The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1898-01-19

ing condition Of affairs Under the
protection Of Circuit Judge Of the
United States Court liquor is being
sold throughout the State, in the
country as we'll as in the runicipali-
ties, and in defiance Of the laws of the
State. The rights Of a sovereign
State to police and regulate the liquor
traffic in its own way is nullificd and
tranplcd under foot. The Act Of
Congress Of July 8, 1890, has been, so
far as South Carolina is concerned,
repealed, and we are told that the en-.
actment of prohibition alone gives a
State the right to exclude "original
package dealers, unless the profit
feature Of the dispensary is destroyed.
The language of Judge Simonton in
the Vandercook case is as follows ::
"1f all alcoholic liquors, by whomso-
ever held, arc declared contraband
they ceased to belong to commerce.
and are within the jurisdiction OF the
police power. But so long as their
manufacture, purchase or sale, or
their use as beverage in any form or
by any person, arc recognized, they
belong to commerce, and are without
the domain Of the police power" The
power to license the sale Of liquor, to
the exclusion OF these Interstate
commerce dealers in original packa-
gcs,' has been therefore destroyed By
this decision, unless it should be re-
versed by the Supreme Court. The
Attorney General Of the State has ap-
| pealed, but the appeal will not be
heard until March z, too late Cor you
TO know what the decision will be, in
time to legislate in accordance there
with.
1t cannot be doubted that large
majority Of our people favor the dis
pensary law, if it can be secured
against the interference of the Fed
cral Courts. Three successive Gen
eral Assemblies have declared in favor
OF the dispensary as the best met..,G
of dealing with the liquor question.
Our Representatives in Congress are
at work seeking to secure additional
legislation for the protection Of the
State against the interference OF the
United States judiciary. The United
States Senate has already passed bill
by unanimous vote giving the complete
control Of intoxicants to the State,
and it is hoped that the House also
will pass it. But we must have i'm
mediate relief from the present intol-
cradle conditions. Free liquor, with
its accompanying increase of drunk
enness and the consequent increase Of
crime must, at all hazards, be got rid
of. AS 1 have said, license law will
nos secure immunity e.cm .h;s evil.
Judge Simonton has destroyed, along
with the dispensary, the license sys-
tenn when run for profit. What, then,
is left to do? We must either enact
prohibition or continue the dispensary
system without tho profit feature.
Many-s majority, believe-do not
think prohibition is practicable end
many have opposed the diepensary
system because OF the profit feature.
we can ceE.sinlJ get rid Of she "orig-
inal package" dealers and their de-
moralizing traffic by continuing the
dispensary, shorn Of all profits and
administered only asa police regula-
tion to control and reduce the liquor
evil. The Federal Judge will have
neither occasion nor excuse For his
ever-Yeady injunction, if that system
shall be inauguratcd, unless he shall
again reverse his own previous decis-
ion. This, then, appears to me the
best and almost the only thing. left us
to do. We might try tais policy for a
year, and next winter, after Congress
shall have acted, or failed to act, and
after the Supreme Court at Washing
ton shall have decided what is to be-
come Of the States power to control
liquor under the Wilson bill Of 1890,
we shall be in a position to take final
action. g. 5
1t is useless fu7 nlo 10 Iuakke an e1-
tended argument to show that our sys-
@ s5i.a % s'siuaE uc=tEc; ;s proper exer-
cise of the police power, and that
Judge Simonton is wrong in his decis.
ion denying this power 70 the State.
But az facts speak louder than words,
l will give the testimony OF ministers
of the Gospel in the State as to the
effect Of the dispensary law ou the
morals Of the people aud on the re.
duction of drunkenness among them.
Out Of four hundred and sixty-three
answers received from the ministers: