The Birmingham age-herald., 1924-02-17

business street in the heart of the city Answering the calls to see the sick, at- tend the bedside of the dying and to re- lieve the emergencies here and there in this great city am on the streets at all hours of the night. I testify that do not see on the streets of Birmingham and have not seen since the eighteenth amendment was passed, exceeding two drunk men month. The inmates of the big stone prison began to thin out Soon there was not a single prisoner in the jail. It stood empty for months and was ordered closed for lack of inmates. (Applause). It stood locked for months and has recently been opened as an in stitution for the care of deficient boys and girls and is today full of these sad dregs as the lingering results of drunken parents and alcoholic homes. Intelli- gence and patriotism rejoices in the up- ward movement of civilization. Igno- rance and appetite cries, Give me a drink Daughter and applause.)
 Harmful Propaganda
 Some quite intelligent and moral peo- pie are scattering the propaganda which they have not carefully thought through. You hear it stated in quite respectable circles that you can not make people good by law that prohibition laws irri- tate and provoke men to violation. You hear them giving forth sophistries like these '7'I never wanted liquor until l read the prohibition law" "when a man tells me I can not do a thing, he puts in me the determination to do it = 'the interference with personal liberty is cOntfary to 6 democratic govern ment;" etc. etc! Every intelligent stu dent. of moral science and sociology knows that law is Gods great instru- ment for producing and guarding good morals and promoting the highest civ- iligati0n. The queer thing about alec. hol is that there is something in its very nature that produces the spirit of anarchy, rebellion and outtla wism and somehow inspires to every evil by stim- Hating and exciting all that is bad in us. A man who will drive his car apiet- ly' when sober will be arrested for speeding when he is half drunk. A man who is quiet and peaceable when sober will become befligerent and dam gerous when under the influence of al- cohol A man who is, when sober, or defly and easily controlled, will under the influence of alcohol be disOrderly and dangerous. Every man who knows anything of alcohol and society knows this as well as he knows that man is more liable to fall on ice than on gravel highway.
 Analysis of Commandments
 When God undertook the task of building a nation, He began with law. To the leader of the nation, He deliv- cred written in stone the ten laws which have been fundamental to the civ ilizations of every country on the face of the earth. Thou shalt not, thou shalt not. thou shalt not" rings out from this small group of laws called the 'Decalogue." The remarkable thing concerning the nature of alcohol is that an actual testNwill. show that it induces mankind to violate every commandment in the Decal0gue. Let us study this legal masterpiece, too consistent, too comprehensive, too eternal to be a hu- man product. This remarkable docu- ment naturally divides into five sec tions, every bne of which is a necessary fundamental of civilization. The first section establishes God, the author of law and all good, the knowledge of and worship of whom is fundamental to character. This first section of the decalogue comprises the simple state ments Thou shalt have no other God before Me; Thou shalt not make any grayen image or liekness; thou shalt not take Ills name in vain; thou shalt observe one day in seven for His wor- ship" Destroy any one of these laws and you destroy the Deity. There can be no great individual or national char acter without God and worship. Faith in God and His worship are fundamen- tai to character and hence to civiliza- ton.
 The next section is the home section. The home is the unit of civilization. If the home is good, the nation will be good; if the home is bad, the nation will be bad. The hope of a good hoine Is authority. A test of authority is rev. erence and honor, hence the simple statement: Honor thy father and thy mother" z
 Protective Section
 The next section of the Ten Com mandments is the protective section i: that section that prevents us from de. stroying each other; that section that guarantees to every citizen his life, the possession of what he aecumulates and
 the unmolested ownership and enjoy
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