The Emporia weekly news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1881-1889, 1881-08-04
THE PRoH1nIroRY LAW
Ably chamPioned by Gov St John-It
Is Not n Failure.

Is Not n Failure.
From the DAILY SEws of July %
After the Amateur band had played |
some very choice music in front of the |
hall last evening a very large but tardy |
audience gathered at Jays hall To listen |
10 Gov. st. Johns address, under the aus
pices of the Women's Christian Temper
ance Union. on the prohibitsry law of
Kansas. The stage of the hall had been
very tastefulIy decorated, and seats were
provided thereon for the Governor and
various members of the w. CT. u.
The first thing on the programme as an
nounced by the president of the union
was reading of the scriptures by Mrs.
Mary Rogers, after which this well
known evangelist offered fervent pray
er in behalf of temperance everywhere
A quartette Of Welsh CT tizens, led by T.
II. Lewis, then sang temperance para
phrase on the Marseilles hymn in Welsh
and in English. There was considera-
BILE confusion during the early part of
the evening, and It was not until the
Governor had been announced and his
address begun that the carelessly noisy
crowd quoted down sufficiently TO make
hearing possible in the rear of the hall.
ST. JOHNS ADDRESS.
Gov. st. John commenced his address
by saying he had not come there to dis
cuss the wisdom Of the prohibitory law.
Prohibition had been adopted in Kansas
according To the manner provided in our
State constitution, and the law 10 carry
out the prOhibItory amendment was in
dorsed by the temperance and law abid-
ing people of the State. Then comes
the question of whether this law shall
be enforced. Leavenworlh, who in
times past was political despOt in the
State, who ruled the destinies of pOlIti-
clans, now declared, though being only
one-thirtieth of the population of the
State of Kansas, that this law was fanat-
ical and tyranical, that saloons
were necessary to the prosperity Of
q city, and they would not enforce
prohibition. Now, there was time
when Leavenworth was the first city in
the Missouri valley, and she had enough
saloons to have become city of 100000
inhabitants, if saloons make a place.
But they do not, for the glory Of this old
metropolis has departed and she is now
comparatively unimpOrtant town of
5000 people. But even in Leavenworth
there are not more than half so many
grog shops as before the law passed. and
If the testimony of witnesses was to be
relied on we would believe there is no
place in the city where intoxicating liq-
uors are sold. There had been trials but
no convictions under the prohibitory
Law at Leavenworth. The Governor had
been asked about calling out the militia
to enforce the law. When the sheriff re-
ported to him that he and his posse
were unable, from opposition by the cit
liens, to carry out the law, then he would
not hesitate to call out the whole state
militia.
In Topeka there is county attorney
who does his duty. Though the first
trials failed of cOnvicIing, the opposition
made blander which ruined their fight.
They got Sam Wood and Gov. Robinson
to address meeting, and that did it.
Robinson said jGryman's duty was to
bring in a verdict according to his con-
science, unmindfnl of the law, and Sam
MCDOWELL, life is too short to tell
what Sam said, but there have been no
fail s,ro nnrvtaAinv, a. hos
and Topeka must be stricken from the
list of cities which do not enforce the
law.
A mighty interest was at work to defy
this law. There were only two morning
daily newspapers in the State which did
not countenance the open violation and
disregard of the prohibitOry law. Mil
waukee beer men sent money to fight
the law, and the brewers congress, re-
Gently held, appropriated an unlimited
sum. 1t also denounced the law and re-
solved that it "viewed with alarm the
spread of Puritanical ideas in this
country"
All the cities of the State can enforce
the law, just as Emporia has enforced it.
The duty of the mayor is to enforce all
laws and ordinances. The Marshal has
power to enforce the law; policemen
have power to enforce it; il is the duty
of sheriffs to enforce it, and the county
attorney is required to see it enforced.
The oath of Office of all these officers
make it perjury to fail to enforce this
prOhibitory law.
1t is claimed that the law will keep
away immigration. The German emmi.
grafton bugbear was always brought up.
But German immigrants said they were
not hunting for beer or beer gardens
hut homes, and still come TO Kansas
and q party of Mennonites had within q
few days located even in Sam.
Woods neighborhood in Chase county
Kansas is to-day in a more prosperous
condition than ever. The value of heI
personal property had increased $40, 260,
600 during the last year, and the earn
ings of the Santa Fe road for the year
ending June 80, 1881, showed net in
crease of $4SS, 1000 over any previous
year. And there would be raised in Kan
sas this year 10000 600 bushels of wheat
and 1O0,O0OOO0 bushels of corn. AL
though the law had been in force but &
few months, yet with an increase of 80,
600 in population in the state, the mum
Der Of convicts in its pen
itentiary had decreased from TIA tc
649. The law will never be repealed
and prediction was made that in few
years the number of our convicts woulC
fall to 200. Maine, with a population
about the same as California, had 19(
convicts in her penitentiary, while Cali
fornia, with free liquor, had 1000.
Although Leayenworth and Atchisou
and Dodge City now defy the law, it had
otherwise been grand success in Kan
sas, and would the people of the STATE
allow one or two cities to trample on
the law which they obey? 1t had been
called the law of a few fanatical women
What leaders in any great movemen,
were not counted fanatical? If the men
had to stay at home and nurse the baby
and do kitchen drudgery while
their wives laid around the sa
looms there would be some
fanatical men advocating the law also.
Comparisons had been made between
this law and the fugitive slave law, and
Il haH haan oaiA - xyoo m hO0a-ahle