The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1897-01-13
The Liquor Constables.

The proposition of Representative c. D.
dispensary constabulary, may not meet
with widespread approval; but we think
that if the Oconee statesman will try to
have the law amended In important par
ticulars he will get not little endorse
ment.
There is no doubt about the fact that
the dispensary constabulary has heaped
upon itself a great deal of odium, and the
most surprising thing about the situation
is that there have not been soma radical
changes before now. The only way in
which the matter can be reasonably ac-
counted for is that the people generally
have never given it sufficient thought.
If the dispensary law is to remain on
the statute books it must be enforced.
There is no question as to that PROPOSE
ton; but in the enforcement of this law
it is q bad thing to give any man, or set of
men, power of life and death, and that
is virtually what has been done in the
case Of the dispensary constables
When Governor Tillman found that
there was considerable opposition to the
dispensary law, or rather that men per-
sisted in violation of the law, he gathered
the constables around him, armed them
with big pistols and told them to shoot.
AS to Just how far he told the constables
to go, or how much safety he guaranteed
them, we have no positive information.
To many the Governors action looked all
right at the time; but study Of subse-
quent Developments is calculated to max Q
the strongest advocates of this law who
have reasonable intelligence, realize the
existence of q state Of affairs which, to
say. the least, is extremely grave.
Three men have been shot down in
Spartanburg County, one in Greenville,
one in Chesterfield, and others in other
portions OF the State. Under ordinary
provisions of law, no officer has right
to arrest violator of the law except with
q warrant or for an offence com mitted in
view. And, uu Ter no circumstances, has
an officer the right to shoot an offender
before making an arrest, except IN self
defence or on attempt to escape IN case OF
felony. In none of the cases mentioned
did it appear that the constables who did
the shooting had warrants, nor did it ap-
pear that any of the offenders attempted
to resist arrest. Worse than all; in ono
of the Spartan burg cases, constable was
actually convicted Of murder by jury of
his country and then saved from punish
ment by the pardon of the Governor.
Perhaps it is not necessary to com ment
at length along this line; but to those
who thoroughly appreciate the principles
upon which this Government rests, the
situation is alarming to contemplate. 1t
would be all right, maybe, if those to
whom the dispensary constables mete
out "iustice" at discretion were really
violators of the law; but when it comes
to holding up man at the mrzZle of
revolver for carrying q jug of buttermilk,
or shooting at negro preachers on their
way home with the proceeds Of church
festivals in their yalises, law-abiding citi-
zens in other avocations may well begin
to tremble for the time when it may be
their turn to be tried, convicted and exc.
cuted by an irresponsible one-man jury,
and on suspicion.
Until some other method for the en-
forcement of the law is devised we can
hardly say that we are ready for the abo-
lition of the constabulary system; Jut
whether The system is abolished or not,
the good Of the State and the proper ad-
Of the law require that it
be speedily revised so as to take from the
constables some of their extraordinary
power. AS the Office is now constituted,
it would seem that the dispensary con-
stable practically has tho power Of life
and death, with no responsibility except
unto himself; and if his power is not re-
vised 80 as to put him at least down to
the level of other constabulary, it would
be we'll not only to abolish the whole
system, but the whole dispensary law
into the bargain.-YOrkU,Uc Enquirer.