Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1881-01-27
fFrom the Plain De1ler.l
The Republican Party and Local
option.


people of the state who do believe in
more stringens sumptuary laws and
who honestly believe that the evils re-
sulting from the sale of intoxicating
| liquors can be remedied by the passage
of local option law, have moved in
force upon the Legislature, and de.
manded that one be passed. "You
have said that the Republican party is
the friend OF temperance say the
advocates of this measure ''now show
that it is indeed. You have said the
party is in favor of sumptuary laws,
now pass the one we want. You
have declared the Republican party
would pass local option bill if it had
power; You have the power, now pass
the bill without further delay" Peti-
tion after petition has gone into the
Legislature asking for this law. One
was presented the other day having a
hundred and sixty-fve thousand
signers. Surely here is rare op-
portunitv for the Republican party to
put its professions into practice: But
the Legislature has not passed the law.
1t has no intention, whatever, to pass
the law. 1t dares not offend the liquor
interest, and dares not offend the
Germans and the great body of voters
who do not believe in sumptuary laws.
1t tries, however, to dodge the issue,
not having the courage to meet it
boldly. 1t is the same old hypocritical
party that it has ever been. 1t still
tries to be all things to all men, and
put one party off with soft words and
loud professions, while it does the bid
ding of the other. The friends of
local option have demanded local
option law; the Republican Legislature
proposes to put them off with a consti-
tutional amendment that cannot be
adopted. Here is the proposed
amendment as provided in the bill of
Mr.. Locke:
The General Assembly shall. by law, provide against
theevils resulting from the traffic in Intoxicating
naaars Of coun.,as towpsbins ci,iss and vIsae. at
special elections the option of prohibiting traffic in
moorv Of all % tha s,aotors VOTING At snoh election
and shall provide for the enforcement of such option
aS,n % ha S ~, art J' - olan
ton for state, county, township municipal officers.
Of the adontion Of this amendment sbal have naced
upon their ballots the words "option-Yes," and the
nont sh. ~ % nnu w ~ beir ballots % M tbo worlds
"option-No."
This amendment it Is proposed to
have voted upon at the election next
fall. Now. everybody knows, the
local option people know, and the
trainers of this ingenious plan to pull
the wool over the eyes of the temper
ance people know, that it is we'll nigh
impossible to carry any amendment
proposed to the constitution by the
popular vote. The reason is, because
an amendment to be carried must have
majority OF all the votes cast, not on
the amendment but on the head of the
ticket The ballots are the same Tor
both, and, Eyes or "no, has one or
the other tc be scratched, or the vote
does not count. Voters do not under
stand this, or do not take the trouble
to scratch the ballot, or do not think
Of it, and the amendment goes by de-
fault Half dozen amendments have
been proposed in the last ten years,
many of them having decided merits,
but not one was carried, because the
voters did not understand the method
of voting for them, or did not care
much about them. This local option