ose a society was
organized to secure the enforcement of the Scott Act in the township
of Sutton. Mr. Smith, who had been instrumental in bringing about this
conference, was a member of the Executive Committee of the Society.

One of the leading temperance organizations of Canada is that known as
the Dominion Alliance, which is divided and sub-divided into
provincial and county branches. When, on April 25, 1894, the Brome
County Branch of the Alliance held its annual meeting for the election
of officers, Mr. Smith was chosen its President for the ensuing year.
Here was field for increased usefulness, and he took up his work with
a zeal that soon won the disapproval both of the liquor party and a
certain class of so-called temperance people whose principal work for
the cause usually lies in criticism of the work of others.

Soon a public meeting of the Alliance was announced by the new
President to be held at Sutton, and a large number of people gathered
in the hall on the evening appointed. Many speakers addressed the
audience, and told in no uncertain words that the law must be enforced
and offenders must be punished. It had not been deemed best to
prosecute the liquor sellers without first giving them a fair and
public warning, and therefore this meeting had been called; but now
that they were notified of the intentions of the temperance people, if
detected in dealing out the liquid poison, they had only themselves to
blame. True to these announcements, Mr. Smith and others proceeded at
once to obtain satisfactory evidence of the traffic in strong drink
which was known to be taking place in the various hotels. This was by
no means a slight task, for though the liquor sellers were not willing
to keep the law, they were entirely willing to preserve the appearance
of so doing, and very loath to sell liquor in the presence of a
stranger, while the testimony of their regular customers could not be
relied on. However, the task was done, and the evidence gathered was
sufficient to condemn nearly every hotel-keeper in the county to
imprisonment or a fine. On June 6th, these cases were considered in
the District court, at Sweetsburg, Quebec, and punishment was meted
out to the offenders. In some instances where the offences merited
imprisonment a fine was allowed instead, and this was accepted by the
Alliance President, who believed that justice should be tempered with
mercy. This bit of leniency, however, was not taken into