Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-02-04
A FEDERATION PROPOSED I'M
THE CAUSE OF TEMPER ANCE

William F. Downey Of this city, who has
gained considerable notoriety by his char
liable work in spite of the fact that this
is done, unostentatiously, with no idea Of
publicity, is sponsor for proposition for
the union of all temperance organizations
and all religious denominations in the Dis
trict in the interest of the temperance
cause.
He has made the liquor haiti study for
the past twenty-five years, and his views
on reform are said to be along advanced
lines. He feels that the temperance people
are making but little progress, in compar-
ison to the inroads that intemperance is
thought to be making in the social state,
and is preparing to come forward with
general appeal for federation of forces to
fight the battle. Only by the active coop
Grafton of the clergy of all denominations
and the members of the congregations can
anything of practical value be accomplished,
he says:
Mr.. Downey was one of the delegates to
the immigration conference in New York last
month, held under the auspices OF the ma
tional civic federation, and when the dele
gates from this city assembled to sign the
report. which was handed to the Commits
sioners, an account of which appeared in
Thursdays Star, MIR. Downey brought the
matter before his fellow delegates.
df1 greatly lNleTeSleu III ILLS IIONe-
ment,'' he said to Star reporter, for L
consider intemperance to be one of the
greatest crimes eXtant. 1t is surely carry
ing many millions to destruction through
out the world Recently / was one of the
delegates from Washington to the national
civic convention on immigration, which met
in New York city. The immigration prob
lem is a great one IN itself, but secondary
to that of the liquor and opium traffic. The
Chinese and other immigrants who become
engaged in the spread of these two de-
structive products become the greatest OF
all curses to our beautiful country. l am
an immigrant myself. / was five years old
when L came here from Ireland and am
proud to state that, where my countrymen
choose and follow decent vocations, they
generally lead. But am sorry to see such
large number of my race, together with
those OF other nationalities, engaged in the
liquor traffic, which consider the greatest
of all evils. learned from my twenty-five
years experience, as a member OF the st.
Vincent de Paul Society, in visiting the
poor and the criminal classes, that fully
80 per cent of the crime and poverty l saw
was directly due to drink.
'tln my first two years labor preached
that 1t was not the use, but the abuse. that
injured. This doctrine was an excuse for
myself TO indulge, and / found that / was
only wasting time and energy. I also dis
covered that / had to practice what
a total abstainer that / found my work
practically successful During my twenty
years. labor in the prisons have induced
over $4,000 men and women to take the to-
tai abstinence pledge, and I find that that
is the only safeguard against the terrible
evil.
Referring again to the drink traffic,
would like to invite attention to the annual
report of the commissioner of internal rev.
enue for the fiscal year ending June 30,
$780, During that year the United States
government issued licenses to 227. 725 per-
sons engaged in the manufacture and sale
of alcoholic and malt liquors During the
year ended June 80 1905, there were issued
276. $50, showing an increase in six years
OF AZ, 231.
How to overcome the existing evils has