The Newberry herald. [volume] (Newberry, S.C.) 1865-1884, 1881-06-01
GOV. PERRY ON THE RE
TAILlNG OF SPIRETUOUS
LIQUORS.

1NC deSlSldCui0 VI OOuIH O"AN
lima have passed an act prohibit,
ing the retailing Of spirituous Ii
quors, except in incorporated
towns. Now if this was q wise
and good law for the country,
why would it not be for cities,
towns and villages? There is ten
times more intoxication and re-
failing in these incorporated
towns than there is in the coun-
try. The temptation to drink and
i1temperance too is far greater.
The evil also is of much greater
and Of moro ruinous consequen
ces. There are hundreds and
thousands Of persons living in the
country who never drink except
when they come to town and are
tempted there, by bar-rooms and
grog-shops and intercourse with
friends.
Every man goes home, in the
incorporated towns, to eat his
dinner, and why should he not,
also, to drink spirits when he
wishes TO do so? He is not so
likely to get drunk at home as be
is at q bar-room or grog-shop !;
and if be does, his family will
take care of him and not let him
expose himself as q brute on the
streets. Experience and history
prove that very few persons drink
to excess at home. All the drunk
enness We hear Of in courts Of
justice originate in these bar
rooms and grog-shops.
The judges Of South Carolina
have repeatedly said on the bench
that nine-tenths of the crimes
tried in their courts originated in
intoxication! If so, and drunk
enness is caused by the tempta-
tions Of the bar-room, why should
these hauntS and instigators Of
ruin, vice and misery be licensed
at all in an enlightened, civilized
and Christian community? Gam
bling houses, and houses OF prosti
tuition are prohibited by la" un
der severe penalties and it may
be a questiou,N " hether they are any
more demoralizing than drinking
saloons and grog-shops.
1t is said that the retail license
is tie source Of a great revenue to
the incorporated towns, and re
lieyes the citizens Of heavy tax
alton! But let US consider how
much it costs the com munity to
arrest, try and feed in our jails,
all the criminals caused by drunk
enness. 1t will overrun the
amount received from these IL
censes independent of the crime,
misery and pauperism caused BY
them.
There is no denying the fact that
iutemperance has become q mon
strous growing evil in the United
States, greater than in any other
country in the civilized world Mr..
Leydell said some years ago that
in two years spent in Europe he
never saw a drunken man, whilst
not a day passed over his head in
New York that be did not see
many persons intoxicated The
great cause Of this difference is
that in Europe they have light
wines and beer as 4 beverage, and
in America our common beverage
is corn whisky, which will make a
man drunk before his thirst is
quenched! Judge Burke declared
to a South Carolina jury in the
trial of q case that corn 10hlsky
gave man propensity to steal =
1t certainly does to fight and
quarrel and break the peace, to
commit murder, manslaughter and
other benious crimes!
We all know that drinking can
not be entirely suppressed, ont
licensed temptation to drink
should be stopped. They have
stopped retailing in the towns OF
Laurens, Charlotte, Manning and
many others. In the latter town
it was proposed to run dry and
swet' ticket. The bar keepers
thought they would stack the
cards on the temperance ticket
and opened their saloons for some
days previous to all who would
come and drink free ofany charge
A great many old topers went and
drank freely, and on the day OF
election all voted the dry ticket
They said they wished the temp
tation removed, q temptation
vD6;ob 4hav cOuld not resist. How