The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1888-01-24
What the Moonshiners Want.

The advocates of the repeal Of the whisky
tax, having been forced to admit tina the
tax is neither burdensome nor an objec-
tionable one, have lately been devoting their
attention wholly to attacking the laws for
its collection. They insist that these laws
are 50 infamous that they ought to excite in
every honest mans mind feeling Of horror
1t is stated that in this State many innocent
men have been killed and many others
wounded on account of these laws. 1t seems
strange, however, that those who make this
statement are able to name only one Of
those who have been killed.
If it were possible to obtain a correct rec
ord it would doubtless appear that in the en-
forcement of any law against crime, innocent
men have met with their death. In hunt
ing down murderers and thieves honest men
have been killed, either by accident or on
purpose, and yet no one proposes to abolish
the laws against murder or those against
stealing Why, then, should the laws TO
enforce the collection of the whisky tax bo
repealed because in enforcing them an limo
cent man is killed once in while, If the
killing Of an innocent man now and then in
sufficient reason for repeating such laws SO
ciety would be without protection, and
criminals would have everything their own
way.
The truth is, the advocates of free whisky
find themselves in position that cannot be
successfully defended. In seeking for a
defensible position they make a great many
damaging admissions. At first they assailed
the whisky tax. Finding the people did not
take kindly to free whisky while the noces
saries of life were being taxed they admit
ted that the tax was not burdensome, and
insisted that the States ought 10 enjoy the
benefit of it. When they had studied this
latter proposition little, and found that it
was impractcable because all the States
could not be- brought to agree to a uniform
tax, and that those which imposed the
smallest tax would make all the whisky,
they virtually abandoned it and are now
assailing with renewed vigor the laws for
the collection of the whisky tax.
1t is somewhat remarkable that honest
dlstillers don't find the laws TO collect the
tax barbarous, cruel or damnabe as they
are declared TO be 10y the advocates of free
whisky Only those who want to evade the
payment of the tax condemn them, and
they succeed in killing about as many in
ternal revenue officers as the officers kill of
them. The advocates of free whisky, how
ever, appear to have no sympathy for the
officers who are killed and wounded while
discharging their duty. The officers don't
want to harm any one, and they don't harm
honest people, Or people who do not resist
them with shotguns and rifles, except by
accident
1t is probable that a good many of the
free whisky advocates would rather have
the laws for collecting the whisky tax re
pealed than to have the tax abolished If
the tax were abolished those who resist the
collection of the whisky tax would not be
benefited Whisky would be so cheap that
they could not in their small way manufac-
ture it at profit The tax alone enables
them to manufacture it. What they really
want, therefore, is to be permitted to evade
the payment of the tax. 1t is ITO be regretted
that some quite influential newspapers give
them encouragement.