Sword and shield. (Clinton, Miss.) 1885-1888, 1885-07-25
Local option.

and furnish you j copy of the pro-
posed statute for local option | read
at the Convention, but can give
You in analysis the provisions Of it,
which are these:
|. The Board of Supervisors Of
any county in the State shall order
an election on the application Of p
heads Of families.
;. No question but license or
mo license shall be voted on at
said election.
;. If the majority voting vote for
no license no one shall procure
license to sell yinous, spirituous or
malt liquors at any point within the
limits OF that county.
/. If the majority voting vote for
''license' then no one shall procure
license until he complies with the
provisions Of the present Code re-
quiring petition signed BY a major
ity Of the legal voters resident IN the
incorporated town o. Supervisors
District where lie proposes to sell.
). No part Of the Act shall BE
construed as modifying or repeating
any portion of Chapter 80, Of the
Code Of 1880, or any local prohibi-
tory law now in force in the State.
.. The result Of any such election
shall not be disturbed by another
election sooner than one year there
after, after which time another clcc-
ton may be held.
Tie above are, believe the gen
cral provisions of the bill | submit
ted, which was offered to the Con-
ycntion more with a view to eyoking
discussion on the subject Of local
option, than fixing definitely any
thing.
| am firm believer IN the right
eousness Of the people when properly
educated on i subject like Prohibi-
ton. 1t IS 4 sentiment that loses
nothing BY agitation, and It's converts
rarely backslide.
The petition system, while it is
better than nothing, is not fully ade-
quate to Justice and fairness those
Of us who have fought the whisky
devil over the heads of a lot Of whis-
NEGLECTED officials are grounded in
this opinion. It's an inviting ave
nue. for frauds, rascality and wrong,
too often accepted by whisky men
determined to succeed at any sacri-
flee, and with officials at their backs
conniving at and encouraging these
rascally methods, it amounts simply
to stupenduous farce. When you
drag these fellows out into God $
white sunlight to fight them among
the people, you will always find them
begging quarter. Their lascally
midnight methods can not avail
them in fight of that kind, and the
experience Of counties in this State
and of nearly all the counties in the
State Of Georgia, conylnclngly shows
that that is not the whisky devils
mode of warfare.
When Prohibition orators begin
next year to pour red hot hail into
the whisky camps, how many men
in the State of Mississippi, with a
thimbIeful Of brains in their craniums
will have the temerity to meet them
on that field? | remember one OF
two in the State who dared to ven
ture, and I'll warrant they will
never trigger with that affair any
more.
| favor, decidedly, a local option
law by counties. Let the election
be ordered and let Prohibitionists q
to work do not believe there is i
county in the State of Miss ipp
that can not be carried for Pronibi
ton by an Industrious, wide awake
canvass Of two or three weeks dura
ton, by well-posted, effective speak
ers. But let the law be framed Sc
that should the whisky clement pre-
vail IN the entire county, the people
Of the communities may refuse t.
license whisky sellers as now proyid
ed in the code, Some Of our peopl,
tear that such law may be uncon
stitutional. / do not think so. Th,
liquor traffic has no constitutions
rights IN Mississippi. 1t is an uni
versally acknowledged evil, bringin!
good to nobody and ostracised by de
cency and law. 1t is here by suffer
ance merely, with no authority t.
CLAIM and assert rights. Our Su
preme Court have decided in tn,
leading case of Rohrbacher VS.. Cit.
Of Jackson 81 Miss that the Stat,