Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1874-08-13

Clause anu dQVlS0 I'LL Ol00IS W uO HhC
wise, not because that under it tempe
rance legislation to the fullest extent
that ever would be exercised by prohi-
bitionists may not be possible, but be
cause majority voting for license will
be Interpreted as an expression o.
popular opinion adverse to existing
legislation and and an invitation to the
existing General Assembly amounting
almost to an instruction to wipe that
Legislation from the statute book by re,
peal. And this expression of public
lopinion will be the same and have the
same moral effect upon that body
whether the Constitution be adopted
or rejected. The voice of the State
upon the subject of Temperance will
have been uttered, and its General
Assembly may, if it sees proper, inter
! pref that voice unfavorable to existing
laws. For these reasons among others,
/ urge upon our people everywhere tC
vote against license.
Again, the granting OF license neces-
sarily implies the comforting Of special
privileges which is inconsistent with
| the principles and genius Of our gov
! ernment. The whole doctrine Of spe-
cial privileges has been rePudiated
again aud again, and l hope forever.
a license is the creation of a privileged
class in particular business. 1t is the
building up of kind of whisky aris-
| tocracy-allowiDg a privileged few to
| engage in a business which in itself
leads to evil consequences. If that priv
ilege were proposed to be given to any
other class of business in the State OF
Ohio or the United States it would be
repudiated with indignation and scorn.
| Yet here it is asked that there be a
special privilege license granted to
a few to the exclusion OF the many.
No reason exists why the right to traf-
fic in merchandise Of any description.
The tendency is to foster q business
condemned by the moral sense IMAM
kind, which is repugnant to all our no.
tions of republicanism and democratic
equality.
Again, the granting of license neces-
sarily imports the sanction and protec-
ton of law to the thing licensed. The
general tendency of the traffic in intOx-
fcating liquors as beverage is dcnior-
aliZatiOn, poverty and crime. True,
these things are not the invariable,
but the general result. of the traffic. Its
| tendency is, and its natural effects are
| to lead to those consequences. The
granting Of license, therefore, to traffic
in this commodity necessarily imports
the giving recognition, sanction and
sanctification of positive legal enact
ment to business, the natural and
general tendency of which is to domor-
alization, poverty and crime, . thing
to which it is inconceivable that one
imbued with the proper sentiments OF
Christian civilization should lend his
support. For these reasons l cah not
aud will not give my sanction to an af-
| f1rmative law conferring such power.
True, if the Constitution were silent
upon the subject, the legislative power
| to grant license would exist, and the
common law right to engage in the
traffic Independent of legislation would
also exist, but speak of positive s4nc.
tion by Affirmative action to which my
consent is necessary, and affirmative
action on my part indispensable. am
| unwilling to give this sanction, to iu-
cur this individual responsibility. l
shall therefore vote against the license
clause Of the Constitution, and in so
| doing shall feel that l have discharged
my duty.
| order to defeat this clause will cast
their votes against the Constitution.
| This is simply suicidal. The defeat of
that instrument will in no degree avert
| the consequences that will flow from
the expression of popular opinion on
the license clause. Ii that clause re-
ceives majority vote, whether The
Constitution is voted up or voted
down, the expression will exert its in
fiuence on the General Assembly in the
same manner and as absolutely. By
voting it down we must necessarily
lose all the other indispensable reforms
it proposes, without receiving cores
ponding benefits for the mischief that
will result. A majority vote for Ii
cense would be looked upon and seized
upon as an expression of popular dis
appreciation of Temperance legislation,
and interpreted as an instruction te
modify the existing laws, and this
whether the Constitution be ratified or
rejected. In either case, if the senti-
ment of the General Assembly cores
pond, the expression will be seized
upon, and the action of that body in
finenced accordingly. Therefore, by
voting down the Constitution, we can
not save existing laws from destruc-
tion, for if the majority of the people
give an advance expression we will
lose all that is good in the instrument
without averting the consequences OF
what Is bad. Our hope and trust, there
fore, is in the General Assembly at
last. Let us, then, save what is meri-
torious, and, if defeated upon the Ii
-cense clause, lift cur banner from the
dust, renew the contest in the General
Assembly, and continue the fight from
year to year and from generation to
generation until we shall have finally
achieved in the interests of morality,
humanity and domestic happiness, f.
nal victory by curbing and restricting
the traffic nnder the powers conferred
by tho license clause to those purposes
which the good and wise and vituOus
believe to he altne proper and tolera-
ble-to purposes medicinal, mechanical
and religious, TO which, in the discre-
tion of the General Assembly, it may
and can be confined under the prOpO-
sed license clause.
1t is said that many earnest and sin
cere
FRIENDS OF TEMPERANCE
Will vote for license, believing that the
traffic can be better controlled and in
temperance more restrained under it
than without it. Suppose this be true,
what will be the result? Will these !
good temperance men be in sufficient |
numbers in the General Assembly to |
determine tho character Of the license
laws that shall be passed? Or will they |
rather be a tail to the great license |
kite? They will have assisted to catch |
the wolf, will they have power to con-
troll him? They will have aided to
raise the storm, will they rave strength |
to direct it? They will have coltribu-
ted to have called the spirits from the
vastly deep, will they go down at their
bidding? I fear not. fear that those |