The Republican journal., 1909-04-08
Nearly Three Centuries
OF Temperance Agitation and Legislation
in Maine l636-19O9.
BY FRANK W. GOWEN.

Maine to follow Grant Rogers was Rev.
E. V. Stevens Of Oakland, who soon
after his election moved to Lyndonville,
Vermont. He joined the order at an
early age and was always loyal and
active Good Templar and speaker of
no mean ability. He left many warm
friends in the Pine Tree State who will
ever remember him with kindness. Rev.
Mr.. Stevens, however, was never elected
Grand Chief Templar. He was Grand
Counsellor at the time that Grant Rogers
resigned the Office of Grand Chief Tenn
plar at Lewiston, April IL, 1899, and OF
course succeeded to that Office, which he
filled until the time of installation the
next day, so that his term of Office was
very brief, yet it entitled him to the
honor of Past Grand Chief Templar. Mr..
Uriah A. Game Of West Kennebunk was
elected Grand Chief Templar the same
day that Grant Rogers resigned. He
was a very stirring and earnest official
and did much for the order in Maine. In
his able address at the annual session of
the Grand Lodge, held in Portland in
April, 1901, he recommended the election
of a Grand Electoral Superintendent OF
the order and has the honor of first sug-
costing or recommending in our Grand
Lodge the creating of one of the most
important offices in our organization. His
recommendation was favorably acted up
on by the grand body at this session, and
Electoral Superintendent of Maine. The
duties of this office are, briefly, as fol-
lows: To supervise all legislative work
of the order and to cooperate with
other temperance organizations in deal
ing with any changes in the liquor laws
of our commonwealth.
At the Grand Lodge session in Portland
in 1901 Hon. A H. Newbert of Rockland
was elected Grand Chief Templar to fol-
low Bro. Game. Bro. Newbert made an
able presiding officer and was a loyal
Good Templar but as | have spoken or
written of Mr. Newbert in one of my
previous papers l will simply add that he
held this Office until the spring of 1904,
and was followed by Mr.. W. A. Rideout
of Calais, who was elected Grand Chief
Templar of Maine at the annual spring
session of the Grand Lodge held in Ban
gor in 1904. 1t was during the years Of
1902, 3, A, that the State of Maine lost
by death several prominent temperance
leaders, such as Rev. Samuel F. Pearson
of Portland, an active member of the
Good Templar ordnr and one of the most
God-fearing officials for the enforcement
of our prohibitory law in the history of
Maine; Hon. 7. R. Simonton of Camden,
to whom | referred in previous article;
Rev. DR.. A. T. Dunn of Waterville, one
of Names strongest prohibition advo-
Gates and long a member OF our order;
and Samuel Osborne of Waterville, a
staunch defender of the principles of
prohibition and one of the most promi
nent colored men in the Good Tempar
order "Sam" was white beside many
of our white people. God bless his
memory!
At our Grand Lodge session in Portland
in April, 1905, was elected for the sec
ond successive time to represent the
Grand Lodge of Maine in the world S
session Of our order in Europe, and as l
have promised the readers of The Journal
to give them description Of my trip to
lands beyond the sea will say that | left
steamer ARABIC" of the White Star
line, July goth, accompanied by Rev
Mr. Bisbee of Portland and other promi-
nent members of our order. We had a
splendid voyage across the Atlantic and
enjoyed ourselves exceedingly. Arriving
in Queenstown, July 9th, we Immediate
ly left our steamer. We found we had
four days before US to journey north to
Belfast, and this gave US an opportunity
to see some Irish scenery, to visit Blarney
Castle and the Lakes of Killarney, ia
nous as having been sung IN song and
told in story. We found the people in
southwestern Ireland very poor. and the
licensed liquor traffic their greatest foe,
but in northwestern Ireland the people
are more prosperous, and Dublin is a
beautiful city of wealth and culture.
Here it was that Burke and Sheridan,
two of the most conspicuous figures as
orators in history, first saw day, also the
brilliant poet, Thomas Moore AS stood
beside the statue of Burke on a warm
summer day, and looked at his marble
features, could only say we Americans
can not fail to be interested in the life of
this great orator, whose famous speeches
in the British Parliament in behalf Of the
rights of our colonies during the Revolu-
ton deserve lasting renown. Monday,
July 31st, we left this famous city of
Belfast, often termed the commercial
capitol of Ireland, to be in readiness tc
attend the worlds session of our order,
which opened in the Y NJ C. A. building,
August End. When Bro. Joseph Mains
of England, head of the worlds order,
Drought MS bIS SdNel uoNH Win pIOlllpt-
ness on the morning of that day 104 rep
resentatives answered to the roll call, %
past representatives, and large number
of honorary members and visitors from
the United States, Canada New Bruins
wick, Nova Scotia, South Africa, New
Zealand, New South Wales, India, Eng
land, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Channel
Islands, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Den
mark, Germany, Switzerland, and Hol-
land. In conversing day by day with rep
resentatives and distinguished members
OF the order from all parts of the earth,
speaking different languages, having diff
ferent ideals, yet united as one man in
defence of the great principles of our
glorious order, l could only say what a
wonderful and cheering spectacle to be-
hold.
The membership of our worlds order
was given as 6l4,647, in l1,627 lodges,
with the rituals used in IA different Ian
guages. This was net increase in men,
bership since the Stockholm session of
80, AL This was due to the great in
crease in membership on the European
continent, including members of Parlia-
ment eminent physicians, and, in fact,
we found the very best of society men,
bers of our order on the other side of the
sea.
Hon. Edward Wavrinsky of Sweden,
who was elected as the chief officer of