The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1908-01-31

or Europe. They would have t
build hundreds of ships to get tn
stuff here, and it would be a rattle
ticklish matter to stop internationa
commerce.
Even If you could stop such com
merce, there are still any number O
patent medicines which contain al
the way from 10 to so per cent alec
hol, and any one who has ever beer
in North Dakota knows how much
of this Is consumed.
The strong argument used against
liquor is that its use impoverishes
the people and produces crime. There
are many causes that have the same
result.
| Wall street produces crime. Ergo,
abolish it.
Love, and jealousy connected with
1t, produce any number of crimes.
Ergo, abolish love.
Railroads kill the thousands. Ergo,
abolish them.
The extravagences of many marri-
ed women produce poverty. Ergo,
abolish women.
Go with me to the city of Munich.
In that most beautiful of all cities,
the artistic center of Europe, there
are consumed yearly fifty gallons of
beer per head, and your argument
does not hold good there, when you
see the prosperity, the happiness Of
the people, the democratic spirit
which prevails in all classes. But
they do not close anything on Sun
day The government encourages
the drinking of beer to keep its peo-
pie from the fire water" drinks, and
besides, it gives its people all kinds
of chances for legitimate amusements
on Sundays, by the finest concerts
and operas and dramas, subvention-
ed by the government.
What do we do here? We pass a
Sunday rest law. 1t is the biggest
farce of law that was ever passed
through legislature. 1t is so H.
logical that it is ridiculous. 1t pro-
hibits a man from working on Sun
day. The sugar factory runs. 1t
closes the telephone Office in Wallace,
and it keeps 1t open in Blackfoot. 1t
allows base ball, but it does not allow
4 fine concert or the giving of Ham
let. 1t closes saloons, but drug
stores are getting rich.
1t is only one of many hundreds of
avs which are passed yearly in this
country which no one expects to OBJ ;
'erve, and the violation of which has {
,iven us the Dynamo of the most {
awless citizens of the world, among
'ther civilized nations. Yes, get 8
'usy, and let the egal scream. We t
re it. At present we are engaged s
N new hobby. Down the saloon. {
lever mind the issues that are more Y
mportant-vastly so.
Here is striking illustration a
line and time again | have stood in v
ront of the Brooks Hotel, at the d
lme of the night when train No. v
ONES pounding across Snake River g.
ridge, going at no less than twenty
lilies an hour. i have travelled long n
nough to know the speed Of train.
ever whistle blowing or bell ri
nging when the train crosses the h
Ost dangerous crossings. Some cl
ay, mark my word they are going o.
} kill and kill hard. What does Mr. m
)iceman do? Arrest the engineer? r
OF on your life! He has the saloon st
think Of That Is the only ordi- Il
ince he has in mind. Down the
loon. m
Thousands of lives are lost annual hi
through the frightful slaughter on IN
lr railroads. You say 1t cannot be th
'lped Indeed, it can. Did you sc
er send a president of railroad Al
to the pen" for manslaughter? No, al,
It a bit! Your reform lies in the cb
rection of the saloon. might m,
ention any number of things which mi
ed correcting more than the liquor sp
IL, but again, abase the saloon. itq
| shall not speak of the revenue sti
itch the saloon Is to the Golfers of No
r towns. That is a very small fin
liter and no doubt, not an ex- .
Sc for the existence of a saloon. are
is revenue, ifgit cannot be gotten tba
I'm the saloon, might be easily ac
sed by taxing the property of the be
riches Of this country, which is fpf
used for church work properly. f.
amounts to well nigh five billion mo-
liars In the U. s., non-taxable. live
hear Of any offer in that direc- the
L. wht
am by no means the friend of ex- asst,
sive drinking and by all means let tina
do away with it, You cannot ven
,Jish drinking pf a rnndar.to | ~,