Backbone. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn. ;) 1897-1906, 1904-11-01
PENSION THE sALooNIsTs.

PENSION THE SALOONlSTS.
Some Views of a Practical and Sue
cessfuI Minneapolis Business
Man.
1t is generally conceded that there is
no real issue at present between the
Republican and Democratic parties.
Furthermore, all thoughtful persons
realize that there has been no real IS
sue since the civil war, and that those
questions of policy which have arisen
from time to time would have had at
all times far wiser and more econom-
ical treatment at the hands OF any set
of honest, ordinarily intelligent BUSH
ness men than has been possible at
the hands of politicians, whether Dem
ocratic or Republican.
Political parties may be necessary,
but not parties whose chief object and
only issue is the spoils of office. No
party can now exist and faithfully ad-
minister the affairs of government IN
the interests of the people, as against
Doodle and corporate greed, without
first abolishing the saloon, thus de-
stroying the rallying place of the Grim
inal class and at the same time closing
the school where purchasable pauper
and criminal votes are made We of
the great middle class, the wage earn
ers, who are also by far the greatest
in point of numbers, and who are the
real wealth producers of the nation,
are feeling more and more the pressure
from and the grinding of society's
millstones, the class above and the
hoI wi nh nd hod H.
poor-as they control our politics,
municipal, state and national and prey
upon us from their common meeting
ground, the saloon.
AS certain as sawmill makes lum-
Der, the saloon makes drunkards, Grim
inals, prostitutes, paupers and orphans
and in addition it is now making or
leaving unmade our laws and admins
tering our government. In Minnesota
there is one man to every forty-s1x
voters who holds a United States gov
eminent license to sell whisky. Prob
ably half of these are saloonkeepers
and they are the flag carriers, the col
or bearers for the buns, thieves, burg
lars, gamblers, grafters, boodlers, pro-
curers for all bad society, and likewise
the keepers of the market places where
the bad-rich get their legislative power
through votes bought or controlled.
Does the saloon pay from a financial
point of view? No. 1t is enormously
expensive and causes untold loss. 1t
would be far cheaper if we would buy
up every saloon in the United States
and destroy it, granting the proprie
tors and every employee a pension for
life. For he who produces no wealth
is pauper or a robber.
The daily drink bill of the United
States would build city of two thou
sand houses, build the city hall and
public schools, furnish eight thousand
people with food and clothes for one
year, pay the salaries of the preachers,
school teachers and public officials,
buy sewing machine and an organ
or piano for every home. Think of it,
every days drink bill would put one
such city into existence complete, and
run it for year.
Enclosed find so cents to apply on my
subscription to Backbone. We would not
want to do without it."-W. r. Dodds,
Velva, N. D. IT enclose so cents to apply
paper. II. Lomen. souris, y; D.
"Find enclosed rs cents in stamps. Please
extend my subscription to August, 1905
wish we had 1000 papers in this coun-
try doing such good work as Backbone
Isaac Mondereau, Chairman Crawford
County Prohibition Committee, Pa.
New Voice: No vote is lost that repre-
SCENTS conscientious convictions.