Newspapers / The Biblical Recorder (Raleigh, … / May 20, 1903, edition 1 / Page 1
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,1 JOSIAH WILLIAM BAILEY, Editor. ': RALEIQH, N. C, WEDNESDAY, MAY 20. THE LOCAL ANTI-SALOON LEAQUE. Its Organization, Constituency, Work and Value. , J , BEVI8SD AHD SXPBIKTSD.) ' - The importance of the Local League cannot be exaggerated. It is the means, of communication between the State League and the people. . While the State-wido work is indispensable to the high- est efficiency of the Local League, this, in turn, gives solidity and strength to the State organiza tion. Much of the temperance work of the past has failed because it was purely local, with no stronger body to reinforce its efforts, and to give ' added significance to its endeavors. . The State 'League is a guarantee of sustained effort by the local organization, but the ideal of State work is 'never realized until every county, city, town, township and voting precinct has a local league through which the departments of agitation, law enforcement and legislation are being carried for ward. Each Local League represents a segment of the State work. Every community needs the local league either to secure the overthrow of the dramshop or else to keep the accursed traffic out. DEPARTMENTS. The departments of work are the same in the local as in the State league. They are all essen tial, however the place of emphasis-may vary with different localities. At first the most satis factory results will be achieved by pushing the most important, which as a rule will be Agitation. An aroused public sentiment under lies all substantial victory. Temperance truths lie, "bed-ridden in 'the dormitory of, the soul." Many of the people are asleep regarding the per ils of the saloon. They need to be aroused and startled into action. The agitation committee should be composed of members from all federated churches and other temperance bodies, and should represent all shades of political affiliation. Let forced. "Men have been elected not to interpret buVto enforce these provisions which have for their object the restriction or the suppression of the saloon. They are paid to do this work; they have sworn they would. The work of the com mittee on law enforcement is to force the fight, to stir up the citizens, to demand the faithful en forcement of existing laws. Make the officers feel ,the pressure of an aroused public sentiment. Show them that the majority are good people and desire the legal restraints about this nefarious, business maintained. Help them to see that to do' right in public office is easier and better than to be rec reant to sworn duty. Demand all that belongs to you by statutory provision in the way of limita tions put upon the liquor business. Prod the mayor, the council, the chief of police, the con stable and 'the excise commissioners to do their whole duty, till all the restrictions relating to the hours of closing, holidays; election days, Sunday selling, screens, booths, the sale to minors, drunk ards an8 paupers are persistently enforced. Then stand by the officers who do their duty. Bally to their support. Turn the searchlight of public in dignation" upon the faithless ones. Mark them as the", foes of society and the enemies of good J., government J?lan early Jo, turn mem down at . . the next caucus and secure the nomination of some reputable citizens in their stead. The churches are the custodians of the public con science. Let them Telegate the saloon to the back ground by giving the people to understand that "what ought to be done must be done, in the only way it can be done." Enforce the law and you will diminish the power and pollution of the sa loon! LEGISLATION. Legislation. The aim of this department is to secure men for office who are opposed to the liquor traffic. Such men are needed in every office in city, county or commonwealth. To accomplish this, the nomination and election of bad men must 1903. ' " ;v , ; ' ;V VOLUME 68, NUMBER 46. der what they can do and how they can succeed. It is all summed up in one word:. Agitation! " Peo , pie say they can't enforce the laws. Agitate. They say the public officers are bad.' Agitate. They say . public sentiment is dead. Agitate. They say church members are asleep. - Agitate. The laws are not what they should be. Agitate. ; The ring and bosses control the primaries and Selections. Agitate. The saloon element pre dominates. -Agitate. : .The preachers are afraid. Agitate. ,Ve can't get, League Committees' to work. Agitate. A-thousand and one things, twice over stand in our way. Agitate. There is the secret," . tbenlhitttfee'TB the commun : . t1 be prevented and men who are friendly to tern ity needs along the line of agitation, and then ' ' bend every energy to supply that need. Plan for ' public meetings, circulate the membership pledge, scatter literature, make us of the local press to put up-to-date temperance matter before the peo ple. If desirable, plan a campaign of mass meet ings, secure the best local talent, provide the best music, import special lecturers, get the best local men on the platform, and make your meeting the most enthusiastic and attractive in the communi ty. Be careful to use such speakers only as are fully informed and sympathetic along Anti-Saloon lines arid methods of work. Get all you can to unite," but never imagine, because everybody does not couoe in, that nothing can be done. A few wise and determined souls can plan a crusade that will, win its way to the hearts of the people and secure their co-operation. Some ministers and , some churches are wanting in courage, conviction and consecration. They "ire full of compromise. A Gideon's band will get the response of the peo ple to its call for public righteousness. In these meetings make large use of the pledge to secure . . i ir.i aaaiuonai names to your memoersmp rou. ju.bkq - the meetings so strong and winsome as to build up public sentiment against the saloon. The good people are in the majority. Get them together through your league, and you can do anything " ""with Qr against the drink eyil. Get away from time-woro methodVand threadbare phrases. Make ' them ?Good Government" or "Christian Citizen ship" or "Pure Politics" meetings. Plan a list of topics in advance. Get all the pastors to dis cussion the' same day the same aspect of temper ance work, and thus produce a common impression among Christian congregations. This unifies the sentiment and' nrenares the way for concerted action. The pulpit must Bet the pace of progress. : 1144 Ca 1A aIiaaam mnr Ifolro all an Mi rrtortfirxya 'special, throw routine to the winds, advertise 'thoroughly, make your program crisp and clear