Mower County transcript. [volume] (Lansing, Minn.) 1868-1915, 1888-10-31
4 FEW WORDS WITH PRoHlBlTIoN-
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"a FEW WORDS WITH PROHIBITIONS
Editors Of tho TRANsoRIPr.
With your permission. q Prohibitieniet
desires to address few words to those
adherents Of the Prohibition party who
were formerly Republicans, and who.
aside from the issue Of iprohlbitlon,
would to-day be acting with the Repub.
lican party OF the nation.
There is class Of third party Prohibit.
tionlsts who are such because Of dissatis-
faction with the Republican party. either
on public or personal grounds. and who
care more to secure Republican defeat
than to advance the cause of Temperance.
With such he wastes no words. But for
those who care more for the cause of
prohition than for the triumph of ! party
name, it seems. to him there are weighty
and prevailing reasons why their votes
should be cast in the present contest with
the Republican party. Your correspon-
in Iowa; he has on all occasions when
the issue was presented in local elections
voted against license, and he will be
glad indeed when the issue of state pro.
hibition can be presented to the people
of Minnesota with far prospect of sue
cess. And vet, he has heretofore been
and still remains, as he trusts, a consls.
tent Republican.
General Harrison or Grover Cleveland
will be chosen President, ana Republi.
can or Democratic House OF Representa-
tives will be elected next Tuesday. Gen.
Fisk will receive no electoral vote. and
no third party prohibitlonist will be
elected to Congress. In such case a citi.
zen who values his vote and really de-
sires to accomplish some object thereby,
will seriously inquire If 1t is possible,
without sacrifice of principle. to cast it
for candidate and for a party that may
succeed. Can q Prohibitionist support
the Republican party consistentlY2 He
can, for he may maintain and advocate
his principles within that party. That
party is taking advanced steps all along
the line on the temperance issue. In six
states, Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire,
Kansas, Iowa and Rhode Island, in each
of which the Republican party has had
almost continuous control for many
years, prohibition is the law of the state.
adopted aud maintained despite the op.
position Of the Democratic party. In
New Jersey the slender Republican ma.
jority in the present legislature has Civ
en- to counties the right Of local prohibi-
ton. every Democrat in the legislature
opposing. In the great states OF New
York. Pennsylvania and Massachusetts.
as we'll as in Nebraska. Republican legis.
latures have taken the initiatery steps to
submit to the people constitutional
amendments asolishing the liquor traffic.
in each instance with solid Democratic
opposition. What more could the. Re.
publican party do for prohibition than it
has done in Michigan. 1t submitted 4
prohibitory constitutional amendment
which was defeated by about 5000 ma
jority. 1t is claimed that it was defeated
by frauds perpetrated in the heavily
Democratic precincts of Detroit. Be
that as 1t may, the Republican legislature
Immediately passed an act granting 10.
Cal prohibition to counties. This act
having been declared invalid by the Su-
preme court of the state, the Republicans
in their late state convention resolve
again to pass an act free from the fatal
techihal defects of the former one.
While the Republican party has made
these great and rapid MISUNDERSTANDING
in resistance to the Democracy-what
does the prohibition party propose. II
proposes, in effect. to undo all that has
thus far been accomplished that the Pro
hibition party may have the prestige OF
attempting what the Republican party
has already achieved. Take Iowa to il.
lustrate. That state hts now, perhaps,
the best, and best executed prohibitory
law upon any statute book. 1t was enacted
and has been maintained, by the Repub
lican party of the state at a cost of %. OO(
voters, who, loving whisky and beer bet
ter than Republican principles, deserted
en- masse to the Democracy. Instead o.
10000 majority the Republicans nov
hold the state by so narrow a margin
that loss OF but few thousand vote!
would result IN Republican defeat.
And vet the Prohibition party is nov
doing all in its power to induce enough
Iowa Republicans to abandon the part!
that has abolished the saloon at such cos
to itself and with the inevitable result o
an immediate repeal of the prohibition.
law, and why? That the Prohibition
| Marty sOme generations hence having ii