Adventure Magazine Cover — page 192: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

182 they based their campaign wholly on the need of relieving human suffering and de- basement instead of confusing the issue by attempting to make prohibition part and parcel of Christianity. That is another argument against prohibition—it breeds hypocrisy. As well as intolerance, lawless- ness, narrow-mindedness, hate, boot-legging, poisoning and other unpleasant odds and ends. No just suppose that all these good people whose moral activity naturally takes the course of correcting the other fel- low’s vice by sending him to jail if he in- dulges in it and they can catch him, were asked to turn their militant attention to that vast evil that rots its way through every part of our social, political and eco- nomic fabric—graft and betrayal of public trust, breeding theft, lying, perjury, dis- loyalty and more human misery and suffer- ing and moral debasement than is bred by drink. Would they be enthusiastic for that campaign? Notany. Asa matter of fact, the need has always stared them in the face and they look the other way. Partly because they’re not sufficiently intelligent to see or understand a need that isn’t shown in such crude cause and effect as a man drinking a glass of liquor and then lying in the gutter or beating his wife. But chiefly because for many of them this is not the ‘Other fellow’s vice but their own, while many of those spotless of this vice would be confronted with the duty of hunting down this or that pillar of the congregation and this or that wealthy contributor of stolen money for foreign missions. Any of them reading this will of course say I’m not a Christian. Well, I try to be, though I’m not very proud of the result. I’m not a sectarian, if that’s what they mean. And when I go gunning against an evil, as I do against graft and political cor- ruption, I don’t send up any smoke-cloud of misapplied Christianity. ELL, Mr. Davis doesn’t seem to be getting anywhere in furthering the cause of prohibition by his Christian at- tempt to deprive Dr. Butler of his means of making a living for daring to exercise his American right of free opinion and free ex- pression. The trustees of the university seem to understand the meaning of democ- racy and manly methods. Some of them Adventure even dare to express their own adverse opinion of prohibition. For example, Fred- eric R. Coudert, well-known authority on international law: The prohibition experiment has been tried and found wanting. It has, in my judgment, tended to hypocrisy, inebriety, immorality and a general reign of lawlessness. Intelligent American opinion must occupy itself with the revision of an impossible situation. I can speak only for myself, but I be- lieve this view to be held by many representative men in all public institutions devoted to education and general welfare. . Joseph P. Grace: I agree with Dr. Butler that the Eighteenth Amendment should be repealed. I see no reason why his official position should interfere with his making a straightforward statement on the subject of prohibition. Willard V. King: Speaking as an individual, I concur in Dr. Butler’s views on prohibition and I see nothing inconsistent therein with his leadership of Columbia University. Lucius H. Beers, trustee of Barnard College, allied to Columbia: I agree with what President Butler said regarding prohibition, and I think he performed a national ser- vice in stating the facts honestly and in urging that candid and intelligent attention be given to this great and growing scandal. I think his views are consistent with his leadership of a university. If this were not so, then universities would not pro- mote clear thinking and candid speech, when these are required in the public interest. [TD&X ’"T forget that most of our original cover paintings are for sale to the highest bidders. -Send in your bid any time. Each cover will be sent express collect to the highest bidder one month after the magazine which bears it appears on the news-stands. Minimum bid, ten dollars. SERVICES TO OUR READERS Lost Trails, for finding missing , relatives and friends, runs in alter- nate issues from “Old Songs That Men Have Sung.” Old Songs That Men Have Sung, a section of “Ask Adventure,” runs in alternate issues from “Lost Trails.” Camp-Fire Stations: explanation in the second and third issues of each month. Full list in second issue of each month. Various Practical Services to Any Reader: Free Identification Card in eleven languages (metal, 25 cents); Mail Address and Forwarding Service; Back Issues Exchanged; Camp-Fire Buttons, etc., runs in the last issue of each month. Go NOOK (©