The Weekly Kansas chief. [volume] (Troy, Kan.) 1872-1918, 1881-12-08
Bow Il Prohibits.


When number of Kansas papers predicted
that the ProhibitOry law, instead of stopping tho
sale of liquor, would have the opposite effect
and result in the free sale Of whiskey, they wers
met with the oyerpowering answer: "Whiskey'
ite organsi Under pay of the whiskey influence,
to encourage violation of the lawi" and similar
unanswerable logic. The law has now been IN
operation seven months, and the most of these
predictions are fully verified. The advocates OF
the law point to prosecutions and convictions
here and there TO prove that the law is enforced,
aud refer to some indefinite time in the near iu-
ture, when all the whiskey sellers will be brought
to grief. The truth it, up to this time, there has
not been one man prosecuted out OF Thousand
that are engaged in selling whiskey, and in the
greater part of the State, the law is one of the
deadest letters on the statute book. st. John
and his wild fellows imagined that they were
going to accomplish, here in free and easy Kan
sas, what the wisdom Of generations failed to
effect in old aud staid communities. They might
as we'll try to whistle down 4 regular Kansas
cyclone.
A glance Immediately around US, will illustrate
the working Of the law White Cloud, for sew
eraI years before the passage of the law, elected
key business was practically suppressed. Now,
scarcely week passes but we are furnished with
items complaining Of the amount Of drunkenness
there and of the persons fined for engaging in
drunken rows; and last week, two persons were
committed to Jail for burglary there, said to have
been drunk at the time. 1t used to be the boast
of Highland, that she had never licensed a
loon; but now there is a whiskey den in full OPP
Grafton there, and complaints Of drunkenness are
frequent. LeOna was very indignant because
the County Board licensed q saloon there, against
the wish Of the people, and the precinct gave a
majority for the prohibitOry amendment; yet
there is now a whiskey shop there, and great
complaint prevails because Of drunkenness. Sew
erance the year before prohibition, elected an
anti-license Council, and shut up the saloons;
but now whiskey is for sale in almost every rat
hole in town. and no effort is made to suppress it.
Hiawatha also boasted that she had never licens-
ed 4 saloon; yet now the papers contain commu-
nications complaining that whiskey is freely sold
in the town, and that drunkenness is of constant
occurrence. HoltOn another anti-lieense
town; ye. the last issue of the Recorder, violent
prohibition paper, laments that there is an ap- |
parent conspiracy or colluson by which liquor is |
sold, and arrest avoided. Seneca, another pro-
bibition town, raises n complaint of the preva-
lence of drunkenness. So we might go on NAM
ing towns that were formerly anti-license and |
where it was practically enforced, previous to
the enactment of the prohibitory law, but where
drunkenness is quite common.
The cause of this is mystery. Formerly, the I
liquor question was in the hands of the peo-
pie of the town, and was always : matter
Of home interest, constantly present to the peo-
pie. II they were opposed to liquor selling, they
annually rallied and elected officers of like views
yiolators of the ordinances were fined, and the
money went for the benefit of the city; or, if
hey granted licenses, the money for that went
% the city. Local officers were chosen to execute
he laws and their special duties were confined
@ the city limits. The interests of the people
md the duties of the officers concentrated
within the crcumscribed limits, and were ever
lresent with them. But st. John and his Legis-
ature came in and enacted n sweeping, arb.
rary and impracticable law. The liquor ques-
ion was was taken out of the hands of the peo- ,
lie, and with it, their chief interest in the mat
or. Sherifs, Constables Marshals, and County !
attorneys were empowered to enforce the law
n other words, the duty was scattered among so
iany officers possessing different functions, that
ach one left it for the other to attend to. The
eople were authorized and requested to become
pies and general informers; and after a viOlator
as convicted and fined, the money went away
ON the town, while the people were assessed !
18th an additional tax, not only to make up for C
le loss Of the former license money and fines, L
ut also to pay the costs of the suits under the
importance law, in case of failure to convict. Z.
eOple who worked and voted for prohibition,
estate about becoming informcrs and prosecu- C
rs. They thought that all that was to be done,
as to adopt the amendment and enact laws
hen prohibition would enforce itself. They
efer that others should perform the disagreea- ="
9 work of enforcing the law. This is the Sc
ct of the utter failure of the liquor law; and it
i'll continue to be dead failure, notwithstand- II
9 the assertions of st. John and his tramping
cturers and his efforts 10 raise funds abroad to =
force State law. =,