The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1910-10-10
MINISTER'S OPPOSE PROHIBITION
St. Louis clergymen Pronounce Pro-
hibitory Law Farce.

]. Tansey, chairman of the Citizens
Defense Committee, has received nu-
merous letters from clergymen of st.
Louis expressing their personal views
On statewide prohibition Many OF
the ministers interviewed are opposed
to prohibition as being impracticable.
Rev. John John W. Day, pastor of the
Church OF the Messiah, writes Mr..
Tansey, in part, as follows:
You will understand that my
opinions are mine as an individual,
not as the representative OF church
II felt uncertain about the result and
thought 1t possible that such meas
ure might in the long run help the
cause have at heart might vote for
prohibition. But / do not think it
would stop men who want to drink
from drinking. Those who want to
drink would want to still more.
The minute we get law against
any evil we relax our efforts, as il
the law would do for us what we
have to do for ourselves. Even the Al
mighty does not force goodness on US
because the highest good is our liking
and choosing it. He shows man what
is good, but does not make him do it.
A prohibition law, in trying to enact
the thing 1t desires, loses what it
might possess. A provision that be-
comes a dead letter whenever it Is
forced on a community will not be-
come alive WREN embalmed in the
constitution. Many people who think
they favor prohibition and intend to
vote for it do so to punish liquor in
terests for the evil they have done,
not because they have any notion OF
becoming prohibitionists themselves.
If they thought prohibition would pro
hibit they would not tolerate it for
minute"
Rabbi Samuel Sale of the Gates OF
Truth congregation writes Mr.. Tan
sey:
Il am opposed 20 the enactment OF
a law to prohibit the traffic in liquor
because l hold 1t to be unjust. unwise
and morally pernicious. Those who
are supporting this movement forget
that men are not cattle, and can not
be driven, and thus a coerciye meas
ure. such as contemplated. must OF
necessity fail of its purpose. l am
sure that Americans do not need to
be told that prohibitory statute such
as is to be proposed for their adoption
would be a more dangerous invasion
of their personal rights and liberties
than was the stamp act which infiu
enced the minds OF revolutionary faith
ers.
Unenforced Law Bad.
"a law that runs contrary to human
nature must necessarily defeat it
self. The history of prohibftory en-
actments on the subject of liquor il
one unbroken record of notorious, fla
grant and scandalous violation of law
/ All jurists agree that wherever there
I is one law on the statute books tina
can not be enforced, tie only purpose
4 it serves is to create and abet gen
eral spirit of disrespect and contemp
1 for legal authority. | am convincet
that the great majority of my fellow
citizens are not ready to have them
selves declared minors and to b.
placed under moral tutelage."
Rev. John F. Cannon, pastor of tn
Grand Avenue Presbyterian church. i
his reply to Mr.. Tansey, takes tn
ground that the Confession of Fait
of the Presbyterian church separate
church matters from politics, an
leaves all adherents of that creed t
follow tie dictates of their own COZ
science. He says:
"As minister Of the church hav
no commission 10 advocate or oppos
the proposed amendment. AS prtvat
citizen l shall vote on the question a.
cording to my convictions and leay
others to do the same without any III
solicited advice from me"
Rev. Geo. B. Dodson, pastor OF h
Church OF the Unity, in his reply
Mr.. Tansey. says. in part: While
would probably vote for prohibition ;
local option election in the count
l shall vote against 1t as statewid
measure at the coming election. B'
to brewers and liquor dealers wis
TO say that a victory at this electio
viii be merely a postponement OF ce
tain defeat unless you at once great
: irnpro-a ,ba aioo- huaipasc