The Weekly Kansas chief. [volume] (Troy, Kan.) 1872-1918, 1882-09-21
The Wrong of It.


having right to rule; but when that majority
are controlled by their own peculiar prejndices,
without regarding the well-being or even exist
ence of others, the question resolves itself back
to the days when Might made Right, and mum
bers and brute force sufficient warrant for
any act That the sale of liquor is one of the
things that should be regulated by law, is almost
universally conceded. i But to destroy mems
property, and business that has been accounted
legitimate frsm the earliest ages, is the tyranny
of fauaticism, and step which might be follow
ed by the outlawing and destruction Of any other
branch of business not approved of by some class
of fanatics who CHANGED to be in majority. IL
is a foul wrong upon men who have invested
their labor and their money in a business reeog-
nized and protected by law.
Let Us look at this thing. We take our own
County for an example, but it will hold good in
any of the older Counties of the State. Constant
Poirier was one of the earliest settlers in this
County. He came from country of vineyards,
and that was the business he understood. He
planted and tended large vineyard, until 1t
began to be profitable from the wine he made.
Adam Brenner came couple of years later, but
still in early days, and planted vineyard, and
erected wine-press. Through the years OF
drouth and grasshoppers, and panic, he was re-
duced almost to bankruptcy, but still held on,
and began to see his way to daylight Many
other men we might name, did the same thing.
Here and there in the State, men invested for
tunes building breweries. The people OF any
community welcomed the men who. o.came to start
a brewery, and il was regarded as an immense
addition to the business and prosperity of any
town. These were the pioneers OF the
State They carried it through its days of trial
and hardship, and placed it on the broad road
to the prosperity that has settled upon 1t. There
was not voice raised against the vineyard or
the brewery, or even the distillery, in all the
early years of the Territory. The people came
at last, to frame a State Constitution. So uni
versalIy were these ent srprises regarded as any
other legitimate branch of business, that no
question was raised in the Constitutional Con-
yention on the subject, and no distinction made.
The Constitution was adopted, and the State
admitted, bringing in these men aud their oc-
cupation on an equality with all other men and
occupations. But in late years, class of men
came in to make homes in the State these men
helped to build np and to enjoy the prosperity
that they founded. While these pioneers had
lived by their LABOR, many ol bueSc HS"
desired TO live by office; and they cast about
them for q hobby upon which to satisfy their
greed They selected the vineyard owners, the
brewers and the distillers, saying: You came
here before we did, and worked hard to secure
your possessions, and all you have in the world
is invested in the business that your COnstitu-
ton and laws recognized and protected; but we
are better and wiser than you. You are robbers
and murderers, and your business must be ont
Iawed We now have the power, and we shall
amend the Constitution under which You were
permitted to flourish. We shall make a law ut
terly destroying your business, and rendering
your property worthless and you u criminal if
YOU do moi submit. Your property shall he mt
terly destroyed, without fnrthing Of comPen-
sation; for we arc in a majority, and majority
has the right to rule. They said this, partly in
words. and partly by acts and they carried it
out. They have destroyed the property of citi-
zens guaranteed TO them when the Constitution
was adopted and have allowed them nothing in
return They say TO hundreds of the oldest cit
izens Of the State, if you don't like the laws we
newcomers have made for you, you can get out.
You are an undesirable class of citizens, at best,
and the State wonld be better off without you.
These are the things done by majority, who
have no other conception of the rights and dn-
ties of a majority than that they have the power
TO do as they like. These are some of the
wrongs they have done, and this is one reason
why we are opposed to prohibitory politics.