cut, and let "sweet reasonableness" govern and "control all. Do not fail to canvass homes and business houses and factories with literature. The fi W; C T. U. and Young People's Societies can do : ' this! using one kind of leaflet at a time, and mak- perance legislation secured in their stead. Expe rience shows that good men will seldom or never be elected unless nominated by good men who go to the primary and caucus. Good men will domi nate at the polls and in . government as soon as they are willing to perform their duties at the points where they can do the most good. A few determined and discreet men can accomplish more at the primary or caucus than five times the number can do at the polls. Be sure to vote, but do it after having used your .definite influence at the primary or. caucus of your own party to se cure, the nomination of men who are pledged against the saloon. Do the one, but do not leave the other .undone. , Use your influence to create an independent temperance vote in your own party. The Committee on Legislation in the Local ' League should familiarize itself with the political events and issues in the community, ascertain the probable candidates of various parties and their attitude toward the saloon question. Learn the date and place of primary and caucus,and rally the foes of the saloon there to defeat the nomination of men favorable to the grogshop. Begin at once to organize for such action. Whether large or small, make your organization so compact that every member will count. Don't fire into the air. Keep your feet on the ground and your head cool. Ballots and not bullets count. Talk little and toil much. Use the mass-meeting to arouse enthusiasm, but use your own department to con vert public sentiment into ballots made effective in the preliminary struggles where they will ac complish the- most. Organize, work and vote; these count. Do not wail ; but smile as you fight and victory will come. The warrant for good people to go into politics against the saloon is found in the fact that they have the power to do so successfully. f In all its work the Local League should keep in vital relation to the State-wide organization. Use its literature, membership pledge, and sub scription cards; Secure - its speakers, keep in touch with the State and District Superintendents and the Headquarters Committee. .Report prompt- THE (JROWTtl OF THE SOCIALIST PARTY. The effect of the coal strike upon the country from an economic and sociological point of view would, in itself, be an interesting study; but even from the standpoint of politics it must not be ignored. Immense gains were made by the So cialists in nearly every State.' They saw their opportunity to make , an impression, and they la bored earnestly. Unusual efforts to win votes were exerted in Pennsylvania, New York, Connecticut, and Massachusetts, the great manufacturing cen tres of the country. In Pennsylvania," a Socialist. State ticket was nominated and Socialist candi dates ran in several districts. In the mining re gions Socialistic exhorterg nightly addressed enor mous crowds. In New York the progaganda was also active, while in Connecticut the Socialist leaders worked in harmony :with the labor organi zations. The result of this industrious missionary work was seen in the figures of the election re turns. It is estimated that the total So cialist vote in the United States in the last elec tion, when the. figures are 'obtainable, will foot nearly 350,000. In 1900, Eugene Debs, the Soci alist candidate for President of the United States, polled only 86,000 totes. . - It must be admitted that the aggregate of the Socialist vote is still a very small proportion of the total suffrage of the United States; but this does not detract from the interest which attaches to the remarkable increases ' above mentioned. These point, in my opinion, to the growth of a political organization which will be the logical successor of the Populist party, and which is likely to attract to itself a following of consider able importance. If the trusts continue to in crease and multiply without restriction; if they can monopolize the distribution of the necessities of life at arbitrary prices; if they can prevent the individual citizen from procuring beef, sugar, etc., except under such conditions as they prescribe, and which may be prohibitory, there will be al most universal demand for governmental inter ference. The citizen already chafes under some of the conditions which the trusts have imposed; and as there is now, and has been for many years, a growing tendency toward paternalism, fostered ' bv questionable legislation, it is easy to see that many persons will look to government ownership as the only means whereby the desired relief can be secured. No student of political affairs can have failed to notice the frequency with which the phrase "Public ownership of public utilities" is being incorporated in party platforms. At first it was inserted with doubt and hesitation; but, at the present time, it is accepted without reserve. Such public ownership is a step toward Socialism, in the broad and accurate meaning of the term; and unless there be a check to the present monopo listic tendency of trusts, there will be a wide spread demand for public ownership or, at least, governmental supervision of every distributor of human necessities. Such a condition of affairs would be a serious menace to the stability of the Republic; and yet, because there is such a decided drift in this direction, the regulation of trusts becomes a question of supreme importance. Ilenry Litchfield West, in the Forum. inithe circuit once every two Tor three weeks. - ly theworkdone and the way you did it. Let all ' Agitate I -"Advertise ! Educate ! : '' r the departments work : harmoniously together. ' 7'!' 'Xaw Enf orceme'nf Contrary" to custom'this is'" Emphasize constantly the inter-partisan and inter ' put second, foT the reason that often it is the very ' denominational character of your work. Then best method of agitation. The Jaws and ordi-: follow the advice of Superintendent Nicholson, of nances were put upon the statute books to be en- the Maryland League: "Local leaguers often won- ; "Make one person happy each day and in forty years you have made 14,600 human beings happy for a little ime at least." " , , " The habit of looking on the best side of every event- is worth more than a thousand pounds a year.-DrSamtiel Jbhnson.- --'- ; Mr ' The fine art of living is to draw from each per son his best. Lilian Whiting.
The Biblical Recorder (Raleigh, N.C.)
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May 20, 1903, edition 1
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