Daily Kennebec journal., 1911-04-13
Mains's Step Backward.

| The following letter under the head
line Maine and Prohibition" appeared
| in the Ansunla (Conn.) Evening Senti-
| mel. March -. 1t is f-eXplanatory
| and furnishes food for thought for
| Maine people. 1t is written by one
| who has lived under prohibition and
under other regimes of liquor regula-
ton and lack of regulation. He de-
clarCs that Maine has been ON the right
track: that the only way to handle the
liquor traffic is to prohibit it. And
he calls attention to a fact, which is
recognized in other New England
states as we'll as in Maine, that THE
VICTORY or THE DEMOCRATIC
PARTY IN MAINE LAST FALL WAS
NOTHING MORE NOR LESS THAN
THE SELLING OFT or THE PARTY
TO THE LIQUOR INTERESTS"
Here is the letter:
I read an article in Saturday nights Is
sue Of the "Sentinel' entitled Rum and
Politics in Maine" from the "SprinSitCld
Union The article refers to recent vic
tories of the bemocHatir party in Maine
signs of progress and Of progressive poll
tics, and that progres ssivc politicians
should read the Handwriting on the
wall"
! should like to say to the "Sprincfcld
Union that IL advancing the interests OF
the liquor traffic Is progressive politics, |
for one do not want Ia have anything L.
do with progression and progressive poll
tipS a I,, do Rnf ,,t - Ii
quor ira c is the "Snringiield Unions
ideal of progressive politics. the "Sprng-
field Union is certainly a menace To tue
welfare of Massachusetts and to the
In regard To the Handwriting on the
wall" II means this, that If Maine loses
its prohibltorv liquor law al the election
next September, 1t viii marx the begin
ming of an era of sin. degradation and
corruption the like of which Maine "as
never known. and it will be the greatest
blow to the cause of temperance that the
world has ever seen.
| was born and brought up IN Maine and
of course have the best interests of
Maine at heart. lived there until was
quite a little over p years of age and
since left there | have lived in both
Massa chusettS and Connecticut, ConSe-
1uently I have had good opportunity
for observing the working of both meth |
DDS of handling the liquor traffic, and the
longer | live the more thoroughly am
right track and that the only way To
landle the Iquor traffic is to prohibit it. |
At the time of the election last fall the
people in Maine did not hesitate to say
hat there We're thousands of dollars sent
INTO Maine by liquor dealers outside o |
he State to advance the interests or the
Democratic party, and when any political
party will use money like that IL means
10 good to Mainn or any other state. The
iictory of the Democratic party in Main" |
asst fall was nothing more nor less than
he selling out of that party to the liquor
interests of the country.
How many. many times we hear Maine
spoken of as being Gods country. Why |
$ this? I will tell YOU why it is. 1t is be- |
,ause the prohibition laws of Maine |
packed up by the State constitutions. have
,een doing Gods work. The devil has |
,een there. l will admit. but if Maine |
oses prohibition the devil will reign SUI |
,reme and it will be Gods country no |
onger, in the sense il is spoken of now
am sure no one would ever speak OF |
Insonia as being Gods country.
| only regret / shall not have the priVi-
ege of giving my vote to the cause OF
prohibition in Maine next September.
s. ]. LANE,
81 Glover street, AnSonia.