Las Vegas daily optic. [volume] (Las Vegas, N.M.) 1880-1908, 1905-10-27
THE ARMY cANTEEN.

One. as a rule, loses nothing In an
argument on any subject. by fairly
admitting the position OF his oppon-
ent. In the violent attack which a
great many members Of the w. G. n
u. have made In public prints upon
the officers OF the United States
army, who have with. a unanimity
that Is remarkable recommended the
establishment OF the army canteen
We have been not a little surprised at
the manner IN which the attitude OF
the officers has been misrepresented.
We have before MS a letter written
by a good lady of Maryland which
declares that the officers want the
canteen r~e-established because they
believe that all soldiers viii drink
anyway and II Is therefore better to
have intoxicating liquors sold within
the posts. We do not remember to
have seen a letter which refers to the
fact that the army canteen aims only
to sell beer and light wine and that
no form OF distilled liquor Is tolerat
ed. Probably to the ladies who write
the letters, sweet cider, wine, whis.
key and brandy come under the same
category, as they unfailingly repre-
sent the canteens as saloons pur ct
simple.
We are not arguing for or against
the army canteen. II IS important,
though, that each side to the earnest
discussion that is going on In the ma
tion should understand. accept and
do justice to the others point Of view.
The officers including, as one of the
commanding generals says. eighty
five per cent Of the chaplains, say that
adjustment Of the canteen has result
ed In more than doubling the amount
OF drunkenness among the soldiers In
the last two years: that 1t has largely
increased the number OF assertions
and the number OF cases requiring
severe discipline. They say the can
teen Is maintained as a club, where
there are books, music, games and
beer and light wines. Many OF the
officers and nearly all the ~chapla!ns
say that they discourage the sale OF
beer and wine to the men, but that
In many cases there must be a choice
between the lighter drinks on the
premises or vile whisky in low dens
of vice that have Invariably sprung
mp as near the post as possible In the
absence Of the canteen.
The officers thus argue that 1t Is
the lesser of two evils that they ask
for. The ladies declare that evil Is
evil and there can be no degrees.
Their arguments declare that the
canteens are saloons and that intox
icating liquors are sold there. No
distinction is made between beer that
has five per cent Of alcohol and
brandy that has sixty, 1t Is wrong
to palliate evil In any form and 1t Is
evil to sell any kind of liquor con
taining alcohol-except perhaps Mrs.
Lydia E. Pinkham's vegetable COM
pound and others from twenty to
forty per cen connections.
One cannot find fault with the
principles Of any individual who thus
stands uncompromisingly against any
form Of what Is believed to be an
evil. And the ladies are undoubted-
Iy right when they say the human
race would be better without any form
OF alcohol, that the sale Of intoxicants
ia an evil.
II we accept the practically unani
nous reports Of the United States
army officers that the adjustment OF
the canteen has lead to a great In.
crease Of drunkenness and d~ebauchery,
the whole question becomes, rs there
ever a moral ground upon which a
choice OF the lesser OF two evils can
be nader" Shall we rather endure
che greater evil than consent to the
legalixing that which, though aimed
to reform, Is tainted with wrong?
OF course no one will accuse the
American officers Of not wishing to
lessen and prevent drunkenness In the
army. They point to Germany to
prove that beer drinking and wine
drinking, while not innocent In them
selves, do not lead to whisky drink.
Ing. They also adduce this theory
from their own experience with the
canteen. There can be no question
that the wide world does not produce
anything as injurious to the people as
the American whisky saloon. There
is nothing in the world like It. But
the consumption OF whisky is falling
off while the consumption OF beer Is
increasing. Is It a good sign or a
bad?
One thing is certain. When the
doors have been closed the
doors Of the vile whisky joint, gamb
ling den and brothel cape open In
vastly increasing numbers for the