Litchfield enquirer., 1872-03-07
THE REPUBLICAM PARTY AND
 TEMPERANCE. 6@

AssSs 1AttA 1sAA, OA OAE1ymOubn, 6uS1neo1k his Temperance County and Senatorial nominations with the ayowed intention oi ''punishing the Republican party; while Mir. Gillette, their candidate for Govern or, charges that that party "professes temperance silly, and votes and legislate for rum." The complete inventory of the injuries Temperance is supposed to have suffered at their hands is to be sought, however, in the speech of MT. Talcott, of Glastonbury, at the Hartford county con- 1 vention of last week. We give and an- swer them in succession
 1. stHe found that the Republican, ]par- ty in 1857 attacked the Maine law by mak- ing proceedings in rem. instead of crimi- nal.
 The statute of '57 was an explanatory law passed because of differences of prac- tice that had arisen under the original statute. Moreover, the proceeding being for the forfeiture of liquor, and not for punishment of the seller, is little more effective in the civil than in the criminal form because the case does not require to be proved ''beyond a reasonable doubt in the former as in the latter mode of pro- ceeding.
 2. '1n 1859 the fine of $20 for drunken. ness was reduced to not exceeding ST."
 Even the present fine is very seldom ez- acted, although the offense is very com mon. We think so high 8 penalty as $20, aoithout discretion, calculated to defeat its own purpose by rendering its enforcement practically impossible. #.
 3. "1n 1861 they repealed the section concerning contracts; in 1863 they allow ed the rumseller to go back and collect bills which had been outlawed."
 The whole system of sales for medicinal and other purposes through town agents has failed practically. There is not a temperance man in the State who is not obliged to purchase liquor occasionally Tor legitimate purposes. If he does so purchase, ought the law to allow him to refuse to pay for what he purchases? The act of '63 merely declared that contracts already made or which shall hereafter be made" should not be rendered illegal by the prohibitory law. That it allowed the collection of ''outlawed" bills is untrue. Moreover, the old old law worked rather for than against the interest of the worst class of rumsellers. Under it they cheat ed the persons of whom they bought much oftener than they were cheated by their own customers.
 4. 'In 1865 bill concerning adulter- ated liquors was introduced by 8 demo- crat and passed" ..
 Here is grievance A law was passed punishing ''rumsellers" for poisoning their customers and this is an offence against Temperance The more liquor drinkers are poisoned, then, the better for ''the cause ?" May 'athe cause" get into humaner hands! Or, if the chief ob- jection to this excellent statute lies in the fact that it was proposed by Democrat, why are Messrs Hilliard and Gillette working so hard to throw all our temper ance legislation into the hands of the Democracy?
 In 1866 and '67 Temperance men were aggravated by the continuance of' license" bills to the next General Assembly, and the printing of one of them with the laws. 1 If it is cheerful omen to be continued I in that style, MT. Goodwin wona triumph over railroad monopoly, last session, that we have never appreciated. In 1869 a State police bill was reported, continued, and ordered printed with the laws, but it was never printed. It is not quite certain however, that the whole Republican. par ty should be slaughtered for the fault of some legislative clerk. In the same year 8 state chemist was appointed. Why that was objectionable does not appear. Per haps it was another interference with the laudable practice of poisoning drunkards. 1 The last feather that has broken the back of the patient Temperance partisan, how ever, was the failure of the legislature to to pass the Truman Smith bill, last ses- sion. It went through the Senate but stuck in the House. Mir. Talcott hadn't time to state how many Democrats voted for that bill in either House. That, how ever, is immaterial, for the object is to punish the Republican party for not doing precisely as they are directed by this minority which maay poll thousand votes. ....-.- .-.-:
 The demands, too, of the "reformers' are on the increase. At their Senatorial convention in the Sixth Senatorial district they passed resolutions requiring,
 That an act be passed excluding liquor dealers, as other criminals, from the jury box.-That an act be passed securing the right to challenge liquor drinkers from the jury at.discretion. s.t
 No druggist to sit on jury in any case all but total abstinence jurors liable to peremptory challenge? How are the facts of liquor selling and liquor drinking to be ascertained in such case Must every juror produce certificate of membership of some total abstinence society," w. were once taken sharply to task by 8 lead ing temperance man for maintaining that the liquor-drinker, soliciting sale. was equally guilty with the liquor seller. Dc the Meriden temperance men now take our ground? And isn't the whole pro gramme little open to the charge oi packing juries 2, .r.f . 7as
 Now, supposing the Republican party ''punished, !" where will the gentlemen oi the third party find themselves? Instead of State constabulary they will get g license law--the Demo cratic candidate fol governor promises that-and then theil whole tough job will have to be done oye1 again. We 1do not imagine any large number of temperance yot.ss can be found