Mississippi leader. (Jackson, Miss.) 1892-1895, 1894-01-09

question into party politics, and almost
in the same breath practically asserts
that the saloons at this very time dom
mate the municipal politics of Jackson,
and that the provisions of what he ap-
plauds as the best liquor law the State
has ever had are not enforced against
jackson rum-sellers. WhyS Because
the liquor men have carried the ques-
ton into politics and Prohibitionists,
acting on Bishop Galloway's idea, have
not. The following editorial extract
from the New Orleans Picayune, the
paper which interviewed the Bishop, is
we'll worth repeating in this connec-
ton and we commend it to his thought
full consideration:
Unquestionably the very worst fea-
ture of the liquor traffic is its power
full political influence. The barroom
is great factor in the politics of
every large American city; but per-
haps, there is no city in the Union
where it is so supremely powerful as
in New Orleans. The power that
controls the barrooms controls the
city. and the man who can WELD this
power is simply supreme in New Or
leans. The personality of such man
is nothing. 1t makes no difference
what or who he is, the possession of
such power will make him politically
invincible so long as the great masses
of the people submit as they have, with
the exception of very few occasions,
heretofore done.
AS consequence, every man who
has any political aspirations sooner or
later finds he must pander to this pow
erful interest, and he must either re-
tire or accept the situation.
With both the old political parties
of the country dominated and down on
their knees to a power like this in eve
ry American city, as the Bishop well
knows. what is such doctrine worth on
Christian citizenship as he proclaimed
in his Memphis Thanksgiving address,
unless there be political party, indie
pendent of the whisky power, in which
Christian citizens can make their po-
litical influence felt?
Concede, for arguments sake, that
the open saloon will soon be driven
out of every county in Mississippi by
local option; grant that local option is
morally right and unselfish, which it is
not; grant that this would soon be fol
lowed by State Prohibition amend
ment to the Constitution, and still
there are strong reasons why there
should be a Prohibition party. Prohi-
bition will never be permanently Sc
cure and attain the best results in Mis-
sissippi until the manufacture and sale
are prohibited in other States, and the
inter State commerce laws amended to
prevent the importation of liquor ex-
cept for lawful purposes. These laws
can only be changed by Congress, and
controlled as both old parties now are
by the liquor power, which they dare
not offend, Congress will never do this
until Prohibitionists carry the question
into party politics and meet the traffic
on its own ground.
In conclusion we will add that it is in
no spirit of captious criticism or to
crafty desire for needless discussion
that we have penned this article; but
because the time has come when the
inherent error and insufficiency of To-
cal option and the delusive fallacy of
non-political Prohibition must be plain
ly understood by the people at large,
even though so distinguished and re-
spected gentleman as Bishop Gallo
way must be antagonized.