New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1898-01-05
THE PLATT-QUIGG SCHEME.

II Is a little too early TO enter into discus
sion Of the merits or dement's Of the Raines
bill amendments upon which the combined In
tellects Of Plat, Quigg and O'Grady are said
to have been at work The details have not
been made public; It Is possible, indeed that
they have not yet been formulated. All that
we know is that these three statesmen and
leaders have decided with singular unanimlty
Of sentiment upon "a bill providing for local
"opton as TO liquor selling on Sundays In all or
"the cities of the first and second class IN the
State" That having been decided, 1t only re-
mains to draw up the bill in proper form and
enact It into law In an orderly and DELHI
crate manner II convenient, but by tanning
through" If need be. Pending the preparation
OF the bill. however. a word or two as 10 itS
spirit and purpose may not be amiss. To this
end suppose we bark back to the beginnings of
what IS called the Raines law, which Quigg,
with toss of the head ard curl Of the lip, says
John Ralnes did not prepare, but only intro
duced.
II will be remembered that one Of the first
things to which Mr. Theodore Roosevelt applied
his restless activities upon taking office as Po-
lice Commissioner was the enforcement Of the
law against Sunday lquorselling. The sud
den strict enforcement Of statute law which
had long been considered obsolete and treated
as a dead letter naturally caused considerable
sensation In political and social circles, as well
as among the saloonkeepers and others with
whose vocation 1t was a damaging interfer-
ence large class Of citizens who under the
loose police administration had been In the
habit OF patronizing the open saloons by the
purchase Of beer or other liquors for daily con-
sumption. On Sunday the same as on other
DAYS. felt aggrieved at the deprivation and de-
claimed vigorously against the new order as an
infringement Of personal liberty. On the other
hand the rigid temperance men and total abb
stainers. though they had been comparatively
quiet and undemonstrative under the old re-
gime manifested unusual interest In Mr.. RoOse-
yelts enforcement Of the law and gave their
unqualified approval 10 his proceedings. In the
division of voters upon this newly raised issue
it was found that a large number Of those
who had supported Republican candidates at
the preceding election were aTayed against the
party which was held responsible for the new
departure The sufficient answer to all com
plants was that the law had been on the stat
ute books under Democratic as well as Repub-
lcan administrations, and so long as IT was law
there was no excuse for its non-enforcement.
And, of course, there were differences OF opin-
ION among Republicans upon the question
whether upon the whole, Mr.. Roosevelts in
sistence upon an unusually rigid enforcement
of this particular law entirely wise.
In this state Of affairs the Republican State
Convention Of 1898 met at Saratoga, with Mr..
Plat In command. The enforcement or the
Sunday law a burning question. 1t occu-
pied public attention almost to the exclusion Of
all other issues. 1t could not be ignored with
out subjectng the party to the charge Of gross
political cowardice. But Mr. Plat and his sub
servent following had made up their minds
that It was a dangerous subject to touch; that
to advocate the repeal Of the Sunday law or its
material modification would drive out thousands
Of Republicans up the State. while approval Of
It's enforcement would seriously weaken the
party in this city. They decided to play the
sneak and dodge the issue entirely. The cut
and dried resolutions submitted by the commit
tee treated every other question with apparent
holiness, but said never a word upon the sub
feet which more than any other cried aloud for
a manly utterance. 1t was then that Warner
Miller sprung upon the convention an amend
ment In these words 1--WE favor the mainten-
"ance Of the Sunday laws in the interest Of
labor and morality" That could not b