The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1889-05-22
This paper is Democratic in principles
and Is Independent dn its Uteaos upon all
local Questions.
Tire County option Fallacy.

4AG OOuuby OPOhOu EatiASys
General Clinton B. Fisk has given
up Prohibition as a present practical
possibility. His desire, however, to
subject his neighbor to the tyranny of
his opinions is in no wise abated, and
80 he o takes up the party and the
policy, which, but a little while ago,
he condemned in unsparing terms.
Only a few short months have
passed since he condemned alliances
with the Republican party as snare
and pitfalls, laid in the path of the
just man--that is to say the Prohibit
tionist-by the Father of Evil. 1t is
only a few short months, since local
option, high license, or any other
form of repression short Of absolute
suppression was, in his ..eyes, a tam
pering with conscience, a compromise
of principle that was not to be dreamt
of by the upright and the just-that
is to say, of course, by the Pro-
hibitionist.
Temporal mUtGntir ct nos mutGmur
in SIJis. Here is General Fisk rele-
eating Prohibition to the dim vistas
of futurity, and taking up mere
Howard Crosbyism, a paltry time
serving, vote catching milk and
water form of minding other peoples
business, which has heretofore been
the peculiar property of republican
campaign orators and pl atforln-
mongers.
The strong argument against all
local option is its t%yrannical OPP
preston of large minorities by incon-
siderable majorities. 1t is the rule of
might over right; of ignorance and
narrowness over liberality and indepen-
dence; OF petty despotism over the
democratic spirit. General Fisk is too
shrewd a man not to know this in his
soul. He knows that, of all forms that
local option takes that, of county OPP
ton is the worst and most offensive.
1t is not the regulation of its own
affairs by a community, as is falsely
and absurdly claimed. 1t is the regu-
iation of the affairs of one community
by another.
1t cannot reasonably be claimed
that d county is a community, as a
city, town or village is. 1t is an ag-
gregation of different, and often con-
fiicting, interests. There is opposition,
often hatred, between city and coun-
tryside. Then, why should a regi-
ment Of narrow-minded, and perhaps
spiteful, rustics pretend to limit the
liberties of the inhabitants of the
cities which happen to be located in
their midst-which are among them
without being of them.
But in truth the local option idea
has no power in this state. The craze
is past. The people have returned to
their senses. The only thing that
could give this unholy Prohibition
Republican alliance any strength
would be the suspicion among the
people that the Democracy meant to
rush to the other extreme, and give
the liquor element privileges injurious
to the citizens at large. OF course,
there is no probability of such a thing
happening, and the people are too
sensible to dream of it. The liquor
men themselves do not want any such
thing. They want to be let alone, to
be allowed to do their bust
ness in a peaceful, lawful a
ner like grocers or undertakes, or
other business men, and long before
the fall election comes along, they and
the leaders of the Democracy will
have satisfied the voters Of the reason
ableness, Justice, and moderation OF
their position, on this question.
General Fisk and his new Republi-
can allies win find that the campaign
will really turn on far different issues,
and that they viii be on the defen-