Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1922-08-12
WASHINGTON
DAY BY DAY

The Gazette CORES pOndenL Is III
possession of a copy of a letter sent
by jefferson Davis tC q bishop OF the
| Methodist Church South, who had
criticized Mr.. Davis's opinion on
prohibition. Extracts from the letter
are as follows:
"Fanaticism looks thru reversed
telescope, minimizing everything
save its special object. What though
one should point prOhibltlomst to
the civilizing, harmiuizing, peace-se-
curing, comforting effects of com
merce among the nations? II ne
thought it interferred with his pecu-
liar ''ism" would he not probably ans
wer by irrelevant catchwords? The
time was when sumptUary laws en-
braced what should be worn and eat
en-. If we begin the march Of retrog-
resSion where will it stop? II, as al
ready proposed, there should be Fed
eral laws to enforce prohibition, your
recollection of war and reconstruc-
ton days should enable you to antlcl-
pate the doings of an army OF spies,
informers and deputy marshals max
ing domiciiary visits to insure the
observance of the law. The moral
decay which would inevitably result
from such a condition needs no por-
travail. To me it seems the plain duty
of every citizen who loves the lib
ertv our sires bequeathed to us to
check the scheme before it acquires
dangerous proportions. | hold 1t to
be one of the natural rights of man
to do as he pleases with his own, pro-
vided he inflictS no injury on another.
To protect the use and prevent the
abuse of that right is the necessity OF
social existence; to give adequate
power and yet efficiently to guard
against the perversions of the grant
is the problem which the wisdom of
ages has but partially solved. Hence
the maxim, Eternal vigilance is the
price of liberty.
One of the reasons Post Office of
ficialS attribute to the success OF the
Air Mail Service is that 81 OF the
80 pilots in the transcOntlnental pos
tai service saw service with the
American or foreign air fighters dur
ing the war, while four of the re-
naming five were civilian instructors.
Two of these air mail pilots were
members of the British Royal Fly
ing force. Pilot A. L. Uneer shot down
! 10 German planes and balloon while
with the British forces in France. The
pilot force of the air mail service now
compromises probably the most ex-
perienced group of flyers to be found
/ in the United States and most of these
men have had from four to five years
flving experience and the day to day
/ demands of the air mail tends to
make them more and more skillful.
Citizens of Mexico seem to have a
craving for anything that savors OF
! explosives with which they are be-
coming more and more adept, and ac-
cording to American Consul Walsh, at
Laredo, American fireworks can be
sold to that country in large Quantl-
ties.
Fortunately for the American man
ufacturerS of fireworks, Mexico has
seven national holidays and pyrotech-
mic displays are an important part of
the celebration. local festivals, religi-
ous or patriotic, last from one to
three weeks and call for celebration
nv means of fireworks as dc many of
the public functions. and as there are
NO restrictions on the use of sky
rockets and other fireworks which are
manufactured in only the simplest
forms in that country American sell
iers of this class of explosives may
find Mexico a very profitable field
If tbis class of explosives may find
Mexico a very profitable field.
Washington with its thousands of
motor taxis has been passed up as a
field by the old time "hoss" hackers
but there is one old colpred gent who
still completes with tn e fast motors
!. Of today with his "hoss and carriage
He can be found most any day with
his antique contraption outside of the
Capitol grounds near the House Of
. flee building swatting the summer
flies that ahght on Sarah his
fiery steed.
The old gent who is getting round
Shouldered keeping Sarah" free
from the noisome flies and is always
! pleased when it begins to look like
ram, for one or two reasons.
FlrSt-"Sarah" will NOT ueed SO