The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1897-01-19
GOVERNOR EVANS ON THE DSpENSARY.
CONTINUED FROM FIRST pAeE.)

clueing one detective and the clerk in
my Office, amounted to S47, 1875 oil.
Thirty.ope constables are assigned to
the upper and twenty-four to the
lower division. The upper division
has been. much harder to handle by
reason of the proximity of North Car
olina and the mountain distilleries.
The amount of whiskey and brandy
seized in the upper division for the
past year was 3,345 gallons, ninety
barrels of beer, 8,076 gallons Of cider
and peel In bottles, twelve vehicles
and sixteen head of mules and horses,
and ten Illicit distilleries were destroy
ed. In the lower division there were
seized and confiscated 5000 gallons of
whiskey, wine and brandy, thirty-nine
barrels of beer, twenty-t NO hundred
and ffty-fve gallons of beer and cider
In kegs, three vehicles and four head
Of mules and horses, one illicit distil-
lery was destroyed. The resistance to
the law in the upper tier of the coun
ties adjoining the North Carolina line
and in the county OF Charleston has
been most Stubborn. In the remaining
counties OF the State a healthy condf-
ton exists and the citizens are almost
unanimous in support Of the law, and
[ am glad to report that the law Is
being better enforced throughout the
State at large as is shown by the scales
OF the ~dispensaries and the number of
convictions OF Illicit dealers in the
State and municipal courts.
The violations reported to my office
show q large decrease and the daily
reports of the constables show q better
state OF feeling throughout the State
at large. In the counties of Oconee,
Greenville and Chesterfield difficulties
have been had with traders coming
from North Carolina. These %despera-
does invariably go armed to the teeth
with a determination to resist the
officers to the extent of losing their
lives IL necessary. In Oconee a das-
tardly attempt was made to assassi-
nate the constables almost at the doors
OF the court house and they narrowly
escaped with their lives. The good
people OF the county became indig-
nant and an honest attempt has been
made to bring these offenders to JUS
tice. In two instances the constables
have been compelled to shoot down
these ~desperadoes, and although fully
justified and acquitted by the courts
of the land OF n wrong, they have
been bounded down by the newspapers
opposed to this law and branded as
common murderers. The only way to
deal with such offenders is to let them
know that tho law will be enforced
oven IL it be necessary to take their
lives.
We have been greatly embarrassed
by the decision of the United States
Court which allows the Importation of
wh1skey for " personal use. The mat
ter is now before the United States SUI
preme Court and If our position is sus-
tanned there will be little trouble in
putting an end to the illicit traffic.
One OF the best evidences of the de-
crease in the illicit traffic is the de-
crease in the number of licenses issued
by the United States internal revenue
department..
For the year ending June 81, 1896,
there were issued to parties outside OF
sale license included. or these 100
were taken out in the city of Charles
ton. For the same period ending June
81, 1895, 72O licenses were taken out.
OF this number 107 were taken out In
the city of Charleston, showing a de-
crease of 405 in the State and an in
crease of thirty three in the city of
Charleston. For the year ending June
80, 1897, there have been issued so far
to Illicit dealers 173 licenses of which
l3H were taken out for Charleston,
among th..o four wholesale licenses
to dealers in that city. For the same
period the previous year there are 800
licenses to Illicit dealers, 1877 of which
were taken out in :he city OF Charles
ton. 1t will thus be seen that for the
revenue year ending June 80, 1896, the
State at large showed a decrease OF
30 per cent. while the city of Charles
ton showed an increase of over 20 per
cent. Since the 1st of June 1896, the
State at large shows a decrease Of over
AZ per cent, while the city of Charles
ton for The same period, under the
metropolitan police shows g decrease
OF over 20 per cent. 1t is another
significant fact hal in the counties OF
the State where public sentiment has
upheld the law, as for instance, the
county Of Abbeville, the sales of the
dispensary have fallen off. Thus show
Ing a decrease III the consumption OF
whiskey and q promotion of the cause
of temperance. During the holidays
of which whiskey vas the direct eau, e
was reported in the State and the
Christmas holidays were marked for
their sobriety, peace and quietude
During the recent State fair held in
the city of Columbia, $1,000 people
were reported to have beer upon the
grounds Thursday and not an arrest
for drunkenness was made in the city
The same record has been made in
every county ir the State.
The greatest problem that ] have to
meet since my connection with the die
pensary law has been its proper en-.
forcement in the city of Charleston
There are more friends in this city to
the law than an outsider who has had
no dealings with them would imagine,
but it has come to be a political and a
social question in that community and
a great number of its friends have not
the temerity to publicly uphold it. I
realize that to be polite in dealing
with this question meant to be false
to the great majority of the people OF
South Carolina and untrue to those
who had elected me and | determined
upon an aggressive policy towards this
city. The question narrowed itself
down simply to this Whether the
Illicit traffic and contempt OF law and
order should prevail in Charleston and
be restrained in the rest of the State
or whether / should support and en-
force the law with a strong hand, Civ
ing equality to all men. Seeing the
increased mount of illicit sales of
whiskey In this city and the contempt
with which the officers of tho law were
treated and having warned the mayor
and city council repeatedly OF my in
tention to no avail, the State commits
sion consisting Of the governor, the
secretary of State and the cOmDtroller