The American issue. [volume] (Westerville, Ohio) 1912-19??, 1921-08-12
TEMPERANCE MOVEMENT
SWEEPS ORIENTAL LAND
Opposition to Drink Traffic in
India Expresses Itself in
Many Forms
'SWEEPERS' TAKE ACTION
Many Organizations Take Strong
Position Against Liquor
Drinking

The agitation against the drink is
spreading all over India. and is taking
many curious forms Some oil these
native activities are taking the form
OF the boycott picketing OF drink
shops, pressure OF the castles, and
many phenomena that seem strange
TO Americans or Europeans. On
April &. a meeting OF the "Swecpers"
was held at Delhi at which it WAS
unanimously decided that 10
sweeper" should use liquor even on
religious occasions The ediet WAS
promulgated that Any man found
drinking will be beaten with shoes,
ono side OF his moustache will be
shaved off and he will be given five
cowrcs. Any sweeper giving infor-
nation against another caught drink
ing liqaor will be rewarded with RS.
Ia Similar movements have spread
10 many sections. In Ludihana, the
people arc much stirred up. In that
section, the following castles have
taken action similar to the swccpcrs
OF Delhi:
Hindu potters, Hindu washcrmcn,
Hindu bootmakcrs. Hindu carpenters
and ironsmiths, Hindu eoldsmiths and
SrafIs, Walsh AggarNalas. Studs. Bha- :
tras, Hindu BARRIERS.
Swcepers of the Raikot district re-
solved not to clear the house OF any
ono using Wine
Hindu Sharbet sellers at whose
houses the drinkers usually so because
at contractors shops only bottled LID
uors arc sold. These shops and also
the bakers have resolved to prevent
drinking therein
Many wine contractors in the Lud-
hiana district have applied for re-
iund on their license money because
OF the boycott. The Madall Oars Nj
WASN'T Sabha Temperance Society
has begun the work OF picl>eting the
liquor shops.
On April the work OF the Ludhi-
ana drys received a setback when the
pickcts OF the society who were
preaching 10 the crowds around the
drink shops were arrested and locked
up for the night They were not only
locked up but were handcufied as a
warning to people to quit interfering
with the grog shops.
The volunteers spent the night in
the lookup. On the next day they
were taken to the Deputy Commits
sioncr's Court. Lala Mela Ram, Lala
Dhani Ram. Choudhri Mohamcd
liasan Khan, Lala Bhagat Ram
Dogra. Babu Hari Ram, Sardar Altar
Singh, president, Sikh League Ludhi-
ana, etc, were the plcadors that spoke
Tor the accused. Aiter examining all
the witnesses, the d. {. did not see
that Section 3o5 could be applied in
this case, and the accused were re-
leased on bail OF Rs $50 each.
y crowd OF about two thousand
people was standing outside TIE court
waiting to hear the sentence. and the
same car that was standing TO take
the accused to the Jail carried them
through the streets OF the town, amid
the shouts OF the spectators.
The next day. the temperance cul-
prits were honorably discharged and
went on their way holding daily tenn
perancc meetings, cussing out the
drink business, much to the profound
disgust of the booze pcddlcrs who
had paid good money for license to
debauch the people.
In Bankiporc (Bhar). the legislative
council took no action against the
drink traffic and the people there or
ganized boycott against the wishes
OF local officials.
In Nagpur. the Subdivisonal maeis-
tratc, confirmed his order against DIR.
Paranjpye, the local dry leader, be-
cause as the magistrate said that it
had been proved that "Dr Paranipye
did deliver lectures, and that in the
co6rse OF these lectures he advised
volunteers to be employed for the
purpose OF dissuading customers from
going into liquor shops" and Of course
no sclf-respecting magistrate would
stand for such ncfarious conduct and
he put the dry lecturer under bonds
to be good for two months.