The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1890-12-03
Whsskey ut A hbeVil1e.

Our Represen tative, Mr.. J. f. Todd, has in.
troduced into the Legislature a bill to repeal
an Act entitled IAN Act TO amend an Act
entitled an Act to provide for the submission
to the qualified electors OF Abbeville and
Greenville Counties of the question oflicense
or no license in the incorporated cities. towns
ard villages in said Counties ut special elcc-
tions," approved December 81, 1887, approved
December q, 1889.
We do not know whether the repeal OF "the
act to amend" will re-instate, or make Of
force, the law which it unnuilcd.
But We would say this: that 1t will be use
less to put n law on the statute book, and en-
Feet IL To enforce itself.
Let there be an Office created, and let the
officer be elected or appointed TO fill 1t, whose
duty ii shall be TO see that tho law IS en-
forced.
Let his salary he $780, to he paid out of the
fines imposed upon the violators of the law
and from collections by the treasurer.
If he ncg!ccts his duty, and whiskey Is Sill
sold, without his prosecuting the Offenders
let him be removed at the discretion OF the
court or other power authorized 10 act.
Appuint man who will do MS duly' ana
the traffic in whlskey will stop.
We have now tried prohibition. We were
for halfa year as dry as powder house, ana
drunkenness was unknown on our
streets.
In tile fall Of the year, whisltcy was more or
less openly sold, and the scenes ofdrunkenness
re appeared as of yorc.
IT, was conlcnded that high license was the
solution, and that the grounds of complaint
would disappear under the high license Sys-
I TEN.
Under high license we believe ii Will be ad-
mittcd that we have had more drunkenness
than ever before, and we think, for bloodshed
and death because OF whiskcy, the last year
breaks the record:
/. The father Of motherless chlldreh was
so badly burnt that he died.
Q young husband and father was
slain on his hearths tone because OF actscoin
mittcd VIII in liquor.
3. youth, the stay and support of a Wild
owed mother, was shot to death Oh the
streets.
4. a negro man on leaving the pnnic
ouarc, was followed and shot 10 death, with
out known provocation,
). A prosperous farmer, good citizen, the
husband of young wife, came to town,
bought llauor, became crazy from drink,
walked out on q high railroad trestle, iell
through to the ground, and was instantly
! killed.
The first OF these deaths was due the Illicit
sale of whiskey at time when EFFORT
was being made to repeal the prohioltory
law.
The other four deaths are charSeable so'tiy
to the sale of whiskey ct Ab5cville under the
high license system.
| The blood ofthese victims, and the distress
oftheir afflicted and desolated households are
on somebody's souls.
Somebody is responsible for the unknown
effect which the open bars have hao In
training our boys to walk in clevious paths
Tho country people are the men who sufer
most, but they In the goodness Of their hearts'
allow the town to have the license feeS, SO
that we may pave our streets. and beauliiy
onr sIdwalks, while their neighbors and
friends 70 to premature graves.
When the town gets $1,000 or S3OOO, what
need we care If somebody's father, or husband
Is killed? People ought not to get drunk. Ii
they do, they must abide the result.
The town gets the money, and the victim
NAV 90 to his grave, while we train other
good BOYS to walk in sinful ways who Will
IN due time take the places ofthose who have
gone down.
We trust that Mr.. Todd may push DIS Dill.
II he does not get 1t through, he Will, at least'
lave put some of his colleagues on record.
If lie gets it through and makes provision
for the enforcement of the law, he ana his
colleagues will deserve the we'll done OF
grateful constituency.