New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1881-01-16

will depend largely upon financial consldera-
TONS But the construction OF passenger and
freight railway ACROSS the lstbmus will doubtless
be the first step, and that work alone may in
vOlve consequences of great Importance to the
country.
PROGRESS OF TEMPERANCE LEGLSLATIOM
In years gone by the question could be
very simply stated. The choice lay between
illegal" and moral" suason; between some
law and no law at all In recent years the
question of temperance legislation has become
subdivided and complex. Whoever wishes to
observe the progress made must take note OF
excise laws, civil damage laws, local option
laws and prohibition. The most noteworthy
event of the past year or two is the action OF
tn, people of Kansas in favor of prohibition.
They have inserted IN the Constitution of the
State the following amendment: 1.-The man
ufacture and the sale of intoxicating liquors
shall be forever prohibited in this Sta tie, ex-
"cept for medical, scientific and mechanical
purposes" 1t may be worth noting that such
a provision does not operate at once as pro-
hbitory law binding on the people. Lawyers
have a theory that such provisions are not
self-executing" They only make it the
duty of the Legislature to pass
proper law and to inhict suitable pun
ishment for disobedience. There is, how
ever, little doubt that the Legislature will
promptly mature such law. AS to all State
prohibitory laws. there has been longtime
question whether they could be set aside as
clashing with the laws of Congress; and there
is satisfactory body of decisions to the
effect that National revenue laws and COM
mercial laws are not intended to prevent the
States which choose to prohibit the liquor traflic
from doing so. A more recent United States
Supreme Court decision involved the question
whether State charter granted long ago to
beer company gave the company any right
to manufacture and sell in defiance OF sub
seuuent prohibitory law. And the Court de-
cided that the charter rights were subject to
the police power of the State. Whenever the
public safety or morals are found to require
the discontinuance of brewing or distiling.
the Legislature may prohibit it, notwithstand-
ing individuals or corporations may suffer
loss.
Local option laws" are laws in which the
Legislature does not forbid lquor-seling
generally throughout the State, but refers the
question to the people OF the counties, or
of various particular localities whether
licenses to sell shall be granted or not.
Some early laws aiming to submit ques-
tions to the people were annulled in the
Courts on the objection that the Legislature
must do its own work itself; it could not
delegate making laws to the people at large.
Within year or two past local option laws
somewhat more discreetly framed have been
questioned in the Courts OF Kentucky and of
and how lion on M .IuIOp2
say that if the Legislature passes law, COM
plete, fOrbidtling iquor-seling, or one allow
ing licenses, there is no objection to sub
hitting the question whether the law shall
take effect in any particular county to popu-
lar vote. This doctrine opens the way to al
lowing prohibition in localities which desire
it, whatever neighbOring places may wish.
Prohibition may also be secured by concert of
landowners. The founders of the town OF
Colorado Springs inserted in their deeds OF
lots condition that intoxicating liquors
should never be manufactured or sold as
beverage on the land. Recently, when the
town grew large and busy, some of the pur-
chasers began selling liquor. They were prose-
cuted and they argued that the condition
IN the deed was void, because the very
idea of deciding land TO man IL To
enable him 10 Use it in amy lawful
way he pcasrs. liut the Supreme Court
at Washington has pronounced the provi-
sion valid, and says that thu purchasers who
have broken it by selling liquor have lost title
TO their lands.
Massachu >cttS and Colorado. in 1879, passed
"cvll damage" laws. by which whoever sus-
tains injury from intoxIcati0n OF another per-
son can recover damages from the liquor
seller; and now about half the States. We be-
lirve have laws OF tins kind in iul opera
ton. There has been IN emphatic decision OF
the Nrw-York Court Of Appeals that they are
constitutional; and there are great variety
of d. cisl0ns in the various States, showing
that the laws are in active operation and are
often invoked. Heavy damages are enforced
in some cases. In one instance drunkard
sued Tor damages for furnishing TO himself
the liquor on which he became drunk; but the
Court said that the law was never intended
TO authorize man to sue Tor his own lntOxi-
cation.
The chief progress in respect to license laws
has been in one or two NcwY0rk decisions
clearing some vcxaious pcrplexites as to who
may have licenses in New-York City. They
have already been sufficiently stated.
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WOMEN'S MISSION SOCIETY.
The Women's Mission Association. of which we
have before spoken with hearty commendation !