The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1904-01-03


things of interest I would like to repro.
duce for the old-time sake; but, your
readers might not enjoy them as l do, so
/ will give but an item or two:
And first, notice an account of tenn
perance meeting at Holly Springs, August
9th, at which addresses were made by
Rev. johnson Olive and A. R. Mcdonald,
after which twenty-four persons were I'M
t:ated into the Sons of Temperance. A
good days work.
A writer from Tarboro congratulates
the good people upon the fact that IN
is gradually becoming less and
predicts that in a few years total alb
silence will be the prevailing sentiment
IN the State He notes the fact that an
election had recently taken place, and not
q drop of liquor was on the ground. An
old man remarked that he had never seen
an election where there was no liquor be-
fore.
/ see a letter from Alexander county
telling of a church trial at Little River
church. when Revs. John w. Jones, j. j.
Watts and James F. Steel, three ministers,
were tried for having joined the Sons OF
Temperance. Deacon Elisha Robbinett
brought the attention of the church to
wants to know eff emmy of the members
or the Little River church has jined the
Sens Of Temperance? 1 have hearn as
how three brothers has jined, and bleevin'
as 1 do, it amt accordin' to Christian
doctrine fer men to jine these traditions
OF men, / move to turn em all three
out" The vote was taken, seventy yo-
ing to turn them out, and twenty nine
voting to retain them in the church. So
the Little River church turned out three
preachers because they favored temper
ance. Then, one of the seventy who voted
to turn out the preachers, made motion
to turn out the twenty-nine who voted
against turning out the preachers. The
motion was put and out went the twenty
nine. Three preachers and twenty-nine
members turned out, at one church trial,
was a pretty good days work; but, 1t
must be admitted that it was a high
handed piece of business, the majority
turning out the minority; and novel
way the liquor element, in that church,
had of making the church solid for whis-
key That was ifty-two years ago.
1.-The Sun do Move" has not been hale
50 clearly demonstrated, as the fact that
public sentiment do novel" When l re-
member the feeling against the temper
ance movement, fifty years ago, when
there was a brandy still near almost
every farmers spring, and the decanter
stood boldly upon almost every gentle
mans side-board; and the morning dram
was almost as common as the breakfast
in many homes, and even the preachers
took a little for their stomachs sake; and
the idea, among the common people, was
that alcohol was one of Gods good crea-
lures, and not to drink it at all was a
reflection upon the Creator;-I say, when
I think of all these things and then turn
my mind to the fact that the sale of
liquor in North Carolina is confined TO
the towns and cities and being in many
places sold only at dispensaries, I am
amazed at the strides that public sentt-
ment has made.
Some people say dispensaries are no
better than barrooms. cannot decide that
question, for 1 do not know; but, OF this
l am sure, they cannot be worse; and be-
ing fewer of course the evil is reduced.
And besides, speaking periodically, II
there is a contagious disease in a COM
munity, we feel safer when we know 1t
has been carried to the pest house, where
proper rules and regulations are rigidly
enforced to keep it from harming the
public. AS to the morals of the question
I doubt whether the dispensary improves
things much. The dispensary IS a bar
room, in one sense of the word, and it
cannot be denied that it is run for the
purpose of selling liquor and getting rev.
enue from such sale, and that it IS in
tended to take the place of the barroom
in furnishing liquor to those who drinE.
Nevertheless, as it puts the mad dog in
a very strong enclosure and chains hum
to stake, so that he can't do the harm
he has been doing, I am for the dis
pensary until we can get another lick at
him, and deal upon him the death blow.
Speaking of the strides which public
sentiment has made with reference to the
liquor question, / am reminded of the
vast improvements which have been marie
along other lines; in travel, in postal
service and the transmission OF news.
The old stage coach was the biggest
thing known to our grandfathers, and,
indeed, to many of our fathers. Even in
my boyhood the stage coach was the
only means of travel, open to the public,
and it was trip of about week from
Washington city to New Orleans, and the
fare was ten cents a mile. It cost as
much as trip to Liverpool does now,
and took about as long to make st. From
Raleigh to Fayetteville, sixty miles the
fare was six dollars, and the time to
make the run ten hours-twelve hours
includings stops. At Barclaysville "a
miles south of Raleigh the travelling pub
lie always found good breakfast, dinner
or supper; in fact it was said, that at no
other place, between Washington city and
New Orleans, was there an eating house
eqpal to that kept by Mrs. Barclay. She
was the grandmother of two of Raleigh's
most enterprising and successful citizens,
Messrs. E. B. and C. B. Barbee. l re-
member the time when members OF Con-
gress, from the Southern States, passed |
along the road, near which we lived, on
the stage coach, and how important the
drivers felt themselves when they spoke
of having on board such men as John c.
Calhoun and other distinguished charac-
tiers.
The "Guion Hotel where the Agricul-
tural Department and Museum are, was
the stage office where passengers had their
names put on the waybill and paid their
stage fare. The drivers occupied house