Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1912-04-10

JEsDAY, APRIL 10, 1912
desire for the taste of distilled
spirits and when I looked around
me and saw so many men and boys
degrading themselves, blasting every
hope Of their manhood, I saw thai
something must be done to save
myself. Therefore I never let a
drop Of the vile stuff pass through
my lips for 10 years and / have
been ever since doing everything
that could in my humble way to
keep down the habit of drinking
whiskey among my friends.
Now I want to tell what made me
a straightout prohibitionist and am
proud of the fact that / am one. ]
/ would throw every drop of whis.
key in the very bottom of the sea
if l could have my way about it,
1t came about in this way: After
moving to your city Edgefeld,
had a dear friend that also lived
close By, and / noticed that he was
voting 3 prohibition ticket every
opportunity, and yet he would get
drunk every single time he went
into the town, SO it puzzled me a
great deal, for / had not given this
whiskey question much thought al
that time One day while over in
town / saw this friend standing or
the slreet full to the brim, and
went oves to where he was, put my
hand onlilis shoulder and said to
him Il will just call him Jack);
Look hire, what does this mean s
You vote for prohibition every
chance you get and then you come
over here and play the fool and get
drunk, make yourself sick, and suf.
fer for it. i don't understand you.'
He looked me squarely in the face
with tears in his eyes and said, Il
don't want to drink whiskey. ]
would to God there was not a drop
of it in the world. When / see
that dispensary and friends drink.
ing it all around me, l just cam,
resist the temptation, therefore / am
trying 20 vote il out of my sight.
and not saongE of tho people viii
eheI 5 me s6 do 80. ! felt Just
like I had not been doing my duty
by this friend, and many others
perhaps in the same condition. Sc
/ inst took him by the arm and told
him from this day on 1 am going
to help you get rid of this tempta-
tion," and / have kept that promise
faithfully, and with the help of God
l expect to keep it SO long as l may
live.
Don't you think 1 have done
right in this matter? Yes, you are
obliged to say that I did. No man
need to tell me that it is better to
have this temptation spread out be-
fore the youth of our land. 1t is
not 30. 1t cannot be 80, for just az
sure as you do it, many good man
and boy will go down with every
hope blasted.
On another occasion just after
the dispensary was removed l was
standing talking with an old Con-
federate friend near where the dis
pensary had been located. 1t was
late in the evening and it had been
his custom to get drunk every time
he came to town. He cast linger-
ing glance at the old dispensary
building, and then made this re-
mark: Il guess l will go home
sober this time. There is nothing
to drink here, and l am satisfied
that it is the best thing that could
happen for me.''
Now, my good and loyal people
of old Edgefeld, wont you come to
the relief of these good, but unfor-
tunate men who can't resist, and
bury this dispensary SO deep by
your vote against it, should the oc-
casion occur, that it will never be
able to raise Its head again? Yes 1
believe you will.
There is no question about it, the
scarcer you make it and the harder
it is to get whiskey, so much the
better for every one, and less of it
will be drunk. I know other things
about the dispensary, enough to
n,oLa averv father who lovas his