The Washington herald., 1907-10-21
Liberty and License.
.itor The Washington Herald.

| Editor The Washington Herald.
Our friend, Mr.. J. T. Lewis, OF Chicago
/ seems to me 10 conf0und liberty with li-
cense. Freedom to 90 wrong to oneself
/ or neighbOr, or 20 allow a man 10 put
himself in a condition where he is NOR
ally and mentally irresponsible, is not
/ true liberty. Laws are made for the law
less. and law-abiding citizens need not
object 10 their stringency.
II citizen is inclined to license which
endangers himself and everybody around
| him. license which leads to murder ont
rage and evil habits Of every descrlp-
/ ton, license which exposes defenseless
women and children to brute violence
license which destroys a man mentally
morally and physically, by all means let
| us control By law all possibility Of temp
tauon that will lead a man to forget
what is due 10 himself and others. and
TO the high calling to which he is called
| Of God, "Ye are bought with a price. ye
| are not your own"
Our Saviour teaches us 10 pray: lead
| Us not into temptation St Paul saws.
lie that standeth take heed lest ne fan.
We are prone TO think ourselves so much
stronger so much better than those
whose fates should have been a warning
Take heed lest ye fall"
man is never 50 strong as when he
| realizes his own weakness Intemper-
ance, TO which the doctrine Of moderation
usually leads, generally includes the pos
I session a Aa 81
tends to evil and utter collapse of the
viii power to resist. and the beclouding
of the brain and moral perceptions, the
| Drutallzing Of one made IN the likeness
of God and intended for eternity. "No
drunkard shall inherit the kingdom Of
God"
Glance at the scales and count the cost
A soul and drink Is il worth the price?
Aye, even THE weak brother for whom
Christ died. I'VE that are strong should
bear the infrmities Of the weak. and not
10 please ourselves" Take heed lest
by any means this liberty Of yours prove
| a stumbling block 10 him that is weak "
1t is good neither 20 eat meat nor N
drink wine nor anything whereby thy
/ brother stumbleth, OF is offended. or is
made weak Woe unto him that giveth
his neighbor drink" He that standeth
take heed"
A laWmaker, or a politician who is not
in favor Of temperance, is liable to be-
come a victim TO the consequences which
We see all around us, and is therefore not
TO be trusted Away with him by an
means
Home influence and all influence should
be invoked in behalf Of temperance. One
does not know how strong he is till he
has fallen. and, then, how many are
strong enough to rise? Would il not he
best to see how far We can keep our
selves and others, by law and all other
influence, from the fall? The first drink
is what hads TO the last.
Two wrongs do not constitute a right
and because the law is not faultless does
not prove that there should be no law
The fault seems to me in this instance Ia
be in the difficulty Of enforcing the law
and the effort of lawless people to evade
and disOhcy rather than in the law itself
There being 10 law 10 control or punish
does not make it less a crime.
To live up 10 the letter and spirit Of the
law constitution is incumbent upon all
and to 90 so requires that we humans
weak ard apt to err" should be safe
guarded by law and all that will hem lie
in on every side, and urge US on in the
warfare against sin and the devil. Rv
all means give us the law that will safe
guard the weak brother for whom
Christ died" Shoulder to shoulder let us