Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1874-08-13
Judge w. H. West on the License
Clause in the New Constitution.
A Sensible View of the Situation
THE LICENSE QUESTION.

THE LICENSE QUESTION.
l come now to speak of the opposing
clauses in regard 10 the traffic in intoX
icants. The first clause authorizes ths
granting of license, with power to re
strict The traffic and compensate the
injuries resulting therefrom. The op.
posing clause forbids the granting of Il
cense, ahd ccnfers The power to restrain
or prohibit uue L +;ric and to prevent
the evils resulting .h-leirom. OF these
provisions l desire to speak frankly,
and jurist rather than AS partisan.
In The Convention tneTe was ma
jOrity favoring license, bat not nn4uai.
ifed. They preferred that the Geper.
al Assembly should have the power to
regulate the traffic at discretion, but
should not have the power of holding
the vendor responsible for the conse
quences resulting from his business
Accordingly. the clause authorizing the
granting of license coupled with the
power of holding the vendor response.
BILE for all the consequences of his trade,
and also of restricting and limiting the
same at discretion, was proposed fol
separate submission. This qualified
form is such that it will take nearly all
the poison out of the serpent pretty ef-
fectually. Applanse.
On the other hand, those opposing
the granting of license submitted the
second proposition forbidding it and
comforting the power OF prohibition ]
desire now to speak of the
LEGAL EFFECTS OF TIL PoPUsITIoN,
And compare them with the existing
Constitution.
All the power which the General AS
sembly can exercise under the existing
Constitution may be exercised under
the proposed license clause. The grant
ing of license is purely discretionary.
The General Assembly may or may
not exercise the discretion. There is
nothing in it inconsistent with all
the present legislation upon our statute
books, including the Adair Law. This
was distinctly announced in the Con-
vention. 1t could not have passed that
body without it. The venerable Judge
Andrews, of Cleveland, declared that,
while he was willing that the power
to grant license should be given, he
was unwilling that the vendors Of in
toxicants should be discharged from Ii
ability and responsibility for the con-
sequnces of their acts-unwilling to in
corporate in the Constitution any pro-
vision inconsistent with, or that would
work repeal of existing legislation
upon that subject.
Accordingly the temperance men,
with the conservative license men, an
nexed to the clause the qualifications as
it now stands. For this reason the eX-
treme license mon who desired to
sweep, existing legislation from the
statute books, and to incorporate into
the Constitution a clause having that
effect, voted against the provision SUBJ
mitted.
/ say to you then, as my profound
conviction, that the adoption of the
license clause will not preclude legisla-
tiOn, as stringent in its conditions and
penalties as those contained in existing
legislation. Such was the conviction
of majority of the Convention, with
out which the provision could not have
been submitted. On the other hand,
the non-iicense clause confers no great
er power than the license clause. The
power to forbid sales to minors, to per-
sons intoxicated, or 10 be drank upon
the premises where sold, or any other
limitations which the discrimination
of the General Assembly may deem
proper to impose, may be exercised as
absolutely and fully under the one pro-
vision as under the. other, the enact
ment and enforcing of the principle Of
the Adair Liquor Law included. The
license clause confers tue power of re-
st.iction. The only limit 10 the sser-
else of that powe: is absolute prohibi-
tiOh III form, but practical prohibition
is competent. The traffic may he re-
stficted either in respect to the person
or The place, OF the pose thereof, de-
pending upon the will OF the General
Assembly. The limit OF thai Iestric-
tion is not judicial, but a purely leg
islative question. Therefore the re-
st -iction may he limited to medicinal,
or sacramental purposes.
1t may be limi.ed to druggists, to ho-
or classes as that body may designate.
1t is an uncont, oiled legislative discre-
tion which when exercised cannot be
thwarted by judicial interference. Thus
much for the powers conferred by the
license clause.
The powers conferred by the non-
license clause are the same and identi-
cal. Tho only difference between the
two clauses being, as I have said, by
the one license may-nOt shall-but
may be granted; by the other, license
snail not be granted. By the one a
law absolutely prohibiting the traffic
in teIms cannot be enacted; by the
other such law can be enacted. But
while by the non-iicense clause, abso-
lutte prohibition in form is possible; by
the license clause virtual prohibition is
1t is not intended, 1 ap-
prehend, even by tle most radical, that
absolute prohibition for all purposes,
shall ever prevail. Sales of intoxica-
ting stimulants for medicinal, mechan-
cal and sacramental purposes are, and
forever will be exempted from inhibi-
ion. In the thousands of petitions
which came to the Convention, the
.raffic for these purposes was excepted
n the prayer OF The memOrialists, but
lnder The license clause as submitted,
he discretionary power Of restriction
conferred upon the General Assembly
nay be limited in its exercise to traf-
jc for these purposes; SO that although
he power exists under the non license
,lause to prohibit absolutely and in
orm, it will never he 80 far exercised
Is to prohibit sales for these purposes.
And while, under the license clause,
absolutely and in form may
not be exercised, the traffic, neverthe-
ess, may be restricted to these persons
so that practically and vir-
.ually the powers of the two clauses
come together, the whole depending
On the will and sentiment of the body
it. Therefore, the contro-
versy, instead of being settled by the
provision, is simply
to the General Assembly.
Ii the sentiment OF that body be oppo-
'ed to license and in favor of restric-
ion, it will refuse license and restrict
The traffic to the narrowest possible
imitl