Morning journal and courier., 1886-10-16
A TALK WITH MIR. BLAINE.


Political Prohibition, Henry Georges
Land Policy and the General Situa-
tIon.
BOSTON, Oct. 15.-Hon. James G. Blaine
arrived in this city this morning from Au-
gusta and took rooms at Young's while wait
ing for the afternoon New York express. A
reporter called on Mr. Blaine and had chat
with him concerning the political situation.
Mr. Blaine looks hale and hearty and speaks
and acts with the vigor of youth. The cam
paign in Maine recently was doubtless just
what he needed to supplement the good eff
fects of the sea air of Mount Desert which he
has breathed all summer. 81 am just from
Augusta" said he, con my way to Philadel-
phia where I speak to morrow night. shall
visit Pittsburg and several other cities, re-
turning about the middle of next week"
'tWhat is the situation in Pennsylvania
cit is about the same as in Maine. The pro-
hibitory men are creating havoc and deter
mined to destroy the Republican party. 1
can speak in Pennsylvania with more ease
than in almost any other State for the reason
that the Republicans have put plank in
their platform advocating the submission of
the prohibition question to a popular vote.
It is the only proper way to decide the mat
ter. It was what we did in Maine in 1868
and can tell them in Pennsylvania how it
worked in Maine"
Chow about New York State?"
'sIt is little different there." replied Mr..
Blaine "I presume if the question was SUBJ
mitted to popular vote it could be defeated
and that is the very reason why the temper
ance fanatics opposed such proposition. 1t
is true that the Repub lican party has never
formally advocated prohibition in its plat
form, but every law that has tended in any
way to suppress the liquor traffic has been
passed by Republican legislatures. I re-
member an anecdote that Governor Seymour
told me which bears on this question and
which is, by the way, against prohibition.
Seymour was conversing with Mr.. Delevan,
of Albany, about the effect of absolute pro-
hibition in New York. Now said Sey
mour, suppose we had community in the
State where the sale of intoxicants was alb
solutely prohibited, where everybody had
all the food they wanted and all the
clothing they wanted to wear But
interrupted Mr.. Delevan. But that's the
kind of a community you are striving to
make, isn't ita' Yes, perhaps So replied
Mr.. Delevan. WE'LL said Seymour, I'VE
have twenty-five hundred of just such peo-
pie as those in Sing Singh Delevan said the
point
''Do you think the prohibitory party move
ment much more dangerous than the labor
movement" eyes, for the reason that
the former tends to disrupt and
destroy the Republican party. It is the
strangest thing to me why the third party
men think we are continually fighting tenn
peranee when we are for 1t. 1t is perYersity
of human nature almost inexplieable. 1
think that the campaign in Maine injured
the third party movement very much. Neal
Dow's conduct can only be explained on the
ground that the is an old man."
''What do you think of Henry Georges
candidacy for mayor of New York" az do
not see how he is going to carry out his land
schemes in practice" said Mr.. Blaine. cit
may be well to limit the amount of land one
man can hold, but 1 do not see how you can
limit the time. You can't limit it to less
than a year, for man will not SOW unless
he can reap" Mr. Blaine jumped nervously
from his chair and paced the room with his
hands in his pockets, talking vigorously all
the time. care you satisfied with the cam
paign in Mainea" eyes; and more than sat
isfed. We had good candidate for gov
ernor in Mr.. Bodwell and he will make an
excellent governor"
Mr. Blaine left for New York at 4:39p. m.