The Lexington progress. (Lexington, Tenn.) 1884-current, 1921-04-08
BLIND DRIVING THE BLIND"

Mr.. A. G. Winslow wrote and pub
lished an article in the public Dis
cussion Column" of the News Scimi-
tar under the above caption, and |
feel that it should not be allowed to
pass unnoticed. He says, "0ur old
personal friend and neighbor, the Lex
ington Progress, says that nearly all
our moral laws were the work of inn
moral men and all the temperance
laws were fathered by Incorporate
men. 49, This no doubt is true as holy
writ as it could hardly be expected
that any man sober and clothed in his
right mind would waste time on eth
er of the above questions"
Now / am from Missouri" on this
and will have to be shown to believe;
will the Lexington Progress cite the
moral laws enacted by immoral men
and the temperance laws fathered by
the Incorporate? | am pioneer
worker in the temperance and prohi-
ton work in Mississippi and for forty
years | have found the case just the
reverse to that cited above. | started
in the fall of 1879 actively distribut-
ing tracts, and making temperance
speeches, writing newspaper articles,
getting pledges signed, getting sigma
lures to petitions to defeat saloons,
contesting the issuance of liquor IL
cense before the Boards of Supervis-
ors, Mayor and Board of Aldermen,
working heartily and earnestly for
the purpose of changing public opin-
ion as to the relation of the liquor
traffic to the general good and chang
ing the almost universal habit of Ii
quor drinking among people by show
ing them the pernicious effect upon
their health, their prosperity and con-
dition of their family. My associates
in this work have been preachers, dea-
cons, stewards, elders, Woman's
Christian Temperance Union, Chris
tian lawyers, merchants, farmers and
politicians.
We have kept sober enough not to
be arrested and clothed in our right
minds enough not to be sent to the
bug house. My experience has been
that when the wicked rule the peo-
pie mourn" and all moral, just and
righteous laws have been enacted by
moral Christian men.
Shubuta, Miss, Mar %, 1921.
W. H. PATTON.
The gentleman is perhaps correct
so far as he, himself, is concerned
but we can cite him any legislature
or congress that ever enacted a pro-
hibition law, just as we can cite him
to the fact that, in our belief, major
ity of men who have worked for pro-
hibition were men who would take a
drink of wine, beer, whisky or some
other intoxicant. We also respectful
ly refer him to the moral" or per-
haps we should say Immoral" condi-
ton Of any Mississippi, Tennessee or
American communicated we defy
him to deny that not one man in TWEEN
ty-five reaches the age of rs years
and takes unto himself a wife, who
1.-THE mani is morally as clean as he
demands the woman to be. The NOR
ally clean man who reaches the age Of
twenty-five years, will not make the
claim for himself in crowd, from the
we'll grounded fear that he will be
disputed, ridiculed and made the butt
Of many jokes. With all this we pay
all possible tribute to the women,
whose purity of mind and person is
the Saving grace Of the American
social fabric.
We are for prohibition. The laws
of God and man and made up of it
and men should be forbidden to do
anything detrimental to themselves
or others-and, if need be, forced to
/ observe the prohibitory laws.
The gentleman who wrote the fore
going letter need make reference to
Missouri-there is just as much Of
doubt and just as much of knowledge
of the truth of our former statement
in Mississippi, Tennessee, or any 9TH
er State East of the Mississippi river.