
that the "use of drink in itself is no
more wrong than the use of tobacco
and to enforce total abstinence is to
manufacture an artificial SIM" am
opposed to an artificial piety and to
the manufacture of artificial sins.
There are two kinds of sins. Those
against the law of right and those
against the law of love. Drunkenness
is the former. Enticing a weak |