Weekly journal-miner., 1914-09-09
Editor Journal-Miner,
 Prescott. Arizona.


 Prescott. Arizona
 Dear Sir:-I have just read with much interest and satisfaction your editorial entitled "Intemperate Tenn perance" wherein you justly come to the support and vindication of five of Prescott's most reputable and honored citizens, men, who at the Forge of Life" late and early, by the suns effulgent rays, have in the sweat of their swarthy brows wrought the fortunes of competence, sobriety and moral stamina, which no itinerant Prohibition politician, prevaricator or tergiversator can in justice assail or berate.
 Be it known, and it is, I am no anti-prohibitionist spouter; I am neither friend nor enemy of liquor So far as I am concerned, person ally, l would care but little if every gill of liquor were drained into the Red Sea, and its method of manu- facture banished from the minds of men. 1 do not oppose prohibition because I am the friend of liquor, but because I love American fiber ty.
 The present prohibition amend ment which will be submitted to the electors of Arizona at the next gen eral election for their adoption or rejection, IS delusion, snare and fraud. It proposes to shear me of my rights, and yours, guaranteed me under the grandest constitution ever framed by mortal man. It pro- poses, if you please, or at least some of its advocates so suggest, that, in order to avoid the legal consequences of its mandates, the catholic priest, in celebrating the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. as Jesus Christ proposes, "Take ye and drink" may use Welch's grape juice. We'll see about that, Mir. Prohibitioner Nor will he find it necessary, in order to evade the law, as he now has to do in the great State of Kan sas, to resort to the tricks of the prohibition bug-juice-vendor, snug gle his sacramental wine under the label Hires Root Beer"
 Whenever a man opposes the poli- i cies and plans of the professional prohibition politician as I did last evening at the Prescott forum, con- corning some of the unreasonable | aspects of the present proposed amendment, he is forthwith branded and denounced as an enemy Of nor ality, slave of the saloons, hire ling, unwittingly perhaps, of the Arizona Brewing Company.
 Well, l had rather be the emis- sary of the saloons than the assas- sin of liberty; the slave of brew CT. than the blind peon of ignorant prejudice. While, if morality con- sists of attending 10 my ncighbU-'s business to the neglect of my own, I'm against it until the twenty-third proposed amendment becomes a fun damental law of the great State of Arizona. Another less direct in ference which the Good Brother Chafin' deigned to make, and which he undoubtedly intended for the gullible fanatic was, that eight of every ten saloon-kecpers in the United States are Irishman and Catholics. I have only to reply that every Prescott citizen within his hearing perceived his intent and many of them herewith classified him as a demagogue
 Milton tells us that the Angel lthuriel found the devil squat like toad" distilling poison in the ear of sleeping Eve, that he touched the viper with his spear and forth with Satan resumed his proper shape and fled shriekingly out of Para disc. Brother Chain and h;s twen- ty-third amendment is another evil spirit that is breeding trouble in mans Eden, but when touched by the spear-point of legitimate criti- cism, its disguise falls away, and we see instead of a harmless toad. a person creating bitterness and ill-l will among brethren
 Aside from the notoriously unrea- sonable features Of the present pro- posed amendment. Number Skidoo. to the Arizona Constitution. the general thesis of prohibition is sim ply this Some men drink to ex- cess, therefore. no one should be permitted to drink at all. The hu- man race must reverse its inherent tastes, lest some wild-eyed jay get on a jag. The question at issue, or at least one phase Of it, is sim ply this. Can we afford to sacri- flee human liberty to save the sots and if we do, is the game worth the candle and ii we burn the can ! dle will we win the game?
 As much and more reasoning might be adduced in favor Of the abolition of strawberry short-cake ! sliced cucumbers and a hundred oth- | CT succulent edibles. whose God ! gwen use is daily abused. causing ;-,I,noat1o-, a I,,rarcT T,vpg+i,-c -4,r