Ceredo advance. [volume] (Ceredo, W. Va.) 1885-1939, 1915-04-14

100000 contributed to her local pub
lie schools? Did 1t ever occur to you
that the city Of New York. to main
tain her police department. spends
nearly seven times as much annually
as the state of West Virginia appro-
PIRATES for the foregoing purposes?
Take the city OF Chicago, with 1852
saloons and revenue therefrom OF
E.152,000. In 1915 the budget pre-
sented to the city council, for it's
action, to maintain the police depart
ment. was 100000 In addition to
this. the United Charities Of Chicago
made an estimate OF the amount ex-
pended in the city for the care of de-
fectives and dependents. not includ-
Ing the criminal class, collected from
private agencies only. amounting to
S,416.e00. The Cook county infirmary,
built year before last, has over 5000
inmates, and they are finding 1t nee
essary to put cots in the corridors to
help take care of the overflow. The
county Jail is crowded to the point OF
fndecency and already there is
strong demand that 1t be enlarged.
The superintendent OF the infirmary
says that go per cent Of the inmates
are there because OF drink" The SUI
perintendent OF the Jail says that lat
least 95 per cent Of it's inmates are
there for the same cause, and one of
the sad features about 1t all is that a
large part Of the inmates in the Jail
are yet young fellows" Take the city
OF Pittsburgh. The city has IT'S sa-
looms, with a revenue Of sos, 900 an
nually. and expends to keep a police
department and for charity $1,563,526
-three-fifths as much as appropriated
In West Virginia for the purposes be-
fore stated. Take Baltimore, with a
bonded Indebtedness Of S7S,900,000,
and revenue from saloons OF $780,
600, and tax rate reaching 1892 on
the hundred and expanding annually
$1,000 900 to maintain her police de-
partment, with 5472 charges of drunk
enness and 1851 charges of disor.
derby conduct annually.
Comparisons.
Compare the figures of the cities
given you with the average rate in
West Virginia for all purposes. includ-
ing state, county and district ana
municipal, OF 1868 on each 500 valua-
ton for taxable purposes-a state with
the lowest average of any in the
Union. And next to West Virginia is
Kansas, a prohibition state for many
years.
Take again the states of Ohio Penn
sylvania, Maryland, Virginia and Ken
tucky-our neighbors. The average
nft tote
government is as follows: Ohio,
$3.50; Pennsylvania, s3.71; Maryland.
S5.27; Virginia, 1922; Kentucky, 1888
Compare these average figures with
the average for West Virginia Of
$2.14. Our neighbors are wet and we
are dry.
1t is not right, however, to con.
slider the question from a monetary
standpoint Men, not money, are the
real assets of a state. The happiness
and the general welfare of it's citi-
Zens are the first obligations of the
state. The generation growing up in
West Virginia, it's future men ana
women, will grow into the full stature
OF manhood and womanhood without
knowing the open saloon, having
morals, will be worth more to the
state than all the material wealth
Such a generation will be an asset
more to be desired than gold. yea,
even more than fine gold" Compare.
II you can make such comparison, the
S650,000 of annual revenue from the
liquor business with a generation of
boys and girls. men and women. that
knows not the saloon. Compare the
$3.50, 900 of revenue that the state
might receive from the liquor bust
ness with the sum of $15,000,00O that
formerly went out OF the state an
nually to purchase and bring liquor
irto the state-for what purpose?
What good did it do when brought
here? What can be said for it? Did it
really make for happiness-it might
have made somebody feel good one
day, but very bad the day after. It
brought crime, even to the extent OF
murder. 1t, more than any other fac
tor, is responsible for 1899 men. most
of them young, being today in the
state penitentiary. 1t, more than any
ether factor, is responsible for 225S
being in the state asylums today. The
criminal court OF Mcdowell county,
from its creation until after July LIST
last. never had term without muir
der case on its docket. That court,
before the first of last July, sent on
an average IS men to the penitentiary
every term. That average, since July
1st last, has fallen 90 per cent. In the
county Of Berkeley, since July / last,
the grand juries for two terms OF
court returned no indlctments-som
thing that had not occurred in the
prior history Of the county.
Women and children are wearing
\snoes this spring who never knew
shoes before; this winter women are
warmly clad who heretofore went In