Martinsburg weekly independent. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1873-1875, 1874-03-07
From the Natio
TIE WOMEN AND TT n Tprppp-
ANOE CUES cTnT

tta xxyo.f,.r, asYuOF crusade OF
~ ,.:., 49, s0men, not perhaps
~, ~ ~ ~ ) Aovcment itself, but
49, %i.n i ia respair and digust which
hs'1e - 10 it, Ii is now quite
siai. { entury since the movement
~ = o suppression Of intoxication
y. ~ IN in this country, and during
J" At it has been, in the main, In
me hands of the male sex; let us
fexamine with what results. At
first, the means used was moral
suasion; the leagues which sprung
up all over the country were
purely voluntary associations,
formed for the purpose OF eneour-
aging among those who believed
in total abstinence the zeal for the
good cause. Men were persuaded
into signing the pledge in the be-
lief that voluntary resistance of
temptation was the best resistance.
This was the first stage of the
movement. AS soon as those who
had banded themselves together
for the suppression drunkenness
found themselves strong enough,
they resorted to that means Of eff
iecting their object which TO most
persons seems to be the natural
and obvious means of accomplish
ing any social or moral object
legislation. They passed laws in
a number of States absolutely
prohibiting the sale of intoxicat-
ing drinks, and brought into ac-
tion new machinery sand novel
expedients for its enforcement;
finding, however, after many ex-
periments. that this did not
put an end to drinking, they fell
back, or rather were compelled
by their natural enemies, the
liquordealers, to seem to fall back
on statutes substituting regulation
for prohibition and in some
States it has been no uncommon
thing to see a sort of alternative
machinery set in motion, which
for one year, or number of years
turned out prohibitory statues,
and in the alternating periods
license laws. Still the sale of H.
quor seemed to go on very much
as before, and finally in Ohio, if
not in other States, laws were
passed creating not merely new
machinery, but new theory of
law for the suppression of the
vice and the traffic in it; hitherto,
the theory of law had been that
the sale of liquor was like the
sale of anything else-an ordinary
occupation in which anyone might
engage, subject to proper restric-
tons. The new theory land this
theory naturally enough grew out
of the previous legislation on the
subject) was that the sale of liquor
was something different from the
sale of other things, and in fact
was more like the sale Of
nitro glycerine or arsenic,
and that any one who
engaged in it ought to do so at his
own portland not only so, but
that there were certain classes in
the community affected by the
sale in a very peculiar way. There
fore it was provided by law that
any one related to the purchaser
of alcoholic stimulants by marriage,
or by blood with certain degrees,
might bring an action against the
dealer and recover in damages for
the injury resulting from the ia
tOxicatiOn of the vendee But this
law did not succeed much better
than its predecessors actions were
brought under it, but there was
considerable difficulty in executing
its provisions. The whiskey traf-
tic still went on, and the triumph
of temperance seemed as far off as
ever.
1t cannot be denied that the SUI
pervision of the liquor business
has not thus far been a success.
The reason is very simple. There
has never been any serious at
tempt on the part of those classes
in the country who ought to gov
ern it to grapple with the question.
Whenever state legislature has
passed a prohibitory law. the great
majority of the intelligent and ed
ucated people in the country have
sneered at it, and said that every
one knew it could not be enforced.
No sooner, on the other hand does
the usual license law succeed it
than everybody says at once, "Now
for free rum" Notwithstanding
the patent fact that the danger is
great if not an increasing one,
people content themselves with
framing statutes without the
slightest desire or expectation that
they shall be enforced land appoint
ing officials whom everybody I'M
derstands will not enforce them.
1t used to be said of one of the
best-known State Governors, that
perhaps the most striking thing in
his career was his promise to the
] DeOnle OF his State that if thau