The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1885-10-04
PLAIN TALK
ON vssG PROHIBITION QUESTION


THo HERALD ~ cltlsens OF Corsi'
oanas
LADIES AND 0HNLLEMRN:-I appear
bsSors yoa to-day at the written 70
quest Il about 20 old friends who have
Owen me their confidence and political
support for = years, 10 speak upon the
question Of prohibition that h exciting
the minds Of every true friend Of our
State.
have also been called upou BY the
general pablo in the following lsugu'
age expressed BY the Galveston Nsws'
"Navarro county 10 going TO have q
prohibition contest In . few days, and
yet the general public arc unaware
which side Of the fence Marion Martin
u campsd ON. Aasn't Marion . full
grown idsa' ON the prohibitian quss-
tionf,
IL 10 we'll kno wn to every citisen Of
Navarro county that l have ever OK
pressed my opinions upon Ill questions
that could affect the peace, prosperity
and happiness of the people OF oar
State. When I thought II necessary
or have b sen called up0n by my fei.
low -citiseus, l would not have felt II
my duty to leave siCk room to speak
to you to-day II the question had re-
msined local, - | have never taken
part In any local discussion upon the
question OF prohibition. But 'he ques-
ton hes assumed au0n magnitude mat
/ OOnsidor it nv duty to grant your re-
QUEST. I shall not argue the question
o. local proposition submitted under
the law TO the cltixeus OF Navarro
county, or draw any dark and drsary
picture Of the inevitable results OF the
whisky trsfic. I shall endesvor to
disCuss the question Of local option
from Q Democratic standpoint - y
Democratic law, submitted ~
Democratic authority I shalt
eudesVor to d, - fairly aud
impartisliy. To do this must an
swer 70 the best OF my ability the. ar
guments, or rather the tenunctatlons
mads against the law. / shall hrst
cali your attention to the language OF
Governor Coke. Irefer to him special
", because he IL considered the high.
est Democratic authority In the STATE.
do 40 with profound respect for the
position he occupies, and for him ser
sonaliy. He says: ~ oppose prohi-
bitiOn because Il 10 an attack directly
upon the personal liberties OF every
citisen Of this county; poOh.pooh tnst
- much ~ you please, but - sure -
there 10 . a0d In heaven,
it 10 an attack ON the personal
liberties Of every man In McLsnnsn
When you nut Q guard 0c .
mans mouth to see that such and such
things d not enter 1t seems to me that
you are getting along right fast IN the
attempt ~ take away his own ii0erty
from him. II has been said ana evsrv
school boy repeats 1t thst "she price vi
liberty 10 eternal vigilance" List this
thing pass and be- adopted aud the
next thing they will take tobacco, and
after that they will divi 10 up yonr
liberties and bring In woman sur.
frags Loud applause). After that
they Will prescribe what you shall! eat
and what you shall wear. This 10 New
Englandism. It's birthplace was In
the North. The Republican party
took 1t up aud used 1t aud then threw
1t away, and some people down South
have caught up this old dirty towel
and arc endeavOring to c!othe
with the Democratic party. II don't
1t. Il waa not made ior this latitude,
aud the man who clothes himself with
It, prOclaiming himself . Democratic
liar, cannot help the people seeing hts
long ears. I oppose the prohibition
because 1t seeks to enact u
law"
Ifthis Language had been uttered by
street-C0rnsr politicians, or had ems-
a. al . I'm.
the right and privilege to say what
they please about public men or pa6-
lie measures ESPECIALLY when paid TO
cred worthy OF . serious answer, out
Q tnanating from ths highest Demo.
cratic authOIi y, IL demands the
true friend Of the Democrats party.
shall endeavor 70 prove, Il you will
give me your patient attentiOn, that u
good Democrat eau vote for local OPP
ton and call himself Q Democrat with.
out procisiming himself Democratic
liar.
l. will be necessary to give You q
short history Of the whisky traffic,
" hich 10 the cause, or the great evil,
that forces the question before you to.
day and the efforts that have been
made by the general government, BY
the State governments and ~ the
Democratic pArtv to suupreas IL by
con dscati0n, by high license and by
prohibition, which Governor Coke de-
nounoes a. an old dirty towel thrown
away by the Republic an party. find
this old dirty towel was used nv the
first continental Congress In l774, " hen
they made the following eoommsudR-
ton that "the several egislxtures OF
tho United 6ta,ea Immediately to pass
laws the most effsotul tor putting an
Immediate atop TO the per niNlOus prao
tice Of disabling, BY which the most ex.
tsusivs evils are likely tn be derived, "
not quickly prevented"
/ refer TO THE act Of our general gov
eminent, because IL was the nrst re-
corded aotiou taken TO suppress thu
whisky trsfiio. refer TO Il also tn
prove they recognised the princ ples Of
the old JeffsrsoniAu State rights, De
by recommending the quss-
tlOn "a the several States,
that they could take such
action ~ they might think necess &ry.
j also Wish to show that every action
taken by our government from that
time, which IL now Ill years, proves
that the whisky trstiia has ever beef
the greatest evil that ever
CURSED our land, and that 1t has Gu
deavored 70 pass laws to check, 70
strain and TO prohibit the sals OF whis.
~. Tho general government, having
Jurisdiction over the Indian Territory,
paused the following prohib,tory law.
Revised statutes OF the United States,
sections 2l00- 2l4l: "No ardent spirits
shall DO introduced into the Indian
Territory, and boats, wagons, sleds
aud teams used In conveying the same
shall DO forfeited and the ardent spir-
it, destroyed. All dist leries found
therein shall b destroyed" Acts Of
July, lisa, Jackson's administration.
! refer n this got Of Q Democratic i'd.
mtntstration 70 prove that they regard.
Cd the whisky trsffl, ~ Q great evil,
and that they believed . prnhtbisor
law was democratic aud onrrect Ia
principle. The constitutional right OF
the States 70 regulate the whlsky
trsfmo IL % nrmly established by the
opinion Of Onief Justioe fancy and the
entire Supreme Court, I consider n