Engraving entitled Steps to Ruin No. 2, by Tomkins Harrison Matteson (1813-1884), born in Peterboro, NY. The engraving depicts a drunk man. "His poor little daughter clings to his arm imploring him to come home."On April 10, 1860 Jame Barnett gave a speech entitled Prohibitory Liquor Law. I believe that the bill would amend the Excise Law of 1857. I am not familiar with this Law. In Barnett's speech he speaks out against alcohol and the way it is sold. Evidently only a certain person was designated to sell alcohol in a community. This was supposed to regulate and control the purchase of alcohol. James didn't think this helped the problem. He thought it was a way of making money off of drunkards and a way to make more drunkards. The full speech was printed in The State League April 28, 1860. It is hard to understand the full context of the speech. I will share some of what James said.
"We must meet this bill then, as it comes to us with all it's long-faced sanctity, claiming a love for the poor fallen inebriate; and a desire to benefit him and his wretched family, by 'suppressing
intemperance,' and restoring him again to his manhood."
"And how does it propose to suppress this evil? Why, sir, by licensing a sufficient number of good, moral men, in each neighborhood, and and town, and village, and city, in the whole State to supply the means of intemperance to every man, and woman, and child, in all these different localities, thus bringing the temptation to every man's door."
James speaks of how the government is only remodeling or patching up the problem. "Still the ruin goes on; the evil is not suppressed; the tide swells; drunkards by increasing thousands and hundreds of thousands, still go down to death; and as one battalion after another fall in the breach, and are forgotten in the drunkard's grave, their places are rapidly being filled, and with constantly augmenting numbers, from the ranks of moderate drinkers, and these again from the ranks of the temperate."
"Where, I ask, do these thousands of drunkards come from? Where are they manufactured?"
"Who is responsible for their wretchedness and their doom? On whose garments will be found the blood of their wrecked and ruined souls? Whose voices will be heard sounding the notes of wailing and wo over this State -through desolate homes, and among worse than widowed mothers and doubly orphaned children?"
"Ours, sir, if by our voices and our votes we re-enact -and mend up and make more abhorrent this system of abomination -this engine of death."
"We deplore as well as we may, the blighting curse of American slavery on this continent. But what is American slavery, with all its horrid devilism compared with the more infernal work of
destroying the souls and bodies of men by a licensed rum traffic."
"My proposition, Mr. Speaker, is to substitute the principle of prohibition; to overthrow the license system; to declare intoxicating liquors, when kept for sale as a beverage, an outlaw -a nuisance; to break up this whole system by which the business of dragging men down to perdition is legalized."
"Sir, I thank God, we have passed that point in the civilization, and Christianity of the age, where morally absurd enactments like this can be enforced. I rejoice that time is rapidly approaching, if
not already come, when these great questions of moral ethics must be met, and settled, when legislators are being brought to know and understand that law, to be obeyed, and enforced as law, must harmonize with the eternal principles of justice, and the moral convictions of right and wrong, implanted in the hearts of men, over whom such law is designed to have force, and exert influence."
"If then we would bring prosperity to the industrial interests of the State -relieve it from a large share of its burdens -alleviate the crushed and desolate heart of the drunkard's wife, and his neglected and more than homeless children, let us put a stop now and forever to this horrid system of drunkard-making by law."
"let us, by a solemn enactment, declare the sale of intoxicating liquors as a beverage, a misdemeanor, punishable by fine and imprisonment, and the liquors when kept for such use, a nuisance."
Please take a minute to look at my other blogs.
Captain James Barnett (Jr.) 35th New York Volunteer Infantry
http://jamesbarnett.blogspot.com/
35th New York Volunteer Infantry Civil War
http://35thnewyorkinfantry.blogspot.com/
Biography of James Barnett (Sr.) -Father of Captain Barnett
http://senatorjamesbarnett.blogspot.com/
James Barnett (Sr.) Anti-Slavery, John Brown Meeting Peterboro, NY
http://johnbrownmeeting.blogspot.com/
James Barnett (Sr.) Speech -Personal Liberty for all Men
http://personallibertyforallmen.blogspot.com/
James Barnett (Sr.) Battles for African American Man's Right to vote 1860 & 1867
http://africanamericansuffrage.blogspot.com/
Please e-mail me if you would like original copies of any of my references. Contact me if you have questions, suggestions, or more interest in something that I have posted at jamesbarnett1@hotmail.com
"We must meet this bill then, as it comes to us with all it's long-faced sanctity, claiming a love for the poor fallen inebriate; and a desire to benefit him and his wretched family, by 'suppressing
intemperance,' and restoring him again to his manhood."
"And how does it propose to suppress this evil? Why, sir, by licensing a sufficient number of good, moral men, in each neighborhood, and and town, and village, and city, in the whole State to supply the means of intemperance to every man, and woman, and child, in all these different localities, thus bringing the temptation to every man's door."
James speaks of how the government is only remodeling or patching up the problem. "Still the ruin goes on; the evil is not suppressed; the tide swells; drunkards by increasing thousands and hundreds of thousands, still go down to death; and as one battalion after another fall in the breach, and are forgotten in the drunkard's grave, their places are rapidly being filled, and with constantly augmenting numbers, from the ranks of moderate drinkers, and these again from the ranks of the temperate."
"Where, I ask, do these thousands of drunkards come from? Where are they manufactured?"
"Who is responsible for their wretchedness and their doom? On whose garments will be found the blood of their wrecked and ruined souls? Whose voices will be heard sounding the notes of wailing and wo over this State -through desolate homes, and among worse than widowed mothers and doubly orphaned children?"
"Ours, sir, if by our voices and our votes we re-enact -and mend up and make more abhorrent this system of abomination -this engine of death."
"We deplore as well as we may, the blighting curse of American slavery on this continent. But what is American slavery, with all its horrid devilism compared with the more infernal work of
destroying the souls and bodies of men by a licensed rum traffic."
"My proposition, Mr. Speaker, is to substitute the principle of prohibition; to overthrow the license system; to declare intoxicating liquors, when kept for sale as a beverage, an outlaw -a nuisance; to break up this whole system by which the business of dragging men down to perdition is legalized."
"Sir, I thank God, we have passed that point in the civilization, and Christianity of the age, where morally absurd enactments like this can be enforced. I rejoice that time is rapidly approaching, if
not already come, when these great questions of moral ethics must be met, and settled, when legislators are being brought to know and understand that law, to be obeyed, and enforced as law, must harmonize with the eternal principles of justice, and the moral convictions of right and wrong, implanted in the hearts of men, over whom such law is designed to have force, and exert influence."
"If then we would bring prosperity to the industrial interests of the State -relieve it from a large share of its burdens -alleviate the crushed and desolate heart of the drunkard's wife, and his neglected and more than homeless children, let us put a stop now and forever to this horrid system of drunkard-making by law."
"let us, by a solemn enactment, declare the sale of intoxicating liquors as a beverage, a misdemeanor, punishable by fine and imprisonment, and the liquors when kept for such use, a nuisance."
Please take a minute to look at my other blogs.
Captain James Barnett (Jr.) 35th New York Volunteer Infantry
http://jamesbarnett.blogspot.com/
35th New York Volunteer Infantry Civil War
http://35thnewyorkinfantry.blogspot.com/
Biography of James Barnett (Sr.) -Father of Captain Barnett
http://senatorjamesbarnett.blogspot.com/
James Barnett (Sr.) Anti-Slavery, John Brown Meeting Peterboro, NY
http://johnbrownmeeting.blogspot.com/
James Barnett (Sr.) Speech -Personal Liberty for all Men
http://personallibertyforallmen.blogspot.com/
James Barnett (Sr.) Battles for African American Man's Right to vote 1860 & 1867
http://africanamericansuffrage.blogspot.com/
Please e-mail me if you would like original copies of any of my references. Contact me if you have questions, suggestions, or more interest in something that I have posted at jamesbarnett1@hotmail.com
