People's voice. [volume] (Wellington, Sumner County, Kansas) 1890-1917, 1895-01-24
A Savage Reply.


this special case l will not attempt to
take sides in this "war OF words" ex.
cept on general principles,
''The legislature of Kansas has de-
clared that the sale of Intoxicating
liquors, whether manufactured in this
state, imported from Germany or
shipped into this state from Kentucky,
can not be sold, except for medical,
scientific or mechanical purposes, and
for the purpose of enforcing these re-
gulations they declared that any man
who shall sell SpirituOus, Vinous fer
mented, malt or other intoxicating
liquors in Kansas, without procuring
a permit in the manner presented by
law, shall upon conviction be fined in
any sum not less than one hundred
dollars, nor more than five hundred
dollars, and be imprisoned in the
county Jail not less than thirty nor
more than ninety days"
Now is it not strange when such a
law is on the state books of Kansas,
that the officers entrusted with en-
forcing the law will not only boldly
back it, but undertake to defend their
open violation of the law in the pub
lie prints. "And still you will won
der at crime" and at the increase
thereof. OF course if some poor un-
fortunate fellow should steal sufficient
to satisfy his hunger" would you and
the honorable city council not cry
out, "away with him?" However,
there may be this difference, the one
is a poor unfortunate and the others
are honorable men, all honorable
men," And what reason does the
honorable Mayor Of Wellington bring
forward such proceedings as indicated?
III That other cities such as Wichita,
Topeka, Winfield, Arkansas City,
Caldwell, ETC., do the same thing.
Well | suppose it must be regarded a
fact that meanness, as well as misery,
cloves company" However this may
be, one thing is certain, if this were
argument the Cook gang could plead
excuse for their depredations, for the
Dalton's, the BOss-Collins gang, Robert
Kidd and Fitte were all robbers. tOfI
course / am not Intentionally COM
pairing the honorable Mayor and the
city council to robbers, the comparison
is not as to crime or character, but
only as to lOgiC.)
~ But the principal reason is a
genuine Democratic tariff law for
revenue only" If however there is
any logic In the reason it must pro-
coed upon the hypothesis that revenue
is the lone thing needful." Seriously
there is not a vice or crime beneath
the shining stars that can not be de-
Tended on such 'limping logic" And
when great men stoop to such devices
what may We expect in the unfortu-
nate, the low, the vulgar, the vicious.
| tremble for the city, the state and
nation whose citizens generally have
set before them such reckless tramp
ling underfOOt, the laws of its own
making.
There is one other suggested argu-
ment, If it be not unlawful to call it an
argument, in the honorable Mayors
lengthy cOmmunicationS-that is the
virtual statement that intemperance
is responsible for but little, if any. Of
the various crimes that curse our peo-
pie and our nation. Ireply to this
inSinuated argument with the state
ment that the Mayor is contradicted
by the testimony of the supreme
court. Many other eminent iurists
and the overwhelming majority of |
those in the best position to know.
Besides every mans own observation
and experience makes it evident that
intemperance is responsible for a good
share, both of our pauperism and our
crime. Perhaps the Mayor has heard
something of the Nutting murder
case, the suicide of A. H. Lee at New
kirk, O. T., May 3, 1894, and a score of
other cases all over the country.
l do not say that intemperance is
responsible for all the crime Of our or
any other country, nor that il in
temperance was wiped out the mil
lennium would consequently be forth
with ushered in, but | do say that in
is responsible for share
of crime, and that if it was wiped out
of eXistance, that that would be one
step in the direction of universal
''peace on earth and good will toward
men," And therefore, every man who
assists, abets, or even "winks at it"
is to some extent, directly or in
a criminal. For our law
makers have declared that the whole
traffic including the sale of malt
liquors" is unlawful and the supreme
court has declared the law constitu-
tional and until this decision is set |
zelda ~. thic ctotutorv 10 M annulod no