Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1901-04-12
AN ANSWER TO BISHOP HALL
Argument in Favor of Prohibition by
Rev. J. H. Reid Of Bellows Falls
Last Sunday.

Rev. J. H. Reid Of Bellows Falls
Last Sunday.
Rev. John II. Reid of Bellows Falls
| delivered an address i'm his church last
| Sunday evening i'm answer to the re
cent letter of Bishop Hall on THE
Folly and Mischief of Prohibition in
Vermont Mr.. Reid placed himself
on unassailable ground at the start by
saying that the action of Bishop Hall
is a caution to radical temperance
men against the evil of calling their
opponents by hard names or OF MAX
ing up black list of men who do not
agree with them. The repeal of our
present law which the Bishop would
like to see, is what the liquor men are
also working for, but the motives of
the two are as far apart as the poles.
"All we ask for is an open and fair
contest in which the appeal shall be
made to the reason and if a majority
wish the repeal of the law. it should
he taken off our statute book. am
more believer in the right of the
majority to rule than ! am in prohibi-
ton Taking up the recent declara-
ton that prohibition does not pro
hibit," Mr.. Reid said: IF he means
prohibit, his argument is weak for it
proves too much. Society is afflicted
with other evils besides drunkenness
I'm spite of our rigid laws, thieves
break through and steal, fallen women
walk up and down our streets, and
gamblers ply their arts. If the Bishop
means that prohibition does not les
sen drunkenness, / take issue with
him. There are two sources of in
temperance; greed behind the bar
pushing its wares, and appetite in front
of the bar Appetite will be graft
fled even if it has to resort to kitchen
bar rooms. But much that is drunk
at the bar is of social nature, and
among social drinkers the licensed sa-
loon has every advantage in increas-
ing its business. Appetite plays but
a small part in making drunkards. No
man ever started out to be a drunkard.
He is simply a good fellow who enjoys
having a good time with other good
fellows, and finds that drink helps on
the good fellowship. And the saloon
is the main agency in helping along
this sort of thing. Underground sa.
looms can sell to the man with an APP
petite. but every advantage is with
the open, licensed saloon which pushes
its wares to the public attention.
The Bishop says that prohibition
drives the mischief underground.
thank God for that, for 1t is just the
place for it. | feel safer for my boy
if it is underground than when upon
some prominent street corner. throw
ing its glare and glmmer. If the
Bishop thinks that license closes up
any OF the underground kitchens. his
innocence of the working of high IL
Cense is great. and what Boston is eX-
periencing now in trying to close these
places ought to open his eyes. There
is no greater fallacy than the idea that
the saloon keeper acts as a watchdog
on the unlicensed places.
Again, the Bishop says prohibition
unenforced tends to break down the |
sense of obligation in the case of all
law, human or divine" To this Mr. |
Reid made answer that some laws are
not enforced because they cannot be, |
others because no effort is made to
enforce them. There is no doubt that |
prohibition can be reasonably enforced |
in Vermont If the Bishop had thrown |
himself into the fight for the enforce |
ment of the law. he alone could have |
changed conditions in Burlington, !
W lltl Nv 'pllPldlll0 Aldl lHt4t - |
much violation of the law.
Mr.. Reid's most effective answer |
was made to the Bishops final argu- |
ment that prohibition is foolish and |
because ii is largely an at
tempt on the part of one set of folk |
to legislate for another set Of people; |
our country folk for our larger |
villages and cities" My reply" said |
Mr. Reid. lis that society is an organ |
ISM and towns and cities are bound |
up together. Ii one suffers. all suffer; |
if one rejoiCes all rejoice to- |
gether. You canOnt fatten your thumb |
without putting flesh on your whole |
body, and a felon on the thumb Grip |
pies the whole body The saloon is a
sore, fostering crime and poverty |
Thus a saloon in Burlington touches |
every taxpayer in the state. We all |
know what came of the plea once
made by the South for special immun.
tiles for itself and of its protest
against the right of one set of people
to legislate for another set of people.
Poverty and crime are expensive, and |
if the whole people of the state have
to pay the cost of a crime, they ought |
to have a right to say whether an in
stitution which is the source of nine
tenths of the crime should be permit
ted to exist in the state.