Rogue River courier. (Grants Pass, Or.) 1886-1927, 1907-07-26

the expense of conducting many cases.
all the way from the " plain drunk
of the police court to the murder case
in the criminal court. We must run
orphan ssylums, and provide relief
for the destitute, because OF the tax
which the saloon levies; but it is in
finitely easier to get up a bazaar to
provide for poor children, or to raise
money for the coal guild, than it is
to get an awakened public intelli-
gence that will go to the ipolls and
vote the saloon out of existence.
This may be lamentable, but 1T is
true. We all know that it is true,
and .if we do not know that 1.-The
church is almost without influences in
the politics of this nation, it goes to
show that we know little either of the
church or politics, or the temper OF
the people, for that matter; for the
clergyman who breaches politica!
sermons does so at his own risk,
and usually hears from the pews
pretty promptly.
But let us suppose, for the sake OF
argument, that the church wages
warfare on the saloon. Even then We
must make another computation be
fore we can accept our figures.
Counting nothing off for any Summer
vacation, sickness or absence of the
pastor, the working days of the
church number 104 a year and those
are not whole days. 1t may take the
minister the whole week to prepare
his sermon, and its influence may last
much more than that, but it is de-
livered in an hour, The working
hours of the church itself, taking into
consideration the congregation, at
five hours a week, make total OF
260 hours year.
Now let us look at the other side OF
the account. Kipling says in is
American notes that he grew tired OF
asking how this and that man got his
start in politics and being told,
"Well, you see he had saloon" Al
illustration of this point it might be
said that the most noted character OF
modern fiction is Mr. Dooley, OF
Archie Road, who hands out philoso.
ply across the bar. The saloon is the
great political free-for-all club of the
nation. 1t is the meeting place OF
politicians, and in it our political
destinies are determined. In nine
tenths of our cities it is in direct al
lance with the political powers that
be.
The average saloon breaks the law
The average saloon breaks the law,
and the men who are paid to enforce
the law know it; and the newspapers
know it; the children know It. It
runs nights and Sundays in spite OF
the statute in such cases made and
provided. The saloon works S65 days
a year, and "a hours a day. Look at
these igures;
Working days of the church pei
year, 1O4
Working days of the saloon, 800.
Working hours of the church pei
year % week, 260.
Working hours of the church per
year, (5 a week., 260.
Working hours of the saloon PEI
year $3.50.
Given town of 100000 people,
with 100 churches and 400 saloons
(and that is about the average)
The result will be that the church
puts in $4,000 hours while the saloons
come up with grand total of 3, 5O4,
600 hours in the aggregate. Working
these hours it would take nearly "a
churches to offset the working time
of one saloon. Add to this the fact
that politics is talked in every one OF
the 400 saloons at least third of the
time by anywhere from two to 200
men and you begin to get at the real
reason why the church seems so
powerless TO grspple with this phase
of our civilization. 1t is a shocking
thing to say, but it is probably true
that any saloon, no matter what its
standing in the community. has more
direct political influence than any
church, simply because 1t keeps ever
lastingly at it.
Just as long as We continue to take
our politics from the saloon, while the
church will consent to attack neither
the saloon nor saloon politics, save
sporadically or indirectly, the saloon
will continue TO flourish, aud the
church will continue to seek an ex-
planation and justic6ation of its
inability to accomplish more in this
unequal struggle. The church could
overcome the saloon if it would, " but
not with its present tactics-not in
10 OOO yaara