The Palatka news and advertiser., 1915-05-28

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Union. In less than eight years time
every mile of public road in the Unit
ed States could be macadamized with
the amount spent for alcoholic liquors.
The amount now expended in paving
the road to perdition would, if spent
for good roads, soon lift the mud en-
barge from the entire country. Cal
culate, if you will, the change that
would would %folllH the investment IS; @sno5 Of 1.-THE the
ways-the increase in comfort to the
farmer and his family-the increased
attractiveness of country life, and the
commercial value of these good roads
to the towns and cities of the land.
Would Duplicate Railroads in Eight
Years.
Now let US proceed to the third
comparisons: According to the statis
tics furnished by the interstate COM
merce commission the railroads pay
out each year to their employees ST.
373, ,422, ,472-or only a little more than
one-half the amount expended for al
coholic liquor. Take railroad map
of the United States, trace the lines
east and west, north and south, and
and the diagonal lines, and then es
innate the number of men required
to operate them-the engineers who
keep faithful vigil while the passen-
gers sleep-the conductors who, ever
alert, direct the trains-the men who
at the switch, on the road and in the
stations, are required for the traffic,
passenger and freight-this great ar
my receives for this work, indispensa-
BILE to the nations prosperity, but a
little more than one-half of the
amount that is paid for the drink
which units men for any responsible
position.
The railroads of the country are
; capitalized at 500, PAT, ,301 ,257, Of which
$8,680,759,704 represents capital
stock, and $11 ,566,541 ,553 represents
. bonded Indebtedness. A considerable
) portion of this capitalization is water
and does not represent actual value;
the commission is now at work collec-
= ting information as to the physical
t value of these roads, and we shall
) know in a few years what it would
cost to reproduce them, but, taking
them at their book value, it would
only require eight years to duplicate
these railroads if the annual amount
5 spent for liquor was devoted to rail
: road building. Does not this COM
t parison give you some idea of the i'm
portance of the liquor question to the
, nation?
i, Would Capitalize All Banks In Two
Years.
4 Fourth: AS New York is the finan,
Y cial center of the country and is des
t tined to be the clearing house of the
world, you may be more interested il
e the fourth comparisons: The stats
r ties compiled by the treasury depart
S ment show that there are 1881 ma
t tional banks in the United States
e with a capital stock of $1,065, ,951,
e sos, and a surplus of $726,935, 755-ol
= total capital and a surplus of a lit
tie less than 81 100000. Is it no
:. appalling to think that the amour
4 spent for drink each year would du
r plicate all the national banks in thu
n country, supply them with their nres
= ent capital and surplus and then leav'
e balance of $700000,0 900 to be invest
l. ed in other ways?
= There are in the United States 10,
n 2lO banks other than national-tha
is, state and private banks-having
total capitalization of S1,073,S 1881 ,73S
II and a total surplus of 1891, ,147,S76; o
a total of capital and surplus of
l. little less than $2,100,000,0 TIL
/ amount spent for liquor each yea
l. would furnish the capital and surplu
d of these more than nineteen thous
l. and banks, and leave a balance o
Y 100000 900.
e In other words, the amount noy
.e spent annually for drink would in tw
le wears, duplicate all the banks of tn
to country state and national, furnis
i'd them with capital and surplus equt
rs to that which they now have, an
A. leave a billion dollars for other ir
al vestments. Is it not worth while
le give some attention to the liou0r ones
ID ton? Imagine, if you can, the effeC
upon the home life of the countr
if the amount invested in drink wer
'u invested in bank stock, and what d
YOU think would be the effect upo
in business if the capital and surplus {
an the banks were doubled in two years
nt The Case Against Alcohol.
he If l may now assume that you al
ed sufficiently impressed with the magn
st tude of the evils of intemperance W
Je may proceed to a discussion of REM
7; dies. When we come to consider II
70 LIQUOR question we find that the ren
ds edies proposed follow one of two lin'
ut namely, moral suasion and legisl
nr ton. All who labor in the cause
or Temperance seek to lesson the use
,is Intoxicating liquor-some by persua
on ing people not to drink, some by u
iii ging laws which will prevent the ma
ID Iufacture and sale of liquor, while st
n others divide their energies betwe'
;s- THE two lines of work. As for myse
90 while l have definite views as to t
or means that should be employed f
IL solving the legislative problem pr
60 sented by the liquor traffic, | shall co
nv fine myself tonight to the first line
cd argument, and appeal to those pre-
NV ent, and to those whom may rea
we through the press, to take their po
IN ton as individuals on the side of
wo tai abstinence; for whstever diff'
i'd ence of opinion may exist as to t