Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1889-06-19

AnS NSssuNt w tNuiitu vi tut
! prohibition question is certainly de-
'oided enough to quiet that issue for at
least this generation. The effect will
be to concentrate the efforts of good citi-
Dens upon perfecting the operation of
the license laws, to the end that the
liberty, properly enjoyed by men to eat
and drink as they please, shall be 40
enjoyed that the injury of their excesses
shall be done to them alone and not TO
their neighbors. The overwhelming
majority Of the state has decided that
Il Is neither profitable. nor probable or
practicable to undertake to keep men
FROM hurting themselves aud that the
Most that can be undertaken is the pro-
lection Of society from hurt by them.
II is doubtless well that the battle was
fought since the emphatic result will be
sure 70 have a settling effect upon the
steady disturbance that has for many
! years been created by the class Of well
meaning fanatics TO whom Prohibition
has been an idol. They are very sensible
people, many Of them, and able to take
q judicious view Of ordinary subjects,
but they have twist on this issue which
~ WIN s"NN oii VI WIG uiuJeIltN tIlut
4 locked them down, to get out Of them !;
aud probably 1t will fail of cure in most OF
their cases. Se see that their leader, ex-
Attorney Genegal Palmer, lawyer and
man of much for,S and ability, says "the
combined villiany + the Republican
and Democratic ,.s,lac6Kes, by the use of
(, :,.,S Yt-.ty known TO corrupt -pp22lli.
~ hoa Iofaat.I I,a
which shows that he at least is unregen-
Z crate.
Doubtless Mr.. Palmer has much for
which to accuse etheRepublican machine,
4 which lured his people into its camp
under promise Of giving them their Pro-
hibition election and helping them
through with II which 1t is clear they
did not do ; but wherefore he can accuse
the Democratic machine we see not. 1t
has certainly done no work in this cam
paign its>yoiee has been silent. The
battle against Prohibition is one that the
Democratic machine ought TO have led,
Z and II ought to have earned the credit
= Of the victory; which belongs now clearly
TO its rank and file, who walked along in
the well trodden paths Of their party
without leaders or drums and gave n
nearly unanimous vote i'm behalf of in
dividual liberty.
1t was strange combination of forces
that was arrayed against prohibition.
1t was made up of those who love
whisky and those who hate it; of those
who love liberty and those whose only
idea Of ii is self indulgence. They
errn nf e.,
reasons that were good and bad. The
sincerest and wisest advocates of temper
ance were in their ranks for this
amendment was so badly prepared that
every intelligent construer of il knew
that 1t would not prevent the use of
3 intoxicants, even if il was in the power
Of the law to prohibit it. Prohibition
has SO far been shown, wherever il has
been tried, not TO prohibit but in this
case the amendment was SO badly
worded that the principle of prohibition
would never have had "A chance to vim
dicate itself under it,
We trust that our prohibition friends,
having been so roughly used, will he
wise in their generation and will
consent to abandon their extreme and
unpopular theories, and that they will
lend their efforts 10 the perfection of the
system of high license which has been
established in the state, with such good
results, so far as our brief experience
with it has gone. Its idea is simply tc
restrict the sale Of intoxicants and to pu,
II under such control of the law and into
the hands of such agents as To ensure the
least possible injury from it TO the com
munity.