Smyrna times., 1855-11-28
A. New Maine Liquor Law.

The Portland Advertiser states that Judge
Wells, the Democratic and Liberal candidate +
or Governor of Maine, has nearly completed ,
he draft of new Liquor Law, to be submit
ed to the approaching Legislature. 1t is un-
lerstood to contain al the principles Of the
bid license laws-the sale, by licensed persons
of not less than a certain quantity, the liquor
not TO be drunk on the premises, distillation for
medical and mechanical purposes to be allowed,
&c.
The Liquor men won the recent election in
Maine, but only by denying that they Dere
Liquor men. Their public resolves were all
for Temperance; but their private assurances
we're such as satisfied the nabobs of the Liquor !
Traffic, from whose Golfers, says the N. Y.
Herald, they obtained their material aid BY
attacking in two columns as the Democratic
and also as the Wing party-but uniting on
the same candidates for both Houses-they
have secured majority, and will elect Mr..
Wells Governor, though Governor Morrill, has
a much larger vote. And then they will try
to 90 back from Prohibition to License. But
trying and doing are not necessarily identical.
Their law will be a most transparent farce, If
enacted for it is utterly impossible to stop
drinking on the premises if you license the sale
of liquor as beverage A loafer buys quart
with the money that should buy his children
bread and now it is his. If half dozen
other loafers are present. and he chooses to
treat them to a swig out of his bottle, how can
the seller help himself! He can't, and he
won't try. Such law as the embryo Governor
meditates will cover the State with open grog-
shops in six months. And if Democracy allows
man to have liquor who can buy gallon. IL
will hardly venture Gin practice) to withhold
this privilege who is only able to buy half a
pint Gov. Wells may be great man but II
SO, there must be some other business to which
he is better ada pied than that of drafting laws
PROHIBITION IN CoNNECTICUT.-It is now
, about fifteen months since the Prohlbltory Law
went into operation in Connecticut, time enough
} to show whether or not is is capable of doing
any good. The result is quite as satisfactory
as the friends of Prohibition could reasonably
have expected. At first it's beneficial effects
|
} anticipated The rum traffic seemed strucI
stone dead at a single blow. Drunkards wer'
; nowhere to be found. Hundreds of active
: stirring business men, says the n. T. Tribune
had the pleasure of spending one whole year il
this State without witnessing that painful spec
tacle of a person intoxicated. And in ever
community some Of those who were fOrmerl
/, almost always intoxicated, who were therefor
idle and useless, if not vicious and in mlschie
e were seen to be sober and industrious, clothe
and in their right minds. The change wa
S amazing. Drunken brawls were unknown
n The timid and defenceless could venture abroa
: even at nightfall without fear. That the la
t has not been quite so well observed of late
} it was during the first eight or ten months cal
: not be disguised. And yet, let not the hast
n reader jump at the conclusion that it is fallul
d in Connecticut. 1t is far enough from that
ID If it had net at first so far transcribed Il
N highest anticipation, all would be perfectly sa
20 is6ed with the present results. If we had NJ
for a time, seen even a better state of thin
D. than the present, we should say that the Ia
as was now accomplishing all that it was possit
ly for prohibition to do. 1t was to be expect
ut that in time the wicked would learn some az
NJ of evasion which they did not at first und'
stand. Thus clubdrinkng and secret-selli
prevail now to a greater extent than they
v at first But public dramshops are still
VI known, and not more than One-hundredth pi
uf the drunkenness is now seen IN towns of |
lrt State which was seen before the law went il
he operation. In proof of this we may ment
he two facts:
tie Atthe recent Agricultural Fair of New IA
he don county, held for two days in Norwi
or thousands we're gathered together from
ire parts of the county and State There was
ePt drinking, no fights, no brawls upon the groun
gu In all the two days, only one man was seen
nd- toxicated. Before the law went into operat
not every body knows that two such gala d.
lal' could not have passed without score of dru
I'VE en- persons dlsgracing the occasion. {
De against twenty Is a great gain. A similar
be suit was witnessed at Hartford, at the 81
"a" Fair. Among the 10000 persons who thro
lhe ed the city on the occasion, they saw but
gal man drunk, and he was in the hands of the
ors, lice.
nd These are some of the facts which sbory
ng, the law is still doiRg glorious work in
TO little State.
are
rty. Public Lecture,