The Birmingham age-herald., 1918-03-18
Dr. P. A. Baker Denounces Birmingham News and Montgomery Advertiser
 for Liquor Advocacy
M. R. PATTERSON IS CHIEF SPEAKER FOR
 NEW AMENDMENT
Former Tennessee Governor Enthusiastically Cheered As He Urges Cause Of
 a Dry Nation

Dr. P. A. Baker, superintendent ot
 the Anti-Saloon League of America.
 denounced the Birmingham News and the Montgomery Advertiser for their attitude on the liquor question at [ big mass meeting in behalf of the
 nationwide prohibition constitutional
 amendment held yesterday afternoon
 at the Lyric theatre. The house was crowded to it's capacity and the de- lnounciation of the two newspapers
 was loudly applauded. Former Gov lernor M R. Patterson of Tennessee
 made the principal address of the afternoon.
 Only few Birmingham men occu- pied seats on the stage with the visit ing representatives of the Anti-Saloon league. Among those noted were pr.
 George R. Stuart, Dr. L. F. Whitten,
 Dr. l.. c. Branscomb and Borden
 Burr.
 After the opening prayer the Rev.
 Brooks Lawrence, superintendent Of
 the Anti-Saloon League of Alabama,
 made a brief talk and introduced Dr..
 Baker as a native-born Alabamian and one we'll in touch with the situa-
 tion here in reference to the prohibit
 tion issue and who would make the
 appeal for funds to conduct the state
 campaign for nationwide prohibition. l Quoting at length from recent edi- torial of the Manufacturers Record, in which Editor Edmonds of that publica- ] tion bitterly assailed the forces behind
 the liquor interests and referred to them as the greatest aids to "kaiserism" | in America, pr. Baker stated that the editors of the Birmingham News and Montgomery Advertiser were ''in the | same category and are giving comfort | to the enemy by their advocacy of the lliouor question" He further stated that 1 he had been informed that in every cam paign in the state in which prohibition was the issue the News and the Adver- l tiser had always been on the side Of | the liquor interests and today stood alone in the state in their opposition to prohibition.
 l Dr. Baker then took up the question of 1 the approa ching campaign for the ratl-
 fication of the federal prohibition enact ment and made strong appeal TOT funds to carry on the campaign, which met with liberal response by the au- dience He then introduced Malcolm R. | Patterson, former governor of Tennes- see as the speaker of the afternoon, who was given a cordial reception py the large audience.
 | Governor Patterson is regarded as one of the most able and brilliant speakers on the platform in the south today and l cd again during his discourse. For the past 1 five years he has devoted his entire time and energy to taking the platform | against liquor
 KNOWLEDGE OF LIQUOR l D,,rin, the course of his talk, Gov ernor Patterson stated that he had an intimate knowledge of whisky and us | resultant evils. He told or ms carry childhood spent in Memphis and of the 1 surroundings which he knew at that l time, of the rows of saloons, the pos
 getting their first drink, or the srauua, | grin that John Barleycorn took on them and finally leading them down the path | of desradation and ruin, leaving them homeless and helpless with prpkeh iiie and a broken hearted mother.
 | "rhere has been a time that can remember'' he said, when anyone Who | would have been bold enough to even l suggest tnaL SOlic udS VI 4, .. | be dry would have been proinp.is stamned as fool and no attention ! would have been paid to his remarhs | From A beginning like that the move rent has grown-seemingly py Ieehis common to the majority of the people oi I the country that whisky was unueriiilh- | ing our nation--ruining the coming gen | erations na man.
 "First, the liquor dealers ana mai ufacturers said, Oh, we don't care if they take it out of a few towns, 1 iust leave the state wet and IL wli serve the same purpose. This mas ! crown and grown until now we nave 1 tham nleading for the nation to De
 lcft wct-not the states but the na- | tion" ,~,o,crrrn 1 He told of his different races for
 the governorship and stated .nae II. had fought both of them under the | banner of local option, winning potn times" and after telling briefly or the experiences attached to both cam nairns said: But now, thank God,
 am a nation wide prohibitionist I'm ] for prohibition first, last and always icity-wide, country wide, statewide, | nation wide and world-wide.'
 A part of MT. Pattersons speech dealt with the problems which con 1 front the country at present, Of the influences being brought to bear upon | the national life by the enemy. i ssThe time has come when we need
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