The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1919-07-05
THE NEW INDEPENDENCE DAY

phasised that the Profestant
church. Of which our Methodixm In
SO vital = part, has been the great
force before which, without carnal
weapons. the wallis Of jericho have
fallen down. God dwells in his
church. and the Christian church In
the United States, whatever may he
Its defects and failures. In n q
great organized force. always to he
reckoned with aa the agHresaive
enemy of unri@hteousnesa and evil
In all its forms. The church was
slow to recoERixe the Inherent an
tagnOfsm Of the liquor traffic to her
own great mfssion, and slower stfll
to realize her responsibility for the
Continuance Of the traffic with all
Its attendant evfla. hut the awful
results Of the traffic could not he
hidden or ignored. Waste. fnef-
ncfency, pauperism. insanity, dis
eases Of all kinds, disorder, crime,
wrecked homes, cheated and or
phaned children. hopeless wives
and widows, bliEhted and ruined
manhood-the inevitable and ever
present results Of the tranfc-could
not be hidden. and finally could NO
longer be ignored or tolerated ms
eonsistent with \ Christfan civili-
sation- Gradually there came con-
vfction. punEent, overwhelming
"a that the Christian citizenship
of the nation was responsible for
the legalized position OF the traf-
fic; CD furthermore. that whenever
that Christian citizenship 10 de-
creed that leEnlixed traffic would
be abolished, for the Protestant
civilization OF the nation in sufYi-
cientiy influential to secure any
moral reform upon which 1T con-
centrates it's united force.
There was bitter opposition from
brewers, 'distillers and saloonkeep-
ers, and from those who denounced
prohibition AS an unjusttaabIe In
fringement upon the personal HI
erty of the individual, to drink in
toxicanta- But after very thor
ough confederation the Christian
citiaenship of the United States de-
clared that the doctrine Of per-
sonal liberty worked both ways,
and that the great majority Of the
people Of the nation had the right
to determine whether they desired
saloons to continue to debauch
their sons, to promote pauperism,
insanity. vice and crime, to de-
moralize labor. to Increase taxes
and to damn immortal souls or
whether the wretch trnfYic
should cease.
And the new declaration of.inde-
pendence which has been made In
therefore the capitalization into
law of the sentiment Of the over
whelming majority of the intellt-
gent, law abfdtng citixe nship Of the
United tsates that the saloon IL n
public nuisance; that 1t In the
enemy Of the physical. intellectual
and moral welfare Of the entire so
cial order, and that for the good OF
that social order the liquor traffic
must be branded ms \ criminal, re-
Eardless of the clamof Of those
who put appetite and covetOusnes~,
or both. above the xreateat good Of
the greatest number. And this
declaration Of Independence II sim
ply nm expression In different
form Of words Of that great Chris-
ttan doctrine. ave. then. that nre
strong, ought to bear the infrmi-
ties Of the weak which has been
clearly proven to he q sound gov
ornamental policy by \ great nation.
Surely we may say with thank
ful hearts concerning this day.
''rhia II the day which the Lord
has made. We will rejoice and he
glad therein" II remains that the
people who have issued this decia-