The Portland daily press., 1892-06-30
THURSDAY, JUNE so.
FOR PRESIDENT,
Benjamin Harrison.
FOR VICE PRESIDENT,
WHITELAW REID.
FOR GOVERNOR,
Henry B. Cleaves,
OF PORTLAND.
THURSDAY, JUNE so.
FOR GOVERNOR,
THE DEMOCRATIC COUNTY CONvEN.
TON.
OF PORTLAND.

IlONs
1t seems entirely unnecessary to COM
ment at any great length on the Demo-
cratic county convention which was held
here yesterday. Democratic members of
it made all the comment that is needed.
They exposed very clearly the disrepu-
table methods which were employed to
carry this city for Mr.. SWEET, and con-
firmed all that the PRESS has said on the
subject. No observer of ordinary percep-
ton who watched the proceedings at the
caucuses, and who reads the report Of
yesterdays proceedings can doubt for an
instant that the expectation of the men
for sheriff man who will nullify the
prohibitory law. Mr.. Charles McCarthy's
reasonable enforcement will deceive
no one. Not single rumseller will
be driven away from Mr.. Swett's
support by anything that Mr.. Mccarthy
said. They know perfectly well that it will
lie entirely in Mr.. Swett's power to de- I
termine what a reasonable enforcement
is, and the orations of his chief spokes-
man in which people who believe in the
prohibitory law have been stigmatized as
s'cranks and doctrinaires'' and the prohi-
bitory law pronounced Ubiquitous folly"
have convinced them that reasonable
enforcement as interpreted by Mr.Swett
will have no terror for them. 2
But it is not necessary to rely solely ON
the deliverances of Mr.. Swett's friends
for an indication of the Interpretation he
is likely to put upon Mr.. McCarthy's
reasonable enforcement MI. SWEET has
been city marshal of Portland several
months. One of his duties is to enforce
the liquor law. The fact that the sheriff
is also charged with that duty does not !
absolve the Marshal in the least. The
Argus has been informing the public for
weeks past that drunkenness was more
prevalent than ever, that pocket peddlersa
were numerous and that there was an
abundance of liquor sold on the sly. Yet.
the public has read the daily papers in
vain for reports of liquor seiz-
ures by Marshal SWEET and
his police force. If they
have made any the fact has been very
carefully guarded. If Mr.. SWEET has
been giving us since he has been marshal
what he regards as a reasonable enforce
ment then reasonable enforcement and
no enforcement at all are synonymous
terms in his estimation. We have no desire
to do Mr.. SWEET any injustice,
but the utterances of his friends
and his conduct of the police
force have left the impression on the
public mind that he is willing to accept
an Office which imposes upon him the
duty of enforcing certain laws vigorously
and impartially with the understanding
with his party or portion of it that he
will partially or entirely ignore certain
of these laws. If the impression is fast
ripening into conviction it is because Mr..
SWEET has kept silent in the face of such
accusation-an accusation which was
first made by his friends. If he cares to
remove this impression let him speak
now and pledge himself before the vot-
ers of Cumberland county to vigorous
and impartial enforcement of all the
laws-to as vigorous pursuit of the violat-
or of the liquor law as of the transgres-
sor against the law of larceny.