Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1879-11-07
.asiliaotan s tand:ra'
OLYMPIA. WASHINGTON TER.
FRIDAY. NOVEMBER Z. 1879.
The Local Option Bill.

licenses 10 sell splrituous liquors has
been the absorbing topic of legisla-
tive interest to-day, coming up on its
third reading in the House with n
favorable report from the committee.
1t having been announced at the
opening OF the present session that
Mr.. White, of King county, would
be the special champion Of license, in
opposition TO the bill, the we'll
known ability Of that gentleman as 4
lawyer and jurist, had in DO measure
abated the interest otherwise felt in
its discussion and the final action
of the House upon it. 1t was not
surprising, therefore, that the lobby
was filed with an eager and expec
tant throng, many Of whom were
ladies, whose interests the bill pc
culiarly affects.
MIR. White took the floor promptly
on the calling Of the order Of the
day, and moved that Mr.. Joseph,
"short. hand" reporter, be admitted
to the bar, as he wished to be cor
rectly reported on the measure pend
lug. The Speaker ruled that the
motion was unnecessary as "report-
ers for the press" had already been
accorded the privileges of the House.
MIR. Joseph then appeared and made
quite little speech to the House;
said he would not claim that he was
able to report rerbatim speech, but
would do tho best he could; that he
"a was employed by Mr.. White, and
Vas accountable to him for his ef-
forls. As the preventive against mis-
representation has been taken, we
feel more liberty is accorded us in
our comments, as Mr.. White has
wisely provided the means of "call-
ing us to ORDER" if we err in any
Statements we maymake while giving
the substance of his remarks.
These prelim!naries being ar.
ranged to the satisfaction of Mr..
White, he Immediately resumed the
floor. lie hastily traced the history
of temperance reform from the time
of the Whisky Rebellion to the pre-
sent hour; his ancestors he claimed
were rebels; the rebellion originated
in the district where he was born,
but lie found many of the advocates
of temperance at the present day
were the descendants of those who
then opposed the laws for the sup
preston of the still. He claimed that
all temperance effort had proved
futile; 1t would rise and fall. Ma
ture made alcohol; it possessed life
giving properties and had been and
would continue to be used by man.
To drink to excess however, he
declared to be u crime against ma
ture, and if there was q God, crime
against God. He would never place
a straw in the way of anybody who
endeavored to reform. But he did
not believe in sumptuary laws. The
French revolution resulted from an
effort to control the morals of the
people by legal enactments.
Mr.. White then detailed very
pathetic piece of family history.
He had probably had more reason to
condemn the sale of liquor than any
body on the floor. He had dear
sister who had been worse than wild
owed by the profigacy incident to
rum. What this had to do with his
side of the question was the query
uppermost in the minds of every
body. 1t could only be presumed
to be intended for a play upon the
chords of nature to secure harmony
and sympathy at the anti-climax.
A touch of nature makes the
world akin" and a SIX illful manipu-
lator knows precisely the keynote
most likely to sound in unison with
the hear:-pulsations of his auditors.
The chief argument made against
the bill was tina; it delegated TO the
people powers vested in the Lesisla-
ture; that no law could depend
upon some prospective act to give it
vitality in any given direction, and
he quote from several authorities
TO show that Judges had made such
rulings. Another point, and one
we'll taken. WAS that without a LEGAL