Sunbury American. [volume] (Sunbury, Pa.) 1848-1879, 1873-03-01

our sister county Schuvlkill, resulted in
favor OF license and the liquor traffic. In
this county the resalt was attributable
more TO the inactivity of those favorable to
temperance than any other. Most of those
having influence showed no disposition to
lead off in their opposition to license and
liquor-each one expecting the other to do
tho work. 1t has been alleged that our TO-
reign population were to blame for the de-
feat, but the real cause is attributable to
the pusalanmity of most of those who were
loudest in favor of the bill, many of whom
did not consider it policy, We suppose, to
vote for or against license. A large pro-
portion of our foreign population were just
as strong in feeling for trial of the virtues
of the proposed law, "a were those of our
native population who made the loudest
prctensious, but who did not extend their
influence beyond their own households.
There is now but one remedy LETT for the
abatement Of the evil, and that remedy has
always been in exstence-the stringent en-
forcement of existing laws. This, in our
opinion, is the only effective remedy, and if
properly applied would do more to curtail
the evil than any other law that has ever
been devised. There were hundreds who
voted in favor Of license, not that they felt
any interest in the traffic, but that they
saw nothing in the law eiiectiug anything to
the purpose, and many Of them believed
that it would drive the vice to still lower
level-that by closing up respectable places
whose regulations would prevent gross
abuse, it would throw the business into the
hands of reckless, irresponsible parties,
whose secret places for the sale Of liquor Of
the worst character, would have been legion.
Another Objectionable feature to the bill, in
the opinion of many, was that it merely
abolished license, and deprived our hotels
Of the power of accommodating the tavelng
public, without producing the desired effect
within the community. This argument
was used with effect. Had there been
provision in the law overruing this
objection, thousands Of votes would have
gone in favor of the bill which were other
wise cast. There are many, too, who be-
lieve that the only sure method Of killing
the evils arising from the traffic is through
the license system and the stringent en-
forcement OF present laws--that by les
sening the number of unlicensed rum
holes the number of places of temptation is
lessened, and the fend robbed of half its
power to do mischief, thus paving the way
tn n hp1i ol, III l,,
That by passing laws making perjury on
the part of constables a punishable crime,
blow will be struck at the evils of the
rum traffic more effective than any Local
Option Law that may be passed.
The opponents of license have great rea-
son to feel gratifed with the result of the
elections on the bill throughout the State
The majorities are large against license.
The character Of the law is yet an expert
ment. If the result of the experiment is
beneficial, it will no doubt become the law
of the State. We hope that wherever it
has carried it may result in good. If this
be the result, we feel confident that the peo-
pie Of this county will also decide in its IA
first opportunity.
But as long as man is man we fear the
whlskey difficulty will be matter difficult to
handle. There are two causes for this
first, mans inclination to slimulauts, se-
cond his cupidity. We see in Chambers
Encyclopedia that in 1866, furore occur.
red throughout the United Kingdom of
Great Britain in opposition to the whisky
traffic, the evils arising from which far ex-
ceeded those of the United States, spring
ing from the same cause here at the pre-
sent time. The government passed. and
attempted most stringently to enforce,
sweeping laws in opposition, but the
population, through their inclination to
stimulants, presented the most violent op-
position to the laws, and the government
was forced to succumb. Officers in the
discharge Of their duty were shot down,
aud rioting and blood-shed were an every
day occurrence, until, what the population
considered obnoxious, was abolished.
1t may be urged that difference ought to
exist between this and that time in conse-
quence of the superior enlightenment of the
present century. If we look at the thing MS
it is, we will see that the loYe for stimuauts
travels with civilization, and that the most
enlightened nations are the most prone to
it, The half civilized, supiue Asiatic
dissatisfied with his coffee, tea and pipe,
the thoughtful German only with his
beer and wine, the polite Frcnchman with
his wine and his brandy, and the encrgct-
ic American and Euglshman use almost
every variety Of stmuants. We have not
one word to say in favor of the use of sti-
inulants, but these are facts which cannot
be disputed. This is the first difficulty
the second exists in mans cupidity. Not
satistled with fair compensation for the
production of wholesome article, he must
hasten his wealth through the production
and sale of drugged article, every drop
ofwhich takes away drop ofliie. and which
while it does not cost the manufacturer one
fourth the amount he receives for it, it costs