The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1881-03-24

rights under ee COVE ment, can de-
eide for himself what he needs and what
he shall use. Being neither an infant or
imbecile, he is above dictation. ABB
emiousness is moral virtue, having
its foundation in reason and moral influ-
ences, and not virtue by physical or
political force The di ciple, that OF in
telligence and no that of the prison.
Local Option is so cl.arly contrary to
the State Consti ution tn titha dly need
b5 discussed If it were constitutional,
iwould be cowardly. The same num-
Der of votes required in the Legislature
to pass local option law would pass a
general prohibition law. Local option
would prohibit the sale of liquors where
the fewest people used or abused iquo S,
while it would leave those communities
where restraint was most needed to ad-
ditional license to violate existing restrlc-
tions. General prohibition would not
violate two essential provisions of the
Constitution which local option would
violate, to-wit: that all laws of general
nature shall be uniform in their operas
ton; and that laws shall go into effect
by virtue of their passage by the Gener-'
al Assembly, and not by the approval of
any other authority, If the sale of llq
uors to the sober adult portion OF the
population be an evil which should be
suppressed by law, the intelligent law for
this purpose would he a general prohibl>
ton law, This would be doing violence
to personal liberty, but believers in a
Strong" government appear to think
that governm mt should be both paternal
and maternal
We do not see that the proposed Ii
cense or special tax have any virtue as
temperance movements. The only eff
fects we can see that would ensue would
be to put the traffic into the hands of
more wealthy men, who, perhaps, wouli
make saloons more attractive to increase
sales to enable them more readily to pay
the tax; and, secondly, to increase the
adu teration of liquors to increase the
profits and enjoying the monopoly OF
he business would aid them in so doing.
The advocates. OF this system cal. it "re>
striction, but their own argument is that
prohibition does not prohibit, and in
the same manner restriction would not
restrict. There would be no more prob
ability of such rest iction restricting than
there would he in prohibition prohibit
ing. But they will say, Look at the
revenue it would yield" Well, itw uld
vie d revenue, it is true out if ii be
legitimate to make sales to sober adults,
as the theory of the present laws main
ia n, why attach additional blrdens to
legitimate purchasers?
The evils Of the traffic are largely, if
not entir,ly, owing to violation of press
ent laws. Surely the advocates Of l.
Cense would not advocate the withdrawal
OF present laws in order to increase the
public revenue? Would it not be better
to more thoroughly enforce present laws,
which would close nlne-tenths of the sa-
looms of the State The trouble does
not appear to be for the want of enough
laws, but rather that they are not en-
forced. Public sentiment is making the
people more temperate, there being less
temperance now than at any other time
in the history of the State. With tenn.
perance public sentiment and vigorous
enforcement of present laws, the condi-
ton of things would pc vastly improved.
l! license is to be adopted, let it be
done legitimately, so that it will stand
the l.gal tests. Let the people amend
the Constitution, and let the amount be
fixed at some reasonable figure. If an
attempt be made to fix the sum so high
as to make it practically prohibitory, it
will be evaded just as prohibition is
evaded, and our condition be worse
than at present; for when liquor has to
be smuggled the class which should moi
have it at all are first to get it, "An in
telligent regulation Unreasonable license
would doubtless prove beneficial
But we suppose we have given quite
enough for one chapter. The subject is
such new one is our only apology. But
this is the time of year, as there is never
so much fuss about prohibition in the fall
when an election is near. 1t will hardly
be settled this winter, and, until it is set
tied, we have to be satisfied with the
scriptural plan of individual option. -
CaQig Sentinel.