The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1907-09-20
Strong Position Of a Total Abstainer

by closing or eyes = the truth not
by sn--ri1g -nnIskyIte' a. everyone
that insists nn ,aying III sax at tie rea,
root rf th. T-aS tree.
The iInroliey and inju-ti-e mot 10
say lniCuity' II the prohibition POI
icy becomes sun more manifest when
another well known ana equally i'm
rortart fact ! considered. VIZ: that
but for The drinking ~ liquor there
could not be any int-nT-rance-no
any u the evils charged against sa-
looms.
The most important fact bearing
on The temperance problem s the self
evi1ent-Out generally ignored-truth
that. even If oceans az intoxicants
we're sold, no harm could possibly re-
suit il none Of Il We're drank.
It Is. therefore. clear that drink
"-s CauSe-an1 cannot escape respon-
Sibility for all the evils. or every de-
ScriTtion. that directly o. indirectly.
result from the drinking Of liquor. And
the reason is that drinking is. usually.
the drinkers voluntary act. All drink
ers begin voluntarily. Moreover. in
most cases. they never lose the ability
To stop. if they really try to-and this
last fact is almost as important as the
first. Does not common sense demand
"A candid recognition II these far
reaching facts? And i there any pos
sible excuse for longer failing 10 act
upon them?
Demand Exists
i, Saloons and joints are never estab-
lished where there is not already an
existing demand-that is. some drink
ers whose desire for LIQUOR is SO strong
that they ar willing To pay men to
crafty it. There is no exception to
this. Moreover the drinker buys to
please himsalf-not the seller H goes
where n can be suited best. without
regard 70 the urofit made by the man
who sells il: and, while dramsellers
admittedly strive 70 land dO) increase
their business. but few men or boys
ever begin to drink solely because of
their solicitation. The sellers chief
success is not in inducing more per-
sons To begin drinking. but in Undue
ing the customers TO drink more than
! they otherwise might. In substan-
TALLY all cases the drinkers first glass
4 is taken at the invitation of-or be-
cause of a wish to imitate-his assO-
Ciates Evidently, therefore, the drink
ers are primarily responsible, not only
/ for the existence of saloons. but also
+ for the increasing number Of their
1 TatronS.
Saving the Boys
Many still cling 10 prohibition in
/ O. der - save The boys But instead
{ saving them, it actually increa ses
their danger. Neither saloons, drug
stores. nor joints are serious tempta-
lions To boys that have been taught
why the drink habit is injurious
ana when they are not thus grounde3 I.
cluEs drugStores and joints are more
dangerous than open salOOns-foT the
youth knows he can visit them with
out his parents and temperance reo-
ule being likely t. hear of il. When
the first wrong steps can be taken
secretly. they will be ventured on 10y
many that would not take them pub
licly: but. repeat the first drink-in
either saloon. drugstore or joints
sci lom taken soie.y because Of the
opportunity. nor At the solicitation "a
its proprietor,
l.
the principal. and the seller is but an
acomplice-or accessory. In fact. the
seller il a cate,er-and nothing more
Therefore. he cannot be morally a
criminal. nor his business vicious un-
less his employers are also criminals
and their desires to which he panders
vicious. This proposition should be
well weighed-for its Importance can
hardly be Exaggerated.
Many suppose that closing the sa-
looms must put a stop To the drinking
by making il impossible to procure
liquor-but experience proves that i;
. does not.
Does Not Prohibit
That prohibition has not prevent
e1 the sale Of liquor is notorious. In
Kansas it would be difficult TO find a
place with a few hundred inhabitants
in which any enc with the desire that
the sellers dare trust cannot buy all
ne wants And in Maine. as long ago
as 1856. when in Augusta. arranging
for a delegation 10 the Anti Saloon
Republican National Convention, while
eating supper in prominent restaur-
ant. / saw people openly drinking beer
at a har-and was told by reliable men
that liquor was sold al fifty-siX places
in that one county.
To those that have never tried t.
f enforce obnoxious laws. il seems easy
requiring only a little nerve-but
those that have tried it know better
And ii can be added that prohibitory
liGusr laws are among the most diff
cult 70 rigidly enforce Of any that
l,.ar7 .fT-i
Gals. 1t is not necessary to give the