The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1909-11-21

ards they have endured abuses, bias
phemies and wife beatings, been dragged
about the floor. kicked down stairs, had
burning lamps thrown in. their faces
been struck with red-hot pokers, Drained
with axes cut with knives, stabbed, shot,
and murdered in every conceivable way.
They have heard their children crying
for bread, with none to give, and seen
them clothed In rags. Their darling
babies brains have been dashed out
against the wall" by liquor frenzied ia
TIERS and they have been thrown on
red-hot stoves and out of windows.
Yes, all these and a Thousand more un-
told horos has American womanhord
suffered "A the hands of the American
liquor traHic and by permission of the
American voter.
Remember these things, ye men of
Alabama, when you cast your ballots on
the 18th of November.
Remember how the remorseess liquor
traffic and its personal liberty drunkards
have been invading and desecrSting the
"sanctity of the home" destroying all
of its peace and happiness and leaving
woe and despair in its place; and that
for years and years women endured 1t
all in agonizing silence and non-resist-
ance, feeling God forsalzen, and man for
saken, and waiting, waiting, waiting for
the rescue that seemed never to be COM
ing.
But heaven came down with the help
that earth refused to give. Gods time
for recompense had come. His hour
struck, and the doom of the liquor traffic
was sealed. Calling to women to be up
and doing for themselves and their chill
dren He babe them to come out of the
homes that the liquor traffic had cursed
and go out and make warfare against
the great enemy.
Responding to His call with trembling.
yet with hearts full of faith in His help
and In the righteousness of their cause.
they went forth in the name of the Lord
Jesus Christ, and placing themselves as
a living wall of defense between the
liouor traffic and the homes of this
country. for SO years they have been
fighting one of the bravest battles that
this world has ever known, never turn
ing their back to the foe, never yielding
to it, never compromising with it. and
never doubling It's final downfall And
from the heights of answered prayer to-
day they are looking backward and see
ing the great things God has wrought, in
the crumbling away and tottering condi-
ton of the once mountainous liquor
traffic that seemed so strongly en-
trenched in its foundations
The Womans Christian Temperance
union Of Alabama, as part of this great
temperance army. has enlisted for the
warfare and will remain in 1t till the
liquor traffic is driven from our whole
country.
AS II worked and prayed for state pro-
hibition for Alabama, 1t is now working
for constitutional prohibition, realizing
that the one has been educational toward
the other as constitutional will event,f-
ally prove to be national prohibition.
IF state prohibition had been Loyalty
supported, as it should have been, by
influential citizens who have been fight
ing it-yet, who, strange to say after
having cried out that it Is ''a miserable
failure" '.mockery and a farce" are
now pleading that 1t should be longer
tested and a fair trial given to it-these
extra measures would not have been
taken. and the state would have been at
peace and rest
But law defiance, encouraged by such
opposition, became anarchistic in its eff
forts for the overthrow of prohibition and
establishment of the liquor traffic; thus
rendering law enforcement much more Diff
ficult. giving double trouble to the Of
ficers of the law and upsetting the peace
and order of the state generally. These
were the conditions that brought on the
extra session of the legislature" the
drastic laws" the extra election" the
extra expense to the state" and the CON
stitutional amendment.
These measures were forced upon our
rulers and lawmakers for the protection
of the law the people and Sthe state
Should they have sat still and submitted
to such law defiance anarchy, democrat
ization and deadly work upon our people,
as has been going on, without making
resistance and putting a check to it,?
Surely not.
II. the laws are drastic they are none
too much SO to meet and circumvent the
crafty liquor traffic at its every point
OF attack. Can any law be made too
strong to keep such a treacherous and
deadly enemy at bayY
Must the law-abiding element of this
country ever be yielding to the lawless
ana defiant, making no resistance. suffer-
ing untold evils and horrors. that per-
sonal liberty and personal appetites may
have full sway? God forbid and help the
necp,e to see the rapidly Increasing dam
yers that are threatening on every side
ana have so nearly brought our country
to ruin.
The other points in the controversy over
H.. amendment sink into utter insignifi-
o. nee beside the evils and horrors of the
law-defying, sn-engendering drunkard-
making crime-creating, death-dealing,
soul-destroying LIQUOR traffic: and the Inn