The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1905-07-29
Mr., Sylvester Belts Vote.

To the Editor: Please allow me
space to express my views regarding
the present status of the liquor ques-
ton i'm our city. l believe it a duty
one owes to his city to publicly express
his views at such a crisis. The ques-
ton at issue is: Shall we take the rev.
enue derived from the sale of liquor
out of the public treasury and give 1t
to the individual saloon keeper; or
shall we seek to educate the child OF
the drunkard with the money he thus
spends If men will drink shall we
not seek to control the money thus eX-
pended for the education of their
otherwise helpless children? 1t is diff
ficult to comprehend how any true
temperance man or Christian can
favor the sale of liquor as a beverage
I'm any way whatever, but when two
evils are presented and the only ques-
ton at issue is the acceptance of one
or the other. shall we not unhesitat-
ingly accept the lesser? Temperance
can not rightly enter into the present
situation. The dispensary is not the
solution Of the great temperance prob
lem, it is only another phase or the
awful liquor traffic; il is an effort to
chain the lion which robs our homes
of fathers and brothers. leaving wreck
age and ruin in his path. There are
some things that can be said in favor
of the dispensaTy as against the sa-
loon, while not one single thing can
be truly said favoring the saloon
l. There is no social drinking in
the diSpensary.
2. There is no card playing and
8. No lounging around and indulg-
ing in profane conversation.
4. No late and early hours of
drinking.
5. All revenue derived from the
sales of liquor is converted to public
benefits. While in the salooQ just the
opposite is transporting daily and at
late hour of the night in the entire
year, not in one but many places.
We can not believe with all these
things before u.s. Ne citizens Of Raj
eigh will ever vote back to open sa-
looms The time will come and per-
haps we have already allowed one OPP
portunity to pass when we can make
o clean sweep of the awful curse and
have and maintain prohibition. But
until such time presents itself lets keep
the lion in one liar and not license a
score of dens of carnage and murder.
In the second place. the only salvation
for the saloon keeper and his unfortu-
nate offspring is to get him out Of his
business Follow the history of the
saloon keeper and you Will find invar-
iably that nearly all of them die in
their business and a tale of sorrow and
woe can be recorded to the third and
fourth generation. In the name of all
that is good and in behalf of the sa-
loon keeper himself and his children
and i'm behalf of the rising generation
of young men around us, | plead with
the voter not to cast his vote for the
bar-room What excuse can you rem
der In the great day of judgment for
using your God-given franchise to
curse His creatures. Your vote rep
resents you. You are partner to all
crime, sorrow and every tear caused
by the saloon If you thus vote to IL
cense them You may ask am | not
likewise a partner to crime If | yDte
for the dispensary? We answer en-
phatically, no, unless prohibition or
Gispensary was the issue. But by not
voting at all you give half vote for
the saloon. Let every voter show MS
colors in this contest. And If you can {
cut off the lions head by your vote.
cripple him at least and drive him into
one den until we can marshal enough
brave men to kill him dead forever.
Yours for lifelong battle,
s. j. BELTS.
Raleigh, y. c. July Is. 1904.