The Windham County reformer. (Battleboro, Vt.) 1876-1897, 1895-10-18
The Remedy.

j. Milton Stcarns, an old time lawyer
and native of the state, writing from
Fechville, tells the Rutland Herald thai
The root of the whole trouble
in the laws affecting the sale of liquor
in Vermont does not lie in the laws
themselves, but in the criminal sys
TEN of jurisprudence in the state. This
system of complaint by grand juror OF
states attorney instead of by the act,
ual complainant in case OF this kino
- that is, lodging information against
your neighbor-is prolific OF more trou'
BILE in the state than all the liquor
sold or given away The office OF
grand Juror that is, common inform
err should be suppressed and every
complainant stand openly before the
people as complainant, not sneak be-
hind the coat tails of states attorney
or town grand juror, and be response
BILE himself if he fails to make his
complaint good. have no need to re-
mind you that such is the system OF
nearly every state in the Union except
Vermont. Second. the states attorney
should receive salary commensurate
with the dignity and duties OF his
office, and not have one cent interest IN
the prosecution of any criminal what
soever. 1t is certain that no misuse
of liuuor would occur or absurd prose
cutions for mere spite would be man,
tanned under such modification of
the laws as indicated, and yet the law
remain Just as ii is. But so long as
the state maintains a system which en-
ables one man, without publicity or
| u 10, nrtS n
neighbor to an expensive and annoying
prosecution at his personal whim, Just
so long the state will continue to de
cline in population and influence, and
no person from outside dare settle
therein.
Mr.. Stearns is right in believing
that no honest, healthy administration
of law can be had under any such
sneak system. But the prohibitionist
will answer him that without it there
would be hardly any enforcement OF
this law. and this is true. too.
When IA real crime is committed good
citizens. almost without exception.
are ready to take hold and help bring
the criminal to the hands of the law
and to do it openly and manfashion,
and in this fact alone lies the securi-
ty of our fine institutions and the phil,
osophy of popular government. Were 1t
otherwise, were our people IN matters OF
law generally as anxious to operate
under cover as 80 out of 100 are in the
enforcement Of prohibition. despotism
would be the only practicable form OF
government. The difference is due to
Il sub consciousness, even amongst
those who think they believe in it
most fully, that somehow and in some
way there is something wrong about
prohibition.
That wrong is in the extravaganza
of it, Every law that deals with the
liquor traffic at all is prohibitory to
some extent. 1t prohibits some kind
of sales, as to confirmed drunkards,
or minors, on Sundays and at certain
other times. and prohibition of this
kind like any other criminal statute.
can come somewhere near enforcement,
because the moral sense of mankind
recognizes that it is right, 1t is right
because such liquor selling and IL
quor drinking are an infringement up
on the rights of other people with which
government has right to deal, when
the law says that no liquor or wine or
beer shall he sold to any man AS a hever-
age. it is an interference with individ-
ual rights and the individuals of the
will not generally from
motives of good citizenship do their
part towards enforcing il. AS a nat
ural consequence the traffic that ought
to be prohibited goes along in large
measure with that which we have no
right to interfere with, and the result is
the miserable, demoralizing farce.
with it's mixture of blaclmail, hrih
cry, perjury. free rum and all the
rest. which goes under the name of
our prohibitory system.
The remedy is not. as Mr. Stearns
proposes, to change the method of pro-
secution but to change the fegisla-
ton itself to Il rational basis, prohibit
ing what ought to he prohibited and
stopping there: and for the more re
mote evil, or the danger that men may
become drunkards il al
lowed to get single glass. trust to ed
ucation and self-repect and the moral
force of the age. to lead away from it,
Nh, wonderful surrpsSps American