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Newspaper Page Text
ONE MAN'S OPINIONS BY N. D. COCHRAN. Saloons arid Breweries. The anti saloon fight has been making tre mendous headway in recent years, and it is quite generally believed we will soon have a national fight for and against prohibition. The chief beneficiaries of all of the saloon evils the men who get the hog end of the saloon profit haven't come in for their share-of the .pound ing. I refer to the brewers. Most of the brewers are rich, prominent and eminently respectable. Most of the saloonkeepers are little more than hired clerks "for the brew ers. ' Many saloonkeepers are set up in business by brewers, who own the leases and bar fixtures, control the licenses and have the saloonkeepers at their mercy. They can fix the price, the 'saloon keeper must pay for-hisbeer; they can compel him to self no beer but a particular brand;, and through their organization theycan piif any saloon keeper out of business Tvho gets in a row with the brewery that owns him. The saloonkeepers don't-. advertise ; " hence they have no standing in the newspapers.- The brewers th) adver tise; and they do have standing with the papers. They also, have high so cial standing, because of their wealth. Yet'any brewer who is selling beer to a vice resort, and controls' the. lease or owns the building or furniture, is a business partner of thelieeper of the, resort. Not many saloonkeepers', get rich. The rich''ones are the exception,, not the rule. Rich brewers are the rule, not the exception. They play a cinch game. They permit the unionization of their employes, and then, call on un ion labor to help them vote wet. Then they join hands with other big em ployers of labor to crush unionism. The- average saloon hasdegener ated. There is no question about tfiat. But much of ttiat degeneration is due to the greed of the brewers, and. the fact that small wages (or profits) drive saloonkeepers to resort to all possible expedients to rake in a few extra nickels. The average saloonkeeper may not know it,, but he is a low wage victim himself a slave to the brewer. And nearly every saloon, is a political cen ter from which is played the brewer's political game. And the saloonkeeper has to stand all the odium of the business. My Friend. I would not have my friend favor me to my brothers loss. I would not have my friend tell me how I should live, wHat I should think, what I should do. I would have my friend, to be satis fied when I live my life in my way, and still be my friend. I would have my friend love me in such manner. that he would want me to develop' to the highest the best that is in jne. . I would not have my friend re-form me. I would have my friend keep,..my friendship' and let me re-form" myself. My personality is sacred. Hands off. Faithfulness. I shall not be faith ful to my wife because any man liv ing or dead shall say to., me "Thou shalt" or "Thou shalt not." Or because of anyrule laid down; or of any definition; or of anything printed in books. ; If I love her and she- loves me, neither of -us can be inferior or su perior. .1. cannot make "the law for her or she 'for me. The only law for love is love. If I love my wife, I will be governed by my love. I will be as square as I am strong. I cannot expect more of h'er. o o Chicago has about 600 moving pic ture theaters; with .a: daily attendance of 600;60b persohs. - i