The Greenville times. [volume] (Greenville, Miss.) 1868-1917, 1889-03-30
NUTS FOR PR0HIBIFIOSISrS.

Gail Hamilton, who probably knows
Maine. the banner State of prohibition,
as well as any one living, said a few
months ago in the North American
Review:
The actual result Is that liquor is
sold to all who wish to obtain it in
nearly every town in the State. En-
forcement of the law seems 10 have
little effect. For the past six years the
city of Bangor has practically enjoyed
free rum. In more than 100 places
liquor is sold and no attempt has been
made to enforce the law. In Bath,
Lewiston, Augusta and other cities no
real difficulty is experienced in procur-
ing liquor, In Portland enforcement
of the law has been faithfully attempt-
ed, yet the liquor traffic hourishes for
all classes, from the highest to the
lowest. . In a journey last sum-
mer for hundreds of miles through the
cities and through the scattered vii
larges aud hamlets of Maine the almost
universal testimony was: You get
liquor enough for bad purposes in bad
places, but you cannot get it for good
purposes in good Places
And the New York Sun, which in
vestigated the subject of liquor-dnnk-
ing in Maine through specially
deputed representative, said last fall:
"The actual state of affairs in Maine
is perfectly well understood by every
Maine man with eyes in his head, and
by every observant visitor TO Maine.
In no part of the world is the spectacle
of drunken men reeling along the
streets more common than in the cities
and larger towns of Maine. Nowhere
in the world is the average quality Of
the liquor sold SO bad, and consequent
ly SO dangerous to the health of the
consumer and the peace of the public.
The facilities for obtaining liquor vary
In different parts of the State from the
cities where fancy drinks are openly
compounded and sold over rosewood
bars, to the places where it is dispersed
by the swag from flat bottles carried
around in the breeches pockets of per-
ambulating dealers. But liquor, good
or bad, eau be bought anywhere"
| And here, finally, is suggestive clip
ping which we make from the Phila
delphia Record of Wednesday last, con-
tanning portion of message sent to
that able journal by its Boston (Mass.)
correspondent:
.Some of the wholesale liquor dealers
of this city were interviewed recently
by representative of Voice, the Pro-
hibition organ of New York, and they
gave him some interesting figures
John Costello, who formerly did bust
ness in Portland, said:
"I know that 800 barrels Of ale a
week, both winter aud summer, and
400 barrels of lager week during the
summer, are shipped from Boston to
Portland for distribution to the small
towns of Maine. The trade with Maine
is continually increasing. ! send up
about 100 gallons of whisky a week
and | am one of the smallest shippers
in Boston. Lynch Il Co., No. 2 lndi'
street, sell 1000 gallons week to thu
Maine trade. Wood, Pollard \ Co.
sell about 1900 gallons a week; ). E
Packer 4 Co., of Commercial street
about the same. A dealer on Exchange
Place. lust this side of Pat Dougherty
sends up to Maine about 1000 gallons
of whisky q week. Mack Il Birming-
ham, of No. IA Lincoln street, SEND
now over 1000 gallons of whisky
, week to Portland. 1t is perfectly
safe.'
al know places now in Portland
close alongside of Neal Dow, that sci
from four to FIVE barrels of whisky
|, month. Trade is constantly increasing
between Boston and Maine. The
whisky is shipped up and stored IN
farm houses just outside of Portland
They 70 out with teams aud get it."
And. as IL is with Maine, SO 1t is will
! Vermont. and with Iowa, and will
Kansas. and with Rhode Island and Sc
ii is with Massachusetts, and other place.
which made trial of prohibition and
: abandoned It, And the arraignment
of Maine in the matter OF unlicensed
potations is applicable equally to ever,
one of her prohibition sisters;
Nomino mutato, narratur faDul'
de ten. o. States.
The foregoing is cumulative testi
mony of the fallacy of prohibition an'
points to the extinction of that delu
sive light But the question remains
what shall the civilized States do t
a-1eliorate drunkenness and its result
ant crime and misery An evil 0
) prohibition is that it has so unwisely
so yiciously assailed all who doubt an
= resist its sway, that there is such graf
u ification in witnessing its downfall tina
. the main question is lost sight Of Pro
= hibition having proved the iudgmer
of those who denied ii efficacy, Is 1t nc
! now incumbent on those in whom vii
J dom dwelt to bcstow themselves to th
. eradication of drunkenness; or at lea'
to devise measures to reduce tn
scourgc to a minimum and to properl
provide for The care of inebriates! ThJ
a education aud innate sense has vastl
to lessened the habit of drinking anon
Z, the upper classes is undeniable. Th
G. tendency toward sobriety should be e.
g tended TO the working classes; who's
t. inebriety causes far more suffering an
&c ruin. Wise counsel and discreet mea
le ures to this end demand the exercise
cs our thought and energies.
\, In the Legislature three years sin'
Id those who favored high license tric
nc to have It incorporated in the local o.
n ton law. They were told no, the
of must take prohibition or free whiske
st Probably the next Legislature will
as in n fit frame of mind to study out al
he devise a practical law. The local o
ly ton is suited for certain counties. FL
ty, cities and other counties it Is total