The weekly Lancaster gazette. (Lancaster, Ohio) 1852-1855, 1853-12-29

DESIGNED TO SHOW IT'S
UacOHsTITvTlOhilITY q DEspoTle TENDENCY
BT THAMRR DAVIS.

BIZ THAMRR DAVIS.
! RFaARKs ON SEcTfoH FIHsr or THF MAINE
lLAw.@.No o person shall be allowed At ans
time TO maI ufaeture, or sell. By hi mself, hi,
clerk, servant or agent directly or Indirectly
any spirit1ous or intoxicating liquors or ans
mixed liquors, part which is s2iriluaus o.
10 toxicatiDgs except as hereafter provided. y
/ Here question naturally arises. By
what right do legislators presnme to inter.
fere with the manufacture aud sale Of one
species Of merchandise. and why II they dc
this may they not also prohibit The running
OF cottUn factories, or similar establish
mentsI To os the principal seems the same
secret society Is Interested in suppressina
the sale ri intoxica,ing drinks; they petitior
THE legislature and employ every means Il
promote their favorite schemes. They NEE
in conventions, make speeches, from CON
mittees, and despatch letters Of inquiry
round the country, not for the purpose o
ascertsining whether the candidates for Of
fee are respectable, well-infOrmed, talented
men, but 10 know whe1per or not they are
in favor Of the probibIiory liquor law. The
manufacture, sale and use Of one article oI
merchandise is just as innocent in itself AZ
the manufacture, sale and use Of another
II thing is to be prohibited by law because
it is abuse, or susceptible of abuse,we should
like to know where or with what article,
prohibition would cease. The manufacture
and sale and use Of books must be prohib-
tied, because thereby licentious, profane
and immoral works are brought before the
public, as is even now the case in Russia,
Austria. Prussia, France and Spain. The
manufacture and sale and use Of gunpowder
and firearms must be prohibited, because
they become in the hands of the vicious the
instruments OF crime. assassination and re-
bellion, which has been done already Hnder
the above mentioned despotic govern
meBts. An English monarch once consid-
cred it ezpedientto to prohibit the use Of light
after certain hour in the evening, because
it had been abused to favor the. gathering Of
tumuliuous assemblies. The use Of lauda-
mum must be prohibited, because it is often
abused as means Of suicide. Suppose the
Tbompsonians to organize and muster an or
der to elect a legislature that would prohib-
it the use of caiomel, because it is suscept-
ible Of abuse. A legislature should not be
partial, and ifthey pass laws to please one
society and that society of secret charac-
ter, we cannot perceive why they should
not be as ready to conform to the whistles
Of any other body Of class Of men.
The fact is it is not the province of the
legislature to prohibit the use Of any article
whatever, and the moment they do so they
overslep the power delegated TO them by
the Constitution, and there administration,
ceasing to be democratic, becomes despo-
tism. It is for them to prescribe penalties
for the abuse, but the seller Of liquor is not
responsible for the conduct OF the buyer
The abuse Cannot be in selling the liquor,
because such a conclusion would bear equal
ly hard against other articles ofrafic: max
ing the apothecary who sold the lauda-
mum, responsible for the suicide; the
man who sold the gunpowder. accountable
for the murder; aud the clothes merch ant
who sold the corset, blameable for the tight
lacing. Here we shall be met probably with
the reply, that the apOthecary and powder
merchant were ignorant OF the design of the
buyer, whereas the liquor-seller knew, or
had reason to believe that the purchaser
would get drunk. But the validity of this
objection is cot of by the consideration that
the Maine Law party recognise, namely,
that the use ofa thing must be prohibited
because il is susceptible of abuse. Hence
il the appothecary or powder merchant wese
acquainted with their wares, it amounts TO
the same thing as il they were acquainted
with the intentions Of the purchaser.
The abuse is with the man who buys the
liquor and gets drunk, the same as If is with
the one who buys the powder and commits
murder. Habitual drunkenness is just as
much a crime against the peace of society
as is theft and murder Then let the drunk
ard be punished the same as the thief or
murderer is punished. When a man be-
comes insane, and his presence is obnox-
ious to the public, he is confined in an asy-
lnm; when he becomes criminal he is sent
to the prison; If he becomes drunk, accord
ing to the same rule, place him in the pen
itentiary. set him to work, and keep him
there till he becomes sober man. It Is
certainly a new feature in legislation, il
peaceful, well-disposed citizens are to be
embarrassed In their business operations.
have their property outlawed, and be expos
ed to fines and imprisonment, because some
low creature of vicious and depraved tastes,
OF his own voluntary choice gets drunk
something new to our free and democratic
country If secret society is to rule the bal
lot-box.