The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1914-04-14
A Horrible Example.

Editorial in The Louisville Courier
Journal: Apropos of the discussion Of
"stato-wide" prohibition for Kentucky
a comparison between social condi-
tons in Maine, the premier prohibition
state, II conditions in Kentucky is
made by a cynic rep~resentating whisky
interests who has procured the figures
from the federal census bureau.
What the professionally cynical pre-
senter Of the figures has to say is OF
less interest to the dIsinterested thar
the figures which are from a disinter-
ested source.
Figures from A census bureau bull
letin show that Maine has an annual
average Of 2S2 divorces per 100, 900
married population, while kentucky
has 23I. Yet kentucky la in the South
central DIVISION" composed Of nine
states, in which the average IL '273, and
Maine is in the North Atlantic owl
sion,' where the average is only 100.
In other words. Maine. a prohibition
state in a section where divorces are
not as numerous as they are in the
section composed IF nine southern
states and including Kentucky. has an
exec ~ptionally high divorce rate. The
bulletin shows that in Maine nearly
t" ice rs many divorces are granted
70 husbands as a result of intcrnper-
ance as are granted to husbands fur
that cause IN Kentucky.
In 32.S per cent of divorces granted
to wives in Maine intemperance fig
ures as the direct or indirect cause.
The figures for Kentucky are only 2l.8
per cent.
The total number Of divorces grant
ed in Maine for drunkenness in the
period covered by the census bulletin
from 1898 to 1902-was /, 1872. In the
same period only 1875 were granted for
the same u in Kentucky. In Maine
4,844 divorces were granted for cruelty
as against 1853 in Kentucky, although
Names population Census OF 1905
was only T14,494, while. Kentucky:
was 2.320,298.
Another federal bulletin shows tina
only % per cent Of the population o.
Maine is composed of members O.
churches, while 81 per cent of the pop.
ulation Of Kentucky are communicates
Maine is shown to be below the aver.
age in percentage of church member
ship in the North Atlantic division
Kentucky is above the average in thu
South Central division" which, by thu
way, comprises -four prohibition states
Bulletin 112, dealing with mortalit!
statistics, shows that the Kentuck,
death rate is 1872 per 1900 while tina
of Maine is 1871. IN North Carolina
the only prohibition state among thu
twenty three states which registe
deaths-the rate is 1873 per Loco
Maine and North Carolina are abov,
the average and Kentucky Is below.
In juvenile delinquency Kentuck,
also shows a better record than Maine
The number Of juvenile d]elinquents IL
reformatories Jan. I, 1910, charget
with drunkenness In Maine was nine
teen. The number in Kentucky wa
six. The number of boys and girI
charged with immortality in Main'
a thirty-four as against thirty il
Kentucky, with three times the popula
ton of Maine. The number of adu1
prisoners charged with drunkenness ii
Maine was 265 and in Kentucky 23T.
These figures do not, Of course, Prov
that the distribution of whisky &C
ments Che marriage tie, decrease
drunkenness and cruelty and insures
| better upbringing for children. TIL,
relation between i~ntenperance an,
moral delinquency of various kinds i
well known. The figures merely indi
cate that a half century of prohibition
in Maine has not prevented the gen
eraI distribution Of alcoholic beverage
or promoted the progress Of the state
and that there is-in proportion t.
population-more than three times Al
much misfortune traceabIe to induI
gence in drink In Maine as there is ii
Kentucky. .r
Maine is an example of what fit.
years of prohibition does for the ad
vancement OF the cause of temperance
and a horrible example Of u%nblushin,