Omaha daily bee., 1919-01-30
Maine the Dry Pioneer
Christian Science Monitor.

Christian Science Monitor.
No part of the American union has been
subjected in the past, or subjected more unjustly,
to a greater measure Of criticism, opprobrium
and ridicule, on any ground, than Maine had to
put up with for half a century, because of its
attitude toward the liquor question and the
difficulties which it had to surmount in dealing
with the problem, at the hands OF a large and
! active and persistent element OF the popua-
ton, partly malicious, but largely ignorant of
| the true and courageous and consistent position
of the state on this subject
The first impression sought to be created by
the liquor interests was that Maine was largely
/ dominated by narrow-minded, fanatlcal
minority of religionists, who, while demanding
/ and demanding loudly, unlimited freedom OF
action for themselves, were just as pronounced
| and nsistent in denying liberty to those from
whom they CHANGED to differ. 1t was held, for
instance, that there was in reality no opposi-
| ton to the sale or use of liquor in Maine, but
! that the dominating social element having
! chosen to take up temperance and then prohibit
! ton, as a fad, and having dotted the state with
! Good Templar and Sons of Temperance lodges,
and having made membership in those lodges
a test of social eligibility, everybody who as
! PRED to being somebody deemed it advisable
! to pretend to abhor liquor.
Now the truth of the matter was that
Maine was forced to take an antagonistc atti-
! tude toward the liquor traffic in self-protecton.
| There was nothing sentimental about the anti
| liquor movement in Maine at the start, nor was
! it intended that the movement should become
| either locally or nationally reformatory. About
! the middle OF the last century trade with the
! West Indies resulted in the introduction of
great quantities of rum into the state this being
| received in return for exported American mer-
chandise. The rum was cheap and easily OBJ
tainable, and soon was distributed widely among
the lumber camps. The results were what
might have been expected Connecticut had
been compelled as early as 1880 to meet and
| solve similar problem, and it succeeded partly
in doing so by establishing local prohibition of
the sale of liquor.
Maine was originally driven, from sheer re-
gard for the welfare of its people, to take the
extreme step against the liquor traffic Neal
Dow, who became champion of the prohibition
cause in that state, was of Quaker descent, of
excellent family stock a man of fixed beliefs
on moral questions, but by no means narrow
in his views One of those who had watched
with deep solcitude the growth of intemperance
in his state and in his country he gave his help
to every movement that promised to check or to
end it. Personally, and from his early YOUTH
he loathed liquor because of the moral havoc
it wrought wherever and whenever it was given
free swing, but he had been for a long time
impressed strongly with the argument that it
was not the use, but the abuse, of liquor that
was doing the mischief In time he came to see
that abuse was certain to follow the use of all
intoXlcants, no matter what safeguards might
be thrown about their sale.
This remarkable man had received a good
common school education as a foundation and
later he attended the Friends academy at New
Bedford, Mass. He was a direct descendant of
one Henry Dow, who emigrated from Norfolk,
England, to America II years after the arrival of
the Mayhower. Young Dow upon leaving school
entered the counting house of his fathers tam
merry in Portland, and in course of time became
highly prosperous business man. He continued
to be q student Notwithstanding the many
calls of his occupation upon his attention, and
became interested particularly in the social
phases OF public affairs. AS the years passed
by, he gave most of his attention to the liquor
question. Ultimately he became the acknowl-
edged temperance leader and champion of pro-
hibition.
In 1851 Neal Dow was elected mayor of
Portland for the first time; was reelected IN
1854 and it may as we'll be added here that
after serving in the legislature for two years,
he entered the civil war on the union side, hav-
ing raised the 18th Maine regiment, of which
he was appointed colonel, and that when lie
resigned from the service in 1864 he did so with
an honorable record and with the right to claim
the title of general in the volunteer service. |
These facts serve to show his quality as a man.
He was no fanatic but he stood for his opinions
and was ready at all times to prove his devotion
to them.
Portland, Neal Dow drew up what has become
famous throughout the civilized world as "the
Maine law" a measure intended to prohibit in |
that state the manufacture, sale and keeping |
for sale of Intoxicating liquor except for medi-
cal and mechanical purposes and the arts, and
which embraced provisions for the seizure and
condemnation of such liquors as might be found
upon search in suspected places, and for flning |
and imprisoning volators of the statute
Many of his friends, and many of the advo-
Gates of prohibition, were disposed at first to
persuade him to withhold and later to withdraw
the bill, but he persisted. He took it to the
legislature himself, saw that it was introduced, |
followed it through its committee stages and
watched over it tirelessly until it had received
the signature of the governor.
This was the first state prohibition law ever |
enacted in the United States For at least three |
score of years it was destined to be attacked
with regularity, venomously and from every |
possible angle, but it has remained on the
statute book of Maine as passed. There is no |
question but that it was often ignored, often |
violated, often dsgracefully disregarded, as well
in the later as in the earlier years of its ex-
istence by those sworn to respect and enforce |
it; but what of that There it has stayed, save
for two years. and there it stands, a monument
to moral courage and righteous judgment