The Palatka news. [volume] (Palatka, Fla.) 1905-1908, 1905-09-01

Do A Little Thinking.
Editor PALATKA NEWS:

EulGOf GALApKA NEWS:
In dealing with this liquor ques-
ton in Putnam County the writer
has no selfish motive whatever, or
any i'll feeling against the saloon
keepers, or any other business firms
of your city. Now and then we hear
some one say, "the saloons are hell
holes;" if this be the case, who is to
blame? The saloon keepers certain
ly have legal right to do business
and us a rule we find them an honest,
upright business set of men, hence
we have no right to find fault so long
as they have licenses to do business
behind the screens.
Don't let us accept ready made
other peoples ideas, or think that
because we have been raised to be-
| lieve in certain views and methods
that they are the only ones that have
merit.
Suppose we go deeper into our
thinking machinery and develop new
or additional ways in which to win
the unthinking masses who are q
part of the ten million slaves to the
two hundred and fifty thousand sa-
looms in America. This liquor traffic
has so fastened itself upon our civil,
commercial industrial and social
life that it has become, perhaps, the
greatest obstacle to progress in our
Anglo-SaXon civilization. There is
no department of our manifold ma
tionHl life that is not impeded by its
presence and power.
The following are but some of the
many evils that can be charged
against the liquor traffic: A billion
and quarter dollars wasted every
year for drink; it is the chief cause
of pauperism; it makes more crimi-
nails than all other causes combined;
it increases immensely the cost of
civil government; it reduces the pro-
ductiveness of labor on the part of
nearly all who use it; it blights ut
terly the prospects of success in life
for all Young men who are given to
drink, and destroys the professional
standing and influence of every ma
ture man who drinks to excess; it
ruins the happiness of myriads OF
homes; lit costs womanhood, the wives
and mothers of our land, untold
trouble and anguish of both body and
soul; it rObs children of their most
sacred right. The drunkard must have
his drink, come what will to wife
and children; it Injuries the minds of
those who use it continually, not on
ly turning drunkards into irrespon-
sible and dangerous madmen while
under its influence, but robbing
them even in their sober intervals of
their best powers of mind and
thought; it robs the drinker OF his
will power and self respect and tends
to blunt his moral sense and lead
him into habits of deception and
acts of dishonesty and immortality;
il offers the greatest obstacle to the
work of the Christian religion in its
efforts to save men.
No doubt this article will be criti-
cised by some who will say, What
has all this to do with the saloon
business in PalatkaY' 1t is some-
times said that prohibition has been
tried and is failure, and if this
county should go dry it would not
stop drinking; and we would have
''blind tigers" etc. etc. OF course
there will always be violations of
any law, but for this reason should
our efforts be pronounced a failure?
Recognizing liquor dealers and
whisky drinkers everywhere as
united against any and all prohibi-
tion movements, it behooves us to
enquire who they are whom we may
hope to bring together in calm, sane,
serious effort to suppress this corrup-
ting home-destroying evH When
law-enforcing Christian judges and
attorneys, sheritfs and
policemen who are in hearty and
conscientious sympathy with our
people are placed in
office, then it will be seen and known
OF all men that the "blind tiger" is
not safe in our state. This so called
animal we notice seems to find it
very unhealthy in Alachua Co. and
we feel sure that if old Putnam
should go dry on the Goth of Septem-
ber our highly esteemed sheriff and
his deputy would make it unpleasant
for the tiger in this county.
Let us consider this question care
fully and on the 26th be sure we vote
on the right side.
Respectfully, j. H. w.
Tnterlachen, Fla. Aug. 29th.