The American issue. [volume] (Westerville, Ohio) 1912-19??, 1921-12-02
November Il. 1921.

The Association Against the Prohi-
bition Amendment, 5ll Eleventh ST.,
n. W., Washington, d. {.
Attention Mr.. w. H. Stayton
Gentlemen: = Duly received your
letter OF September Is, 1921, and have
noted with interest your attitude and
the purpose of your organization
You will doubtless have for your
organization the backing of those
who are financially interested in the
manufacture and sale of liquor, in
Guiding saloonkeepers of all grades.
and you will also doubtless have the
support of that class of people who
have little or no respect for law and
order. Among such people the virtue
of self-control is not very marked and
many of them have the mistaken
notion that personal liberty is a fun
damental right and means the right
to do as one pleases. Ii | rightely
understand the true meaning of lib
erty, it is the right to do as one
chooses SO long as the doing OF same
does not interfere with the rights of
others; in other words, the right to
do right. These people who talk SO
much about personal liberty seldom
consider the rights OF their wives and
children, and others, but only their
own personal desires, and think they
have a perfect right to "load-up" and
when in that condition can abuse
their families and spend the money
which their families are entitled to,
and to do it all in the name of per
sonal liberty" thereby denying the
proper liberty to the members of
their own families.
When ] consider the makeup of
the element that will be back of your
association as compared TO those pa
trotic people who are interested in
the higher welfare of the community,
and who were responsible for bring
ing about Prohibition, have no de-
sire to change my affiliations which
have been and always will be with the
temperance group. have associated
with quite large number of men and
wamen of high character who are in
terested not only in temperance, but
many other phases of life that are for
the well-being of mankind, and who
have denied themselves much i'll help
ing to bring about better living con-
ditions.
You are correct in stating that
my position in the community has
undoubtedly given me an opportunity
to note the - effects OF Prohibition
upon our citizens" and my conclu-
sions are strongly in favor of Prohi-
bition because of what | have seen.
You state, Our campaign has the
support of women and men promi-
nent in the pulpit" | am acquainted
with quite a large number OF promi-
nent clergymen of various Protestant
denominations, but do not know one
of them that is for your proposition
am member of the Chicago Church
Federation, composed of fourteen de-
nominations, which federation has
gone on record repeatedly and unani-
mously in favor of Prohibition and
the Volstead act. These actions were
taken by the Board of Directors
which is composed of prominent bust
ness and professional men, women
and clergymen. | am a Baptist by
affiliation and | do not know of even
one Baptist minister in good standing
who would line up with your propo'
sition.
There are. of course, some people In
, our country, as elsewhere, who gen
orally have very little respect for law
unless the law happens to suit them
These people cannot rightly claim tc
be law-abiding citizens if they wan
tonly break the law. The mere fac
that so many Of them have broken the
Prohibition laws, and have done sc
knowingly and purposely, is no reason
for changing the law; in other words
real Americans should not bow dowr
to the will of non-law-abiding citizens
This is all the more reason for en-
forcing the law.
| see no reason why I should lin'
up with the lawless element of the
United States in an effort to change
the Constitution or other laws largely
to meet their wishes. I am in thu
habit of travelling with the othei
crowd; people for whom I have re
spect who believe in the fundamental
principles of the Constitution of thu
United States, and who believe in Law
and order. have spent several thou
sand dollars in helping to bring abou
the Prohibition Amendment and othel