Milford chronicle., 1928-11-09
COMMITTEE ON
MORAL REFORM


Franklin Bryan in a sermon last
Sunday morning in the Milford
Methodist Protestant church,.
Your Committee on Moral Reform
begs leave to submit the following
report:
In dealing with the great issues
which confront the church and ma
ton we believe the time has come
when onr ministers should speak
very clearly and definitely upon all
the great moral and social issues
affecting the life of our people.
In the judgment of your commit
tee the 18th Amendment and Vol
stead Act have never had falr
chance in America and though opef-
.ating against great odds thousands
of people in our American homes
have been greatly blessed and help
ed.
We feel that we can suggest moth
ing better for your careful cOnsld-
Grafton than the recommendation
set forth and adopted by the Cen
,eral Conference of 1928.
l. THAT the Maryland Conference,
representing a constituency of more
than $4,000 people, does hereby call
upon it's constituency throughout
our conference district to steadfast-
ly demand the enforcement of the
Volstead Act and any other laws
affecting the 18th Amendment.
2. That we do hereby declare that
we are uneQuivocally opposed to the
nomination or election of any candi-
date for any legislative, judicial or
administrative Office, either state or
nation, who favors the repeating,
modifying, or multiplying the 18th
Amendment to the Constitution of
the United States or who opposes its
strict enforcement.
8. We call upon all our citizens
to use every righteous means to Sc
cure the nomination and election of
the best possible men for all public
offices from the President of the
United States down to the humble
Office of constable, thereby making !
impossible the election of any man
who would not respect our laws, es-
pecially those laws safeguarding our /
nation against the damnable liquor |
traffic. Party affiliations should not |
count over against a vote for man
who is hknown to stand for law
lessness and unrighteousness. The
Christian Citizens of America should
pray much. They should watch as
they pray. And they should vote
as they watch and as they pray"
We most heartily endorse the mas
terly address of Bishop James Can
non, Jr. We feel that he has sound
ed the keynote of this time. We
agree most heartily in his findings
THAT the repeal of the 18th Amend
ment is unthinkable."
There seems to be among our
people, especially among our women
a tendency not to register nor take
seriously the privilege of voting, but
we believe that every man and wo-
man should feel it his or her duty
to exercise the right of citizenship
as a voter. Certainly every mother
who has a deep interest in the
growing life of her children should
not only vote herself but should in
still in the minds of her children
the absolute necessity for clean
and righteous ballot.
Closely akin to the giant evil of
drink is the evil of race-track gamb-
ling. This gambling is not confined :
to one class only, but to nearly ev- I
cry walk of life. We may find men
and women, even boys and girls, who L
regularly and Systematically visit
the book makers and there deposit
their earnings in the hope of large y
returns, but the sad story is their o
losses far outnumber their gains in +
that they lose money, character,
many times their homes and even d
their lives.
We feel that the Conference should b
ose no time either here or in our 81
places of labor to speak out fear d
essIy against this great growing 1t
vii. The tragedy about this evil W W
Gems to be that those who have IL IL
he authority to stop this curse pay Id
10 attention to it, but rather con- 81
one it. ~ ~
Your committee would further call III III
our attention to another very SER n n
Ous matter; viz, that of divorce.
We hereby put ourselves on record '"
hat no member of this Conference
hould marry divorced persons other Ie
han the innocent parties and no al
should accept any person do
s innocent until he has secured ce
roper legal evidence establishing ~
nat fact We further believe that I'd
ur ministers should be very careful III
l the marrying of persons under pc rs:
egal age. III III
We desire to record our approval VI
f the Anti-Saloon League in it's n
reat effort to elect sober and right DC
lus men to office. We pledge our Oh
earty support in it's work. We also M MIu
smember the w. c. T. u; that MI
reat throng of God-fearing women n Su
hO have fought such valiant bat 6I
es against the saloon. We pledge II1. G1'
lem our cooperation and wish VIZ
lem God-speed in their noble work. -!
We view with great deal of anxi- erl
y the encroachments upon the t VI.
nctity of the Lords Day. In U,l COI
any communities the Holy Day GIt T
Is become a holiday. The autOmo- De
lie, general athletics and the open Ty'
eatre seem to claim that day for Ia ia
We cannot help but sol SOL
ell that these things are undermin- Jal J,1
g the Christian character of our Ilu 1
ople. 1n GIe
We recommend that this report I2t Del
printed by the Secretary and sent wa
our pastors as soon after Confer IloI
ce as possible, and that our pas son
rs be urgently requested to read 9oli %
is report from their pulpits. 1t is D Oai
ost important that our people shall OI' u
ow the stand we have taken. Iial