The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1886-06-18
the THIRD PARTY.

The two hundred gentlemen representing
a handful of the voters Of Maine, who have
been in session at the City Hall for two days
past, adjourned yesterday, after nominating
Mr.. Aaron Clark of Buxton for governor.
The ostensible purpose of the convention
was to promote the cause of temperance, and
there is no doubt as far as the majority OF
the delegates is concerned that that was its
real purpose. If such was their aim, GER
tainly no good citizen will deny that it was
a commendable one. But good many
thousand voters, quite as earnest temper
ance men as composed this convention, quite
as good prohibitionists, will take issue with
the method it adopted of promoting the end
it had in view, and will continue to agree
with the delegate from Windham, who in the
open letter which we published yesterday,
expressed the opinion that it is not through
third party that the highest good of the
cause is to be attained
The immediate effect of this movement, il
it should prove strong enough to have any
appreciate effect, would certainly not be IA
vorable to the prohibitory cause. 1t
would inevitably be to turn out the Republic
can party and put in the Democratic. Every
delegate to this convention who was animal
ed solely by desire to promote temperance,
and had no political bee buzzing
in his bonnet, would doubtless admit that
such result as that would not be likely to
realize his wishes, for if the Republican
party is not so thoroughly orthodox on this
question as these gentlemen think it should
be, it certainly approaches much nearer their
ideal than does the Democratic party, which
within few weeks has distinctly reafirmed
opposition to all sumptuary laws Would
the ultimate effect be any better? Experience
does not so teach. There has been distinct
prohibition party in Massachusetts, for
good many years and it has annually nomi-
mated candidates and voted for them. 1t has
not succeeded yet, however, in getting pro-
hibition into the constitution, or even on to
the statute book, and we doubt if single
important gain to the temperance cause has
come from it. In Ohio there has been dis
tinct prohibition party for some years, but the
strongest temperance enactment yet got upon
the statute book is high license law. The
same is true of New York. In every Northern
State where prohibitory law has been
placed on the statute book, 1t has been placed
there, not by the Prohibition party, so-called,
but by the Republican party, and every pro-
hibition constitutional amendment adopted
in the Northern States has owed its submis-
sion to the people to the Republican party.
The sentiment of the Republican party lis
more advanced on this question in some
States than in others, but in all of them it is
in favor of severe restrictions upon the liquor
traffic.
In Maine, the Republican party has en-
dorsed prohibition for over quarter Of a
century, without wayering, and almost every
year it has placed upon the statute book
more severe enactments for its enforcement,
and it was this party that enabled the peo-
pie to place prohibition in the constitution:
The gentlemen who assembled in City Han
acknowledged that during the last twenty
five Tyears temperance reform had made