Morning journal and courier., 1888-07-10
News by Telegraph FROM ALL QUARTERS. THE STATES MAY VOTE On The Question Of Pro-
 hibiting Liquor. PARNELL WANTS AN INQUIRY. The House Fixing Up The
 Tariff. X BIG FIRE IN NEW LONDON. Burgess Boats Make A Pret-
 ty Race.
BIG FIRE IN NEW LONDON.
A CHANGE FOR THE STATES

To Vote OF a Constitutional Amend ment To Put Down the Rum Traf- Ac.
 WASHINGTON, July 9.-The proposition to submit to the people of the several States constitutional amendment to prohibit the liquor traffic in the United States was favor ably reported by Senator Blair to-day from the committee on education. The proposed amendment reads as follows:
 1. The manufacture, importation, exporeation, transportation and sale of al alcohol liquors as 9 beverage shall be end hereby is forever prohibited in the United States and in every place subject to their jurisdiction, needful legislation.
 The report accompanying the bill says: It is proper to say that there are members of the committee who concur in the report rec ommending the submission of the proposed amendment to the States who do not by such action indicate their approval of the adop- tion of the amendment as part of the con- stitution, or that they would themselves ad- vocate it's ratification by the legislatures of the States. After stating that 8 majority of the committee think refusal to submit the amendment for ratification would be anale- gous to the denial of the right of party to be
 
 the report continues: The agitation for na- tional legislation for the traffic in alcoholic poison made and sold to be used as 8 bever- age will never cease to disturb and finally to destroy the great political parties until they submit to the States the question of the en- largement of national constitutional juriedic- ton so a3 to include control of the subject. When decided, ie adversely to the ratifca- tion, the subject will be eliminated from national politics, at least for many years. If, on the other hand, the proposed amendment should be ratified and become a part of the national law the chief cause of the world would be summoned to the block ab Se nss0aA haDd of u''iss sSe and ony die sg which can wield an axe big enough to cut off the hydra-head. Then we shall have peace < But agitation for the destruction of the liquor traffic cannot ceese until the evils which it inficts upon mankind are removed or the human race is destroyed. It is useless to ciy peace, peace, when there is no peace. It $ time to face the subject. Evasion hes become almost impossible and the efoIS re1ui-c3 an activity which is tco exhaustive for it's long continuance. Judg-' ing from the petitiors,which have been pre- sented to Congress during the last few years, many of which are representative of great bodies and~ communities whose individual signatures have not been obtained, it can hardly be doubted that at lee7t ten millions of our people c-e +desirous of national legislation tor the dest1 action of poisons, that is to say of alcoholic drinks. These peo- pie represent power of thought and moral force far greater than their mere numbers. Whoever expects to withstand the shock of their charge N i'll yet reecet that it's irresisti- ble power WEI not seasonably realized. To deny the petitioners the right to be heard in the States upon this proposed amendment is to submit republican form of government, and the honorable opponents of the measure will not always refuse it's friends that hearing in court which is the sacred right of every American, and especially in amatter of great national concern.
 The report concludes with an argument de- signed to show that it is impossible for indi- vidual States to suppress the liquor traffic by the exercise of their police power because of the privilege of interstate transportation guaranteed by the constitution and because of the fact that some States decline to impose the necessary restriction.