The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-09-21

rulers and pariiaments to wage war; let us hunt men to Introduce the bu- bonic plague and yellow fever and chol- era; let us encourage criminals to set fire to our houses in order to give car- penters extra work. All these things help business The wives and children may weep and groan and hunger in their poorIv furnished homes, but the fathers and husbands and sons can have good cheer and jolly good times over their beer in the saloons! God save us from that sort of Prosperity!
 Among Apo1ogists.
 Among all the drunkards and sa- loonists and apologists and paid allies of the saloon power in Alabama, l do not believe we can find dozen who are willing to stand up before the world and declare that the saloons, as they existed in our State up to few months ago, ever did accomplish one-hundredth part as much good as they did Of harm. Even the men who made money out of the wretched business know that for every particle of real good the saloon did they wrought thousand times as much harm and ruin.
 T know some people may say that because I speak thus earnestly and plainly against the saloon power that am malicious and spiteful. But, God knows, I have no malice In my heart towards any liquor man on the earth have no personal acquafntances that were in that business and I have no personal quarrel with them or their apologists. I know a few ministers of the Gospel who have lent themselves more or less to this bad cause, suppos- ing that they were really contending for what is best. God have mercy on their judgmenti I think they are fear fully blundering in saying one word to hinder the cause of civic virtue and religion. do not think they mean to help the saloon power but they are doing 1t. There are Christian men and, even Presbyterian elders who are so anxious to defeat the political ambi- tions of certain men and serve what they are pleased to term personal lib- erty' that they follow a course that Is helping the cause of national degrada- ton; and, if they are successful in their advocacy are sure to bring back upon our State all the internal evils of the saloon regime. from which God. in His mercy, seemed about to deliver our State.
 These men are ready to condemn as hypocrites and fanatics the ministers of the Gospel who are fervently trying to rid our land of the curse of drink and saloon politics. Ministers who have the courage to speak out boldly
  with being political preachers. I re- sent the insolence! So far as I am personally concerned I have never preached a political sermon in my life. and I never expect to do so. l nave never said I believed 1t was sin, per SC in the case of all men for man to take intoxicants in moderation, but do believe that for ninety-five per cent of us total abstiHence is immeasur- ably best for us and do also believe that when the proper law making pow CT passes constitional laws regulating the drink customs of society 1t Is the duty of every good citizen to obey that law and not lend any aid to the saloon men and their crowd who are trying to bring the law Into contempt. have never said that no man could be a Christian and yet vote against the prohibition amendment to our com stitution but I expect to vote for that amendment, if I am lawfully entitled to vote because I see no other way ip the world to down the saloon power except in some such manner.
 "The talk about regulating salooDs makes me sick. No man ever saw sa looms successfully regulated in his life. They are fond of telling us that prohibition will not prohibit Nobody ever said 1t would be an absolute sue cess anywhere, but we know 1t has been and Is grand success In many communities. and verify believe thai Montgomery is cursed with less drunk enness now than 1t ever was In forty years fin spite of the open and relepP- less war on the prohibitory iegisla tion waged Dyndeu. -snme-of whom are under VOWS to serve Jesus Christ. chal- lenge the saloonists and their spolo gists and allies to name single State or nation In the world where the sO- called regulation of saloons has hsep a real success for a single year. don't say there may not have been one such exception. but I do Sssert that 1t has been and is a dead failure in nine cases out of ten. It certainly was a failure in this city for at least sev' eral generations Prohibition is far more a success here at this time than regulation ever was or ever could be. Therefore want prohibition. not as the best possible state of things where men generally are willing to obey and enforce law, but as the best thing I know of that is at all feasible. I am for prohibition. because 1t offers the