Saint Mary's beacon. [volume] (Leonard Town, Md.) 1867-1983, 1915-04-22
ItOMMUNICATFDl.
Organizing For
Local Option.

Representatives from every section
of 81. Mary's county gathered in the
Court House on Thursday afternoon.
April :. To- complete the organization
of the campaign for local option.
White and colored voters of every part
and denomination were present. and
the fair sex, too, was present and very
,auch Interested The chairman of the
Executive Committee. Mr.. IL. B. Love,
was presented but was prevented by a
heavy cold from actively conducting
the meeting: Mr.. John =. Jones was
called upon Ia lend his voice and ex-
periencc and Ia act aS temporary chair
man. The personnel of the various
District Committees To cooperate a
one grand Central Committee. was
completed. aS shown in the BEACON of
last week.
The temporary chairman called upon
Father kelly, who responded with an
earnest address of encouragement for
the campaign ahead. He said he al
most felt like apologizing To those few
law-aOiding dealers in liquor who have
conScientiouSly tried To conduct ~
spectacle business. But they were so
very few aud exceptional that an
apology would be- superiuous; eSpeci-
ally a che great majority of saloon
keepers in the county were more or
less notorious for persistent violation
of the law. For a half century and
more the Law and the community had
been very patient with that class of
merchants, but they had abused their
liberty and privileges. II was time
now Ia discard them and look To the
saving of our youth and manhood and
our families. The business had been
given plenty of rope; let it now be-
hanged with that same rope
The Reverend speaker said that
nearly all the crime, restitution and
misery that he had noticed since COM
ing To the county nine years ago was
directly attributable tn drink. That
the law-breaking SaloonkeeperS were
responsible for it has been made clear
by recent crimes and happings in the
county. We have had enough of il.
The only question at issue is the right
of our people Ia take away from the
vicious class of saloonkeepers their
privilege of selling intoxicants since
they have So sadly misused that privi-
lcge.
All the forces that make for good
and that are allied with virtue should
be lined up in this campaign. Ii is a
purely moral issue: politics have moth
ing tn do with il as is clear from the
scene here enacted where the best men
of both the great political parties arr
united in this common cause. The
civil power and the law should he with
uS, for the law has been violated and
civil power detied. Good government
must attack and deprive of liberty any
person or class of persons whose liber-
~ tabuScdl becomes a menace To the
welfare of the State or its citizens.
The family and home should he ar
rayed against the liquor traffic is con-
Quoted in the county. Mothers must
protect their daughters from the rava-
yes of this evil that has caused most
of their own woes and SufferingS.
Fathers must use their voting power
tn protect their boys from the snare
and the nitfall that an open saloon
lays in their path.
The churches and all true Christian
men and women who truly love their
feilow-man. are united unalterably IN
this struggle for souls. Father Kelly
drew a vivid picture of the wreckage
left in the wake of intoxication and
dissipation. The ruin of health. for
tune, home, and good name, were not
to be compared to the eternal loss and
reprobation of the one who throws
away his life and dies in a state of
drunkenness n rebel To his God and
unfit to use his faculties at the last to
make his peace with the offended ma
jesty of his Maker and Judge.
Rev. J. Harry Garner. Pastor of
Poplar Hill Parish, made an eloquent
plea for united action in this contest.
He dwelt especially on the spiritual
side of the issue, showing the dread
full losses to the souls of people addict
ed tai the vice of. drink He quoted
from his wide experience to prove tie
blessings of local option from ma
teriai standpoint and concluded III
showing the great prosperity of CONF