Daily press. [volume] (Newport News, Va.) 1896-current, 1905-08-15
REV. Mr.. BEAUcHAMp'S SERMON
Pastor Discusses Petition Circulated
Among Business Men Before Large
Congregation" sI,aIl Newport News
TH& Backward stcp9 -May
Fight for II O'clock as Closing Hour.

element apparently is about to begin.
Fhc announcement that Il large num-
her Of The merchants Of the city have
signed n petition asking the city cuul.
ell TO amend the early closing section
OF tho saloon ordinance" adopted Il
lew months ago has put the rcformcrs
OH me q'u vive again and both sides
| VIII De we'll represented when tho mat.
ter Is brought up before The council
Rcv. w. Is. Bcauchamp, pastor of the
Trinity Methodist church, preached to
| n large congregation Sunday night ON
the subject: Shall Newport News
Take Back Scat on tho Saloon Qucs
| tion, the announcement concerning
the petition hcing responsible for the
sermon. Mr.. I1caclamp is leading
worker in the anti-saluUn leagues ami
played an active part in the fight which
| resulted in The passage of the ordi.
nance regulating tho liquor straiic
now In effect i'm the city. During his
sermon Sunday night he declared that
II the liquor men attempted to have
| this ordinance amended or repealed.
the anti-saloon leagues would take mp
| the Ratchet again and make every Of
fort To make the hour for closing sa.
| looms IL o'clock instead OF 1890
O'Clock. lie also called attention To
the fact that the city of Lynchbnry
| compels saloons within It's limits to
close their doors ut 10 o'clock at night.
The preacher took as his text the
provcrb, righteousness EXalteth IA
Nation; hut Sin is n Rcproach To Any
People" and opened hiS,liscoursc with
| Abraham Lincoln's words: THE next
| snarl the American people will need
to straighicn out is the liquor prob,
lem" He then said, in part:
Solomon was speaking. first of all.
| from The standpoint of worldly wis
dom. Righteous civic integrity gives
national prosperity and power, while
sin, or wickcdncss brings a people
into contempt, and disgrace. Thcj
same law of morals holds good forI
the individual AMI tho nation alike
neither can eliminate God and law and
prosper or be held in esteem by other
individuals and nation. The question
[ as 10 whether We shall lay first ompha-
sis upon The material, or the moral is
as old MS man. In some of us the
word Of God is final authOrity-thc
court of. last resort That word says
that righteousness is the condition of
)pcrmanent prosperity and that sin
lawlcssncSs--iS the condition of ever
lasting contempt History, SO far as
it is written and known to us, knows
no exception to this rule. Those who
l'belicvcin this truth enumerated by the
writer Of the Proverb dare not under
any circumstances, be IL party to its
| violation.
al hclicvc. with Abraham Lincoln,
that after the slave question has been
settled in this countryside one now
that brings most rcproach upon the
American people is the liquor business.
No specie of sin stands ont more con
spicuouslv before us than the saloon
! evil. You find it a burning problem
from ocean to ocean. Wherever the
saloon is most in power and where
there is least law controlling it, there
you find most degradation and increas-
cd criminality. u
81 find on my return 10 orr city,
after most delightful trip across tho
continent, that certain people arc
seeking to have the ordinances recent.
iy passed for controlling tho liqnor
business in Newport News, SO amend
cd as to extend the hour for closing
from ] 80 TO 12 u. m. or to eliminate
the closing ordinance altogether. /
have no doubt that there arc some off
the same element who would he will
on Sunday. Against this movement.
] am sure the moral sentiment of our
city will enter most solemn protests
"Wc are among those who believe
that the majority Of the people of,
Newport News are not willing tn take.
back step on any moral issue. The
argument used by the leaders in this
down grade movement in morals. ac-
cordihg to the papers Of orr city are
/ two, namely That this is a sea:
4 port town. .. That the city loses.
money by closing the saloons nj IL 30;
p. m. This is queer logic, but 1t is
the usual argument among the saloon;
people. This is what this argument
says: This is seaport town, and
4 We want to have as little law as pos
sihlo forfthat' is tho condition Of pros
3 perity in a seaport town. But J the
4 word of Qnd and the voice of history
and all reason say: Sin is n disgrace.
TO any pcoplc'-which shall we ac-
T ccDt?
when we come to the question nf
material prosperity, we stand by this
Proverb: righteousness cXalts n poo:
plt--bfinss peace and permanent
prosDerity.'H
"Thc all-nighl saloon does thrco
i Iihings hrycnd, question:: L. II brings
d n little moro money to the saloon poo
pie; 2. 1t brings more degradation to
those who frequent tho saloons; 3. It
brings increased lawlcssncss To the
city. One of the experimenting cvcnt:
: iii the history of Newport News was
tho refrom movement which brought
about those ordinances now in force
: concerning the saloon business of the
4 citv. ~