The herald-advance. (Milbank, S.D.) 1890-1922, 1907-04-12
An Artists Arrangement Of the Saloon. She saw
aNoman With Child in Arms Cursed at
Door Of Saloon by Husband.

Door Of Saloon by Husband.
Mics Nora Green in South Dakota Issue:
Perhaps you are wondering why l
try to talk to you tonight. There are
several reasons. One is, that every
time | walk the streets of Platte, /
have to pass at least three saloons.
and each time the deadly fumes fill my
nostrils, my whole soul rebels and |
loathe the place with all the intensity
of my nature | rebel because | see
men of all ages, the grey haired ones
who are just approaching the brink.
and the youth, the blind, thoughless,
careless youth, passing in and out
of those doors. | say | rebel because
l feel SO utterly helpless aud because
l felt the horror of it all.
Not long since the nation lay pros
trate in sorrow over the assassination
Of one ofthe best and greatest of its men:
All! but we do not suffer enough over
the nations suffering living. We do
not sorrow enough over the tottering,
helpless drunk ard; we do not suffer
enough over the vast army of suffer-
ing women and children. One of the
bishops out at Denver last summer
said: "God exalted woman above
heaven and the angels when he made
woman the mother of Christ" and |
have been proud eve since that too,
am a woman. But what sorrow, what
cringing sorrow, to see a woman drag
ged down to the very depths of misery
and dispair by a man cursed by drink.
Who is it that suffers most from in
temperance, the mar whose keener
sensibilitjes have been %deadened by
strong drink? No, it is his mother,
sister, wife, sweetheart: it is the wo-
man who lO7es him: it is for her to
live and suffer and endure. Oh. you
think she gets used to %it:never, NEVER
1t is easy enough for our state to
count the d%runkards that stumble into
their graves each year, but only God
can count the graves that have swal-
lowed up a broken heart or a little
life crushed out by strong drink.
Those are the graves that cover a
tragedy too he~artrending for the
world to care to hear. a tragedy that
even Shakespeare is powerless to de-
scribe. The ages are dripping with the
tears of outraged womanhood, tears
that flow from a deeper source than
mortal suffering: anguish that God
himself cannot sOOthe so long as drink
is in the world. The old adage says,
''The hand that rocks the cradle, rules
the world" but | pity that hand and |
fear its power will be usurped. if the
occupant of the cradle has to
pass a saloon each time its young
feet carry it down town: l fear for that
hand and l feel it would be greater
justice and safer to say, ''The hand
that casts the ballot, rules the world"
And why have you voted for license?
Why are we cursed with the open sa-
loon? For the same reason that Ju-
das betrayed Christ-for thirty pieces
of silver. And l wonder if the thirty
pieces of silver have done you the
good that it did Judas. DO you see
him-the haggard, worn, despised
Judas, stumbling up the aisle of the
of early morning; do you see him APP
proach those hard, murder-plotting.
chief priests: do you see him throw
down the thirty pieces of silver and
cry out from the utter wretchedness OF
his heart, II have sinned in that |
have betrayed innocent blood" Do
you see him hanging f. ON yonder tree
a suicide? You have voted for license
because you are afraid to vote other.
wise: it will injure your business so
you think.) Because the thirty pieces
of silver is more precious to you than
the desire to relieve suffering; it is
morep precious to you than your own
soul.
1t may be some day you will awake
to this material blindness, you will
awake to feel the emptiness of that
thirty pieces of silver, and you will
cr- out with Judas, 81 have sinned in
that have betrayed innocent blood.n
1t may be you will awake only when
you stand in the judgement halls Of
God and the thirty pieces of silver
will drag you out of the gates of that
celestial city. Is gold 8 o precious to
you that you are willing to pay that
price?
In Sa-gent's Hall in the Boston
Public Library, is Q ''Frieze of the
Prophets" In this f~rieze, Sargent
has portrayed all In the prophets of
the Old Testament-wonderful ,har-
mony of form and color. Here is the
aged Zephaniah with bowed head,
whitened beard and distressed face:
there is Joel partly covering his face
with his mantle in a gesture of dispair.
and Obediah, kneeling in utter hope
l~essness. The prophets are in groups
of four, and the next panel shows the
most impressive figure to be that OF
Isiah; he stands with head thrown
back and arms lifted up and his face
is full of reverence, yet sorrowful
with dispair, and he seems to be say
ing: ''Oh! Lord, how long," We
turn with relief to the last panel where
are three prophets of Hope. Haggai,
Malachi and Zechariah. They are
standing with their RIG ht arms raised
and seem to be pointing to n vision Ia
the skies, and the look on their face
seems to say, "We see the Star"
Which of the prophets do we repre-
sen tonight; are we covering our faces
with ourmantles Ia utter dispair, or are
we raising our eyes TO the hills from
whence coraeth our helpy Are va prop.
hets OF Hope, beholding the Star of
our Deliverery trust wa are A life
with hone gone Is useless Tn both
God and man. HopeY yes. hghty yes,
..sz. 80. - -. -.