Smyrna times., 1888-11-21
Republicans and Temperance.

The position taken by Ex-senator
Warner Miller in respect to what
should be the future attitude of the
Republican party towards temperance
reform will doubtless meet the approx
al of the great majority of the party.
He believes that in dealing with the
liquor traffic the party should move
steadily forward along the lines already
marked out and that the policy of high
license and restriction should be consis-
tently maintained. Mr.. Miller's expe-
rlence during the campaign in New
York State gives his opinion on this
subject more than ordinary significance.
The result in other states, also, where
the Republicans have dealt with the
question of temperance through high
license and local option laws, forces a
conclusion similar to the one he has
reached.
1t is probable, therefore, that Repub-
lican Legislation in the near future, at
least, will partake much of the charac-
ter of that of the last few years. Ex-
perience proves that the Republican
party has everything to gain and moth
ing to lose by pursuing this course.
The result in New Jersey is similar to
what it was in Ohio when the Republi-
cans first undertook to regulate the
liquor traffic in that state. In the
election following the passage of high
license law in Ohio the Republican
party was defeated and the law was
declared unconstitutional by Demo
cratic judges elected at the same time
to the Supreme Court. But undismay-
ed, the Republicans, as soon as they re-
gained power, passed another high
license law which has stood the test
and still remains on the statute books.
As a consequence Of this steady adher-
ence to consistent policy on the liquor
question the Prohibition party in that
state has stopped growing and casts a
smaller vote than it did three years
ago.
Michigan furnishes another conspicu-
GUS illustration. Four years ago the
Third party polled 18, ,406 votes in that
state, defeated three Republican candi-
dates for Congress and nearly succeed
ed In giving the electoral vote to the
Democrats. But the Republicans
promptly took hold of the question and
submitted prohibitory constitutional
amendment to the people, and when
that was defeated they at once passed
a high license and local option law.
The result is seen this year in the re-
duction of almost so per cent in the
Prohibition vote and a restoration of
the Republican majority nearly to the
proportions of $780, In everv state
where the Republicans have dealt
courageOusly and sinscerely with the
liquor question it has been to their ulti-
mate profit. Since the last presidential
election Republican legislatures have
enacted new high license laws or
strengthened old ones in nine Northern
states and endeavored to make a SINH
lar reform in tenth state, New York,
and in only one of the states, New Jer-
sey, has this course caused it even a
temporary reverse.
So if there were no other motive
higher than that of political expedi-
ency actuating the Republican party
on this subject experience proves that
1t will be the gamer by continuing in
the course it has been pursuing. But
the party has shown that it has a high
er incentive than this, and that, as Mr..
Miller says, it " never takes the back
track on any moral question" The
phenomenal growth Of the Third party
resulted largely from the apprehension
that the Republican party was not sin
cere in dealing with the temperance
issue. The failure of the political Pro-
hibitiOnists to make the expected ad-
vance this year and the large falling off
of their vote in some states shows that
consistent temperance men are satisfied
that the Republican party is moving
forward in this matter as rapidly as
public sentiment authorizes.-PhiLGdeL-
phiG Press.