The Somerset reporter. [volume] (Skowhegan, Me.) 1868-1909, 1901-12-05
MEN AND ALCOHOL.
The PrOhibitOry Law and Its
Enforcement ssszzs


He took his text from Isaiah 1:16:
"Cease to do evil; learn to do we'll"
Rev. Mr. Kimball said:
These are the words of Isaiah who
politics" and by another "the prophet
statesman" and l know of no word ia
the Holy Bible which better expresses
what ought to be the attitude of every
man towards the liquor traffic. "Cease
to do evil;' the goal before us is the
elimination of this curse from the face
of the earth LEARN to do WE'LL" The
ways and means by which this evil is to
be crushed are only to be discovered
through search and study. Let us take
it for granted this morning that the
liquor traffic is an evil. There is no
need to dwell for long on it's blighting
effects 1t degrades manhood and ruins
character, lays its awful curse on the
unborn babe and, for many a child,
makes home hell. 1t piles heavy
anguish on the heart of the wife, and
often murders the love of man and
woman 1t brutalizes wherever it
touches, brushes always the finer feel
iugs, makes the soul the slave of an
appetite, and drags man down to living
death.
Let us remember for our encourage
ment that there has been an immense
advance in temperance sentiment and in
the temperate habits of our people in
the last half century. Drinking is not
so common as once it was, and is no
longer 80 respectable as once it was
Many influences have contributed to
this end. Public opinion no longer ap-
proves of drinking; the education of the
children has helped to restrain the
young; the attitude which large cor
porations have taken against the drink
ing habits of their employees has had
its effect. Let us rejoice that the coun-
try as a whole, in the matter of temper
ance is on the upgrade. l am sorry to
say however that | have my serious
doubts about the town in which we live.
The Enforcement of our Prohibitory Law.
Now in the State of Maine one of the
most perplexing features of the whole
temperance question is in regard to the
enforcement of our prohibitory law
During the six years that | have been in
this town this question has been thresh-
ed over and over, effort and effort of one
kind or another has been made, and
cannot see that we are any nearer the
solutions of our troubles than we were
six years ago. 1t was with the desire to
find out what the sentiments of the peo
pie are, to discover how men feel about
this question, to prove what the honest
opinion of the average man is, that dur
ing the past week l have talked with
one hundred representative men of this
town; or to be more correct T have
talked with 90 men and one woman.
After l had finished thought of calling
this sermon the Law and Gospel, for |
got the law from the 90 men and the
gospel from the one woman.
Although this is an old question and
has almost been worn threadbare
found great interest among nearly all
and only one man who said in regard to
the whole matter 81 don't know | have
not given the matter much thought"
said this to the men interviewed II am
going to preach temperance sermon
next sunday and | wish to sum up the
opinions of a hundred men in this town,
of course not using names, and | would
like to ask you a question or two"
found the men willing to talk and
believe that they gave me their honest
opinions. do not mean by that, opin.
ions " hich they all would be willing to
back up by action. That is another
matter; but do mean that they told me
what they really felt. My faith in hu.
mankind has been strengthened and not
weakened by these one hundred inter
views. To snow that the one hundred
! M hronad oil md conditions
have made this analysis of their occu
pations: Merchants, 10; clergymen, 3;
lawyers, 6; physicians, 2; foremen and
superintendents, O.; skilled workmen,
Is; day laborers, Ia; farmers, 8;
clerks, 5; business men, 10. Less than
twenty of these men were professed
Christians so that an undue emphasis is
not given to the influence of the churches.
| made no attempt to ascertain the pc
ltical preferences but without doubt a
great majority were republicans.
The first question asked these men
was this:
DO You Believe That the Prohibitory Law
ia the Best Way of Regulating the Liquor
Traffic?
| explained that | meant not as an
| ideal law but the best law, human ma
ture being what it is, and our expert
ences with the law being what they have
been.
Five said II don't know AZ said
"Y es | believe in the prohibitory law :"
These without doubt would vote to keep
it on the statute books. SO said mo |
do not believe in the law" The reasons
given by these So were various. The
most of them declared that they did
not believe in the law because expert
ence had convinced them that it would
not be enforced. Some added that it
could not be enforced, A few said that
80 long as men want the stuff they will
get it, One said that to attempt to
regulate the private habits of men by
law is not best. Another put it this
way Tell men that they can't do a
thing and they will want to do it"
The second question was this, asked
only OF those who had answered mo"
to the first:
What Method or Law Would You Prefer In
Place of Prohibition
OF the SO who were asked this ques-
ton seven said ~ don't know, have not
given the matter much thought" 10
said that they preferred either the Goth
enburg system or the South Carolina
dispensary law. These laws may be
summed up In word thus; that wherever
saloons are run the government shall
supervise them and receive the profits
| from them 81 stated that thew would