Iowa voter. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1867-1874, 1869-07-22
Republican State Ticket.
Prohibition.


tional Convention of Temperance
Men, to meet at Chicago on the lst
of September, TO organize Third
Party, based on Prohibition. The
Chicago Tribune, commenting on
this Call, says that ''the result of 20
years strict and urgent effort to en-
force such laws has demonstrated be-
yond controversy" four conclusions,
as follows:
81. That the prohibition of the
sale of liquor has not sensibly dimin-
ished its use by those who would
have used it had no such law existed.
.. That the prohibition Of its sale
tends to an increase in the use of it
among certain classes of society, cs-
peciaily young men, who, to evade
the law. form Clubs and kcek their
rooms largely stocked with liquors,
and where they meet and drink to
excess.
3. That such laws never reformed
d drunkard, nor kept a man sober
who otherwise would get drunk.
4. That the general effect of the
law has been prejudici.l to society,
because it leads to criminal evasions
of the law, bcgets popular approval
Of the violation of law, and induces
false swearing and other demordliZ-
ing offences"
Now, we would most heartily OPP
pose this Third-Party movement,
considering it either ultra and fanat-
ical or else cover for some private
purposes. But nevertheless we can
not help wishing that so large and
influential a paper as the Chicago
Tribune would not be so reckless as TO
facts. We understand its statements
to refer to the country at large, Of
course; and we belive the plain
knowledge and common sense Of the
people will deny such statements al
most entirely.
]. The Prohibitory laws hare ma
terially diminished The use Of liquor,
for the one great reason, among 9th
ers, that they have made it very
much more difficult for people gen
orally to get the Liquor to drink.
2. Ciub-rooms are feature only
in the larger cities, which have but Il
small part of the whole population.
Such Clubs doubtless spoi! much liq-
uor; but few or none Of them have
been formed specially to defy Prohi-
bitory laws; and the young men In
them drink little or no more liquor
than they did when Prohibition was
not in force.
3. OF course Prohibition never
directly "reformed" drunkard; for
reform is mental and moral act of
the individual, and cannot be brought
about by law; but indirectly Prohi-
bition has undoubtedly caused many
reforms, by removing temptations.
And Prohibition Ads kept many a
man sober, by keeping liquor out of
his reach--which is precisely the
scope and aim Of Prohibitory laws.
The point is one Of fact; and every
intelligent citizen knows the fact to
be as just stated.
4. The Prohibitory Liquor law
docs not "lead to criminal evasions"
any more than any other law does.
This sophistry of the Trituac's, if
true and logical argument, would
overthrow all laws whatever; and
the more vital such laws were to the
public safety-as, G. e., against adul-
terry and grand larceny-the more
this sophistry, if it were truth, would
bear against them.
Now, it is plain that individual
rights must be restrained as little as
possible; but all experience shows
that some restraints are necessary.
The argument for Prohibition is, not
that men ought to be restrained
whether they abuse their own and
Others rights or not, but that they
do abuse these rights, and that ex-
perience shows that the good Of sOci-
ETY. at large requires that the means
and opportunities for such abuse
should be taken away; and therefore
society, by majority vote, takes them
away, for the sake of the greatest
good to the greatest number, not as
determined by an autOcrat, but as
decided BY vote of the people them
selves.
The question is largely one OF facts.
IF Prohibitory Liquor laws do pre-
vent drunkenness, and therefore do
conduce to peace, quiet, intelligence
ard morality, set those immense ad-
vantages to their favor; If such is not
their actual tendency, then they are