The Rutland daily globe. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1873-1877, 1876-01-28

gent prohibition, and has adopted that of
license /; and while her temperance men
or, at least, large proportion of them, in
Guiding some of the wisest and best of the
number-arc disposed to give the license
law Il fair trial, so that the benefits claimed
to result from license system may be con-
trasted with those claimed for prohibition,
and intelligent legislation based thereon
Maine is asked to go step further in the
direction of more stringent restriction or
prohibition The legislature of that state
is now in session, and the Temperance
men," prohibtionists. or whatever they
may term themselves, are pettioning for
more legislation. and the newspapers of
Maine come to US with abstracts of the
new, or amended, prohibitory law asked
for.
The new law proposes to go at the root
of the matter, and prohibits the ''manufac-
ture" of intoxicating liquors and so it is
provided that If any one shall manufacture
intoxicating liquor, he shall, on conviction,
be fined five hundred dollars, or be impris-
oned at hard labor for six months; and for
the second conviction, he shall be fined five
hundred dollars and be imprisoned at hard
labor for six months, or be imprisoned at
hard labor for one year.
With an eye to the farmers vote, how
ever, there is "let up in the prohibition,
and it is made lawful TO manufacture ci-
der from apples grown in the state, and
sell it in quantities of gallon and up
" wards" We say that this "let up" is
with an eye to the farmers vote, but it may
be, after all, that it ia but an attempt at Q
| reducti0 dd dbsurdum Of Clay's old doctrine
of protection to home industries-for We
cannot for moment believe that the ap
pies of Maine are so juiceless, or the juicet
SO watered, that "A gallon Of cider canno
| be manufactured 10 the first instance, o.
that in the second instance, an entire bar
rel of cider would be required to produc'
any exhliratiug effects.
The next attack is made on the keeping
of intoxicating liquors. The law provide
that it may be seizsd at any time or place
and at once destroyed. the burden of proc
being shifted from the prosecution ts tn
owner Of the liquor, 50 that he is required
for sale. Whether the liqlor shall hav
been legally or illegally seized and destroy
ed, no action to recover the value thereo
can he sustained-so thati proper office
should enter dwelling house and TAX
therefrom wine or other liquors kept 70
medicinal or culinary purposes or shout
take the pocket companion from a pas
senger in sleeping car, smash the recer
tacles and adulterae the gutter with thei
contents the owners would be remedies
and could sustain no action for such VI
lawful entry and seizure. This Main
proposition, in this respect, is simpl
taking the profound construction placed o
the Vermont law, years ago, by Rutlan
Justice of the peace, and endeavoring I
enact it into positive aw-and we don
learn that the justice aforesaid has EN-
grated to Maine.
And so the law goes on piling up tn
"agony" until the fifth section is reached
where the "agony" eliminates in the proT
osition that if any person 'shall keep
sign or notice " of any kind, in, upon, c
around his premises OF any part thereof
indicating that intoxicating liquors ar
d" sold therein" he shall be "adjudged
" common seller, and fined as such for eac
and erery day aohieh said sign has been p,
"upon his building :" This is an improv,
ment on the Rutland practice, which hold
or has held, that if dealer empties tt
contents his Jug into the sink, in til
presence of the officers, there can be L
conviction for the oiiiense of excepting il
toXicating liquors With intent to sell
but if tablespoonful is saved, then the o
Tense is complete. 1t may be proper
state that this proposed new law is not
burlesque, or introduced for the purpose
bringing temperance legislation into rid
cule or disrepute, but is introduced, in goc
faith, as real temperance movemen
Perhaps, if it should become Il law,
| would cn rasult-hut (lusr.U