The mirror. (Stillwater, Minn.) 1894-1925, 1914-11-19
breweries, dislilliries, malt hous s.,

finally, the seven hundred Thousand
of inn keepers. harteuders, walters,
AMI thousands of other workers wh,,
earn wages in related industries as
sistlng IN lie produc ion an sale of
alcohol. No doubt all Of those men
engaged and connected with this
alcohol industry could seek other
employment in d fferent branches,
and The capital invested in the manu-
featuring and dispensaIion of alec
hnl could he shifted Ia IRON work,
cotton mills. railroads and agricul-
ture. Most surely this could l-
done, but The same satisfactory
argument could he raised about the
million of inllars spent for the ia
tiunal defense and military glory.
and the millions of men now eugay
ell in standing armies aud mavies
could lie turned into productive in
dustries, such as farming, mining.
trade. In summing up the army OF
men employed, The thousands of
buildings occupied, and the i'm
mense amount of capital invested
in this alcohol industry. we surel,
must at least admit that II is quite
ii record breaking industry; and Ia
stamp it out and wipe il off the map
of commerce and the financial
market, it would leave quite gap
in the deposits of The banking firms.
and would produce an enormous
drop and difference in the records
of The city Auditors ufficr, and ais"
IN the different real estate offires.
The most Important and vital
question will arse: " ysl,tll this
industry be wiped aud stamped out;
why should il be illegal and danger.
ous to the welfare of The human race?
Ever since alcoholic liquors have
been manufactured and pu, IN the
market, there has been al antagnn-
islic and bitter feeling developed
which has increas d to the heighl
that anli-l,quor leagues and prohi
bllion parties have been organizrd
to suppress and prohibit this traffi,.
in alcohol; aud, while ihe agitation
was ctowned with success in he in
crease of followers of those different
organizations, it is strange that the
prohibition in the United States has
been failure in spite of having ten
states already IL line, and four
more in addition in the last election.
because. according to definite statis-
tics, the production of alcohol an
the consumption of liquor has in
creased 30 per cent per capita in the
last twenty years. AMI aside, has
given birth TO au illicit production
and sale of liquor, and further; those
states where prohibition became
state law have yet failed TO show
decline III crime and vice, orr bet
ternent from a social. moral and
even financial point of view.
There are only "A few sporadic sla,Is-
tics ani tables of comparison, and
the scales of positive proof have NOT
yet come 10 convincing mark.
Now, the question arises: what
is the cause of tins steady increase
of production and sale of alcohol.
aud where is the root of this evil of
the demand for II? Is 1t IN the
longing, craving appetite, the burn
ing desire for alcohol, nurseI; moe
ulated, Inherited by our body and
soul. III our flesh aud blood. ever
since the first sin in the Garden of
E len was committed! Was this the
serum, the germ vaccnaled in the
human anatomy which has devel-
Oped into "A chronic contagious lis
ease which is so hard to check or
destroy. or is it even incurable?
Ii this is not the cause, then It.
must be the alcohol in itself; lis
anlmating, exciting and stimulating
effect on the human body and soul;
aud the question arises: Is this alco-
hol needed for the human race to
fight the flames in this fierce struggle
ot industrial life; is 1t wanted to
climb the hills and mountains of our
social journey Oh this earth; is it
needed to steer our ship through the
stormy ocean of lmn"rallty? Is il
alcohol III The form of drug and
medicine that stimulates III physi-
cal and mental distress. and warns
up that cold perspiration in the
struggling aud sinking body; that
brings back the vanishing vitality
and quickems circulation which
nearly had stopped, and sends the
blood faster through the blood yes
sells, and that will vanish the Jrea-
ry aud gloomy feeling of despair.
and that will hel y to melt the icy