The American issue. [volume] (Westerville, Ohio) 1912-19??, 1930-02-01

affirm that the state has no moral right
to enter into league with crime and rob-
berry and bloodshed; that every dollar
ever taken by the state as license for
the sale of beverage liquor was blood
money; that the state could as consistent
~ sell the virtue of womanhood as it can
license a traffic which corrupts men and
debauches women. No. we will not forget
or fail to recall the moral or religious
principles involved and to rely upon the
moral and religious convictions of an in
telligent and patriotic citizenry as the
very foundation stone of the whole pro-
hibition movement as of all other religious
legislation.
The Anti-Saloon League, as q body, is
frankly religious, frankly Christian. We
believe the Bible and believe in the Bible
as the only safe and reliable guide in all
of the principles which govern us or
should govern us in all the affairs of life.
Some of us are glad to come from the
"Bible belt" as the South has often been
called by the lawless champions Of liquor.
We accept the epithet and count it
badge Of honor.
We have recently had sorry spectacle
in Congress, disgusting and sacrileglous
performance, a member OF the Congress
of the United States attempting to quote
j
beverage liquor traffic. Every intelligent
student of the Bible knows that in all its
sacred pages there is not one line nor one
syllable that commendS or encourages the
use of Intoxicating liquor as beverage.
On the other hand, the Word of God
thunders against the evil, it appeals, per-
Suades and entreats men to avoid the evil
and not be caught in the whirlpool of
death and destruction which liquor has
always and everywhere placed before men.
Let our friend in Congress, and any
others who are SO dead to sense of
propriety and right as to undertake to
use Gods Word in support of the dia-
bolical traffic in strong drink, read some
of the following passages: Gen. 9: 1927,
Prov. %: 1923, 1895, Prov. 81: 1-9, lisa.
5: 8-24, Isa %: 1-9, Heb. 2: 1T. Let us
hope that some of our worthy Senators
and Congressman who believe in and
stand for the right may answer this death
rattle of the liquor traffic by reading into
the Congressional Record some of these
passages.
While we shall not forget the material
benefits of prohibition we must never fail,
as part of the strategy of our campaign,
to keep our people grounded in the moral
and religious principle and truths which
underlie as its bedrock foundation the
which is the joy of our people and the
wonder and envy of the world.
III. STRENGTHEN OUR ORGANIzA-
TION-KEEP UP OUR MORALE
We must strengthen our organization
and keep up our fighting spirit.
The Anti-Saloon League is the most
hated and most feared organization in
America The vets are more and more
amazed at the strength of our organiza-
ton. In a plying and patronizing way
they announce that we are dead or at
least moribund; the wish is father to the
thought; they know that we are very
much alive. They fail to realize that our
strength is the strength of movement
more than the strength of an organiza-
ton as such. The name "Anti-Saloon
League" stands for the moral and reli-
gious conviction, for the political in
tegrity and righteousness, for the indus
trial and commercial sanity and sagacity
of the American people. That gives us
our strength The vets have always had
more organization and better organiza-
ton than we, and more money. No doubt
they wonder at their constant and in
creasing defeats. They fail to see that
this is a movement more than an organi-
cation, a movement bottomed on patriotic
convictions and reaching forth for the
highest human good.
But we do have an organization and