Worcester Democrat and the ledger-enterprise., 1925-11-28
Peoples Column

1t is with feeling of sadness that
l have observed editorials in recent
numbers of the Worcester Democrat,
(Which paper, in so many instances
has strongly and nobly upheld the
cause of righteousness) lending their
aid to the forces which would destroy
manhood and womanhood through
strong drink. In citing from the re-
port of the Secretary of the Federated
Council of Churches, it is noted that
DR.. johnson has declared himself a
100 per cent prohibitionist, and if the
Editor of the Worcester Democrat
read the report of the Council which
followed, he noticed that, in order to
avoid any misunderstanding of that
report, they stated that the whole
Council stood unqualifedly for prohi-
bition. That report was not state
ment of failure, but a statement of
conditions as they exist today, result
ing from the law not being enforced
as it should be, and warning to the
churches not to leave unfinished what
they had so nobly begun
True, the churches and the schools
ara the rightful source from which
must emanate the high ideals and pur-
poses of Christian character and moral
education, but where is the logic in
teaching the young not to take poison
anG then hand the poison out to them.
by law? Would any mother teach her
child not to touch the fire, and then
hand it lighted torch to play with ?
No, the world cannot be made good
by law, but does not common sense
dictate that while the churches and
schools are teaching the harm of al
ccholism, they will at the same time
do all in their power to put the temp
tation as far away from them as pos
sible? Have not the churches and
schools for fifty years been teaching
the harmful results of alcoholism, and
would they ever have accomplished
as much by legalizing what they were
preaching against as they could by
consistently teaching and helping at
the same time? Man cannot be made
good by law. Why, then, have law
against stealing? Why have law to
punish murder? Besides, it is the
concrete results Of that very teaching
which made the 18th amendment a
law, for it was the influence Of the
church at work which compelled legis-
lators to listen to their wishes, and
even where, in some instances, they
were not in favor of it themselves, it
was the voting church people at home
whom they dared not ignore. AS w.
! J. Bryan once said, "a Congressman
always keeps one ear to the ground to
hear what the folk back home are say
ing, and it is only because he is physi
cally so constituted that he cannot
keep both ears to the ground" Every
Congress which has been elected, by
the people, for several years has had
mdre dry votes than the one before,
and the Congress to convene next
month is drier than any preceding
ones.
OF those people who "do not relish
being deprived of it by law" we would
ask, is not that selfish stand to take?
We are brothers keepers, whether we
wish to be or not. If our neighbours
home is a miserably unhappy one be-
cause of strong drink, shall we selfish
ly insist that we must have ours,
whether he suffers or not? Perish the
thought! Even looking at it from a
purely selfish standpoint, our homes
are not safe from destruction by fire
while there is a drunken man next
door; our families are not safe while
an intoxicated man next door is WELD
ing a revolver; we cannot safely walk
the streets while the man who is free
to take a few drinks, if he so desires,
is at the wheel Of the machine coming
just around the corner. We have no
right to deprive him of his alcohol
les? Methinks we have, when our
homes and loved ones are in danger.
The hip pocket flask is, no doubt,
doing much harm, but if the church.
es and the schools can educate the peo-
pie, they can reach the hip pocket
flask or the saloon, and the combined
forces of the church, the school and
the law will continue their efforts to
reach all forms of law breaking.
Every one knows that the prohibi-
tion law is, at present, far from being
enforced as it should be, and there
are many obstacles to be overcome be-
fore it can be, and Knocking" won't
help the cause while boosting" will.
However, whatever the churches un-
dertake to do because it is right, be-