The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1904-12-27
MINISTER TALKS
TO JAIL INMATES
The Rev. Mr. BramberEWarns
Young Men
PERILS OF THE SALOON
Clergyman Takes Occasion In Judge
FeagIns Court to Point Out
the Inevitable Result of Sin
And Vice.

For the first time In its history the
inferior criminal court of Birmingham.
over which Judge Feagin presides, lis
tened yesterday morning to an address
made by a minister of the gospel.
The speaker was the Rev. ]. +. Bran
Der, a missionary preacher of the Bap-
fist church.
For several months Mr.. Bramber has
been addressing large meetings on the
South Highlands. His audiences have
been made up for the most part of work.
ing people He has spoken to them In
Alarge tent at Avenue r. and Twenty
sixth street on the south side. His work
has been 80 successful that he has been
able to raise enough money to build a
handsome church on North Highlands.
Lately he has moved to Avondale where
his meetings have been largely attended.
He has also done effective work In the
bowery district
Visits the Prison.
Since coming to Birmingham Mr.. Bram-
Der has been thrown in contact with the
class of people from which inmates of the
city jail are recruited. He has been a
frequent visitor at the Jail, at police
headquarters and especially at sessions
of the inferior criminal court.
He was present yesterday morning
when Judge Feagin entered the court
room and began to despatch the usual
gYsH.
"cage' was crowded, and what struck Mr..
Bramber was the large number of young
men in the tolls of the law. He remarked
the fact to Judge Feagin and requested
the court to permit him to speak five
minutes to the men and women behind
tho bars. Judge Feagln consented, and
Mr.. Bramber went at Lis work with
will.
Not an Orator.
Mr.. Bramber is not an orator. or at
least he did not strive after oratorical eff
conversational tone, very much as he
would had he been conversing
81 am very much impressed by this
scene," said he, land l am also profund-
ly depressed by it. l see before me men
and women created in the image of God
men and women who should be and who
may be an honor to themselves, to their
friends and to society at large. Why is 1t
at this season of the year you are not
at your homes enjoying the delights of
Christmas and illustrating in your lives
the example set by Him whom Christen-
dom 1nonors this day? Why is it that you
have fallen away from your better selves
and have thus degraded yourselves in
your own estimation and the estimation
of your associates? 1t is because you have
surrendered your will, lost your resolu-
ton, yielded to the temptations that have
beset you and preferred to live lives of
sinfulness and viciousness instead of liv-
ing lives of purity and virtue?
Should Commlserate.
IT shall not detain you long I SYM
pathlze with you. believe that we should
commiserate as well as condemn you.
know that the young men who are here
before me have been overtaken in dis
grace by reason of the dram shop. Young
men, no man is safe where whisky is. 1t
breaks down your discretion. 1t robs you
of your prudence 1t destroys your sense
Of values, it blinds you to every virtue
and inf1ames you with desires to practice
every sin and every vice. 1t puts you
on the road to ruin and hurries you along
that highway of dlshonor till at length
1t envelopes you in disgrace.
II wish I could speak to you this morn
ing and through you to the young men
of this city of the perils of the dram
shop. If you would recognize the great
danger you would this day resolve to
cease your life Of vice and sin and to
spend the rest of your days in an honest
and earnest effort to live worthily.
pray that Almighty God may bring you
to see the error of your ways and bless
you in the new and better life."
Judge Feagin thanked DIR. Bramber
when the minister ceased speaking.