The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1896-03-10


clement weather, by night as we'll as by
day NJ have called your attention to these
lacIS IOr purpose and [ shall now
proceed to the discussion of a Question.
which observation has shown ms can be
dispassionately discussed by but few
people; put which 1t behooves us to COLI
slider at this time l mean the enforce
ment of the Prohibitory Law. Almost
annually for more than generation. and
| frequently not long before an annual
election, the cry is raised, usually by
| some new conner to our city, that the
Mayor is not doing his duty in enforcing
this law. The cry is eagerly taken up
| by the party out of office, and he ana his
officers are assailed with a violence born
Of prejudice and malice; in fact, as a re-
cent writer graphically puts it, the Pro
hibitory Law ia always club in the
hands of the outs to beat out the brains
of the ius. The question is, gentlemen,
what can be done to better matters? AS
you are aware, it became evident to
the friends of the law years ago, that the
municipal authorities through uni
formed police, as constituted by law,
could not satisfactorily enforce this most
difficult of laws, and special sheriffs were
provided by law, whose sole duty it was
to enforce it. AT the same time, no pro-
vision was made to relieve the municipal
officers from the duty of treating it like
understood that the burden of enforce
,nent was to rest upon the special liquor
deputies where it rightfulIy belongs.
The extreme difficulty of suppressing the
liquor traffic ia evidenced by this neces-
slty for providing special department. to
handle 1t. We have. then, this anomalous
| condition OF affairs, a law which two in
dependent departments are expected to
execute. This co. responsibility of duty
in Itself is sufficient to interfere seriously
with IN efnc1ent enforcement of the law.
Both departments may have the same
| case IN hand and SO conflict with one an
other, or in case of complaint for laxity
or enforcement, one department. can
throw the blame upon the other: indeed.
the complexity of the difficulties which
| can arise out of this unwise condition of
affairs, is too great for presents discussion.
But let US look at the magnitude of the
work to be accomplished. The govern
lnent of the United States recognizes the
legality of the liquor traffic by licensing
it in our city, and every railroad and
steamboat line centering here bring the
prohibited article to us. It is business
of enormous profits, and those engaged in
it can afford to employ the most ingsn-
lous means to prosecute it. A gentleman
who has recently assumed the dangerous
role OF statistician asserts (of course 1
| question the correctness OF his statisties)
that there are over four hundred open
saloons in the city, about thirty five to
each one OF our twelve day policemen,
aud yet he seems to think that it Is an
easy task for these twelve men to close
up these four hundred saloons, without
taking into account the fact that they
must look out and enforce all the other
laws within the large area under their
charge, and be at certain points on their
| beats varying from one to ten rifles in
length at specified times. Gentlemen,
have taken the oath to enforce all laws
lmpartlally, and suppose that any de-
cent man taking such an oath does SO
with the desire to observe it to the best
| of his ability; but from what you have
seen, it must be apparent that If the
entire burden of enforcing the Prohibi-
tory Law is to be thrown upon the
Mayor, he must have officers enough to
do the work. Nor will it do to give him
officers appointed for life, or practically
SO, as the present force is, whom he can
not remove without positive evidence of
wrong doing. To do the work effectually
he must have officers whom he can dis
charge at any moment wi thout question
The question for you to decide is,
whether you will authorize the mainte-
nance of a special force, wholly under
the authority of the Mayor to enforce the
Prohibitory Law. If you do this. the the
work of enforcement should be taken out
of the hands of the sheriffs and placed
wholly in the hands OF the Mayor and if
he fails to accomplish it there will be
good reason to hold him up to public
criticism. One thing l think is certain,
either the sheriff or the mayor should
have the sole enforcement of the law. 1t
| may OCCUR to YOU to ask how many
| special officers may be required to effe ct
ually stop the sale of intoXicants in Port
land. cannot answer this question: and
opinions will differ upon this, as upon
| everything else connected with the SUBJ
ject, but one opinion, and that OF man
well versed in the matter, is at hand.
Said he, Mr.. Mayor, you can close all
the rum shops that can be found, in
twenty four hours" l replied "That nut
is not fresh; suppose you mean by Civ
ing peremptory order to the Marshal
l have given such orders to that officer
couched in very definite language, and
they have been read to every man upon
the force, and have proved to be simply
palliatiyes cop he replied, ~ did
not mean that, place an officer at the
door OF every suspected shop, and keep
him there. - Glow many officers would
hundred was his answer, "but under
stand me, | DON'T say that will stop the
consumption of liquor, l don't believe
that pint less will be consumed in CITY:
but it will look like business" / think
that this gentleman exaggerated, like SO
many others VINO pose as experts on this
subject but it is the only expert opinion
that have had, and his figures are per-
haps as worthy of acceptance as those of
the faoile statistioian whom have quot
ed. A curious question. however, is sug-
pested by this man, which this is not the
place to discuss at large, and that Is.
WHISTLER the drink habit is not the great
evil for our Jealous reformers to attack
after all If that could be suppressed,
would not the saloon disappears But is
it likely to be suppressed, when promi-
nent clergymen members of the civic
league, after hurting from the safe shelter
of the sanctuary their hot anathe1nas at
the magistrates, attend banquets at the
Falmouth Hotel, and having been in
formed that intoxicating liquor are to
form prominent part Of the menu. and
while it seductiveIy sparkles about them,
warmly eulogize the generous hospitality
of their hosts and pass in silence the vio-
lation of.the law which it is to be sup
posed they consider paramount to all
others; or when shrewd, old lawyers take
up the case of this same Civic League as
attorneys of the plaintiffs. and eloquent
ly condemn the chief magistrate of the
city for not preventing the commission
OF this gigantic crime OF Grimes and
L