Daily press. [volume] (Newport News, Va.) 1896-current, 1908-02-06
INTOLERANCE RUN MAO.


We read In the Halifax Gazette. of this
week. n letter indicating remarka-
bic condition OF affairs. correspon-
! dent OF that newspaper writing from
Glover. nndcr date OF Jan. 10. 1905,
says that the preacher whose church
he attends recently announced in the
| pulpit that he would send II petition
to have the Mann law amended. SO
as to force wet counties into local
option elections, to each of his
churches. llo further said that he
wanted To see these Petitions before
they were sent off SO that he might
know how each member of his congre-
cation stands on that question. "All
OF his members" lie added, would
he required to show their colors.'
| some time ago when The News
Leader said that Il certain branch OF
the hardshell Baptisis in remote
mountain sections of the Carolnas
had voted to cXpel all members who
supported the no-fence law. members
OF that denomination challenged the
assertion with evidences of lndignn-
ton and repuhlated II holly. Yet.
here Is preacher in the county OF
Halifax. conducting something very
| Ike tho inqnlsltion tho Catholic
church conducted In Spain centuries
ago, He gives the implied warning.
or threat, that those members of the
congregation who refuse to sign tho
petition for the amendment of the
| Mann bill will be brought under dis
cipline. The inQulsitinn used To de-
crce burning. hanging and torturcs for
horotlcr those who differed from i,s
members IN matters of belief or doc
trlnc, or who failed to measure up to
their requirements OF morality and
faith. Fortunately for the Halifax
congregations, the law forhids the use
nj those drastic measures against
such of the membcrs no decline to
favor the forcing OF new elections on
wet counties; but the clergyman goes
as far rs the law will let him in
Frightening and Furnishing. II seems
to us the spirit of this man--no doubt
a good aud woil-mcaning man--is
precisely that Of the inQulsition. some
mombers OF which doubtless were
good ana wcllmeaning men firmly
persuaded that they were serving God
nv tearing the flesh Of heretics to
nlcccs with rohhot pincers or burning
thom alive.
- 'H'n ~ hb' ~ tIlllItll
in the affairs OF state wa would like
to know what 1t is. If II Ia not fol-
lowing the same principle that guided
4 the ignorant mountnineers In OK
communicating those who opposed n
popular law on political question. We
do not know to what denomination
Z this preacher belongs. The cores
pondent docs not indicate. If his
L.. i,,,,
ness aud higotry carried To the great
, est possible ctrcmo we would like to
, know what II is. The correspondent
OF the Gazette says he never has TAX
~: u dr!ak Of l.luCr. hut he Is clas7er
as whisky man because he votes on
the prohibition question according 10
HIS own Judgment and refuses to sign
the petition presented to him by the
. church.
or course. II Ia argued that prohibi-
ton Is moral and not n political
question, but We cnn force ourselves
to helieyc any political issue to he n
moral one. Pcople In the moonshinc
, districts honestly believe that they
have the moral right to do ms they
please with the products OF their own
labor and to make their corn into
| NiNNfN ~ NUtN INC. anu. GIL tnNt
| ground. they Justify themselves In
. Killing revenue officers who undertake
to Interfere with them. At one time
opposition to free masonry was made
u moral question, ana all oYer New
England tho nholitionlsts taught that
no man could be Christian. n scr
want OF God and n proper member of
n Christian church IL he opposed tie
immediate and violent abolition OF
} slavery, Here in the South we call
that fnnnticlsm. What shall we call
the implied declaration that the man
who refuses to sign petition for II
prohibition election, however sol.or,
however righteous in his life, how
ever squarely he may live TO the pre-
cepts OF the testaments. shall he
treated rs an outcast and denied the
communion OF his church.
we see that at another point In the
, state where n town in 4 local election
declined to accept prohibition. an e.
tort Is being made 10 have the ques-
ton whether the town shall be wet or
| dry decided by vote OF the county.
And we suppose II the county should
vote wet, we would have demand
that the state have an election to de-
cldc. This seems to us to be as I'M
fair as It is inconsistent. The pro-
h'bltionists. where they cannot carry
whole city demand vote on the
liquor question in each ward for it
self and put up the plea of the right
scf local self government: but when II
town votes wet they forgot about To-
cal self government and want the
country around called In 10 try and
decide the case.
Fanaiicism and intolerance have
defeated themselves through all the