The Newberry herald and news. (Newberry, S.C.) 1884-1903, 1898-01-14
NEWBERRY. S. O., FRIDAY, JANUARY Ia, 1898

State as to the effect Of the dipen-
sary law ON the morals of the poo
pie and on the reduction Of drunken
moss among thom, Out of four hun.
dred and sixty threo answers receiv.
ed from the ministers Of tho State to
questions submitted to them in cir
cular letter, dated October 1st, 1897,
three hundred and twenty.fou re-
ported decreasei in drinking of forty
six and one-third per cont, and u
corresponding decrease in drunken
ness since the dispensary law won't
into effect. Sixty nine reported On
increase in drinking of fifty four and
three-fourths per cent Yet, in the
face of such testimony rs to the good
results Of the system, Judge Simon.
ton declares it is not q police meas
ure. What then is the police
powerY Here is definition Of the
United States Supreme Court it,
self:
"The police power includes all
measures for the protection of life,
the health, the property and the
welfare Of the inhabitants, and for
the promotion of good order and tho
public morals. 1t covers the sup
preston of nuisances, whether in
jurlous to public hoalth, like un-
wholesome TRADES, or to tho public
morals, like gambling houses and
lottery tickets. Tho police power
extends to things not only instrinsi-
cally dangerous to the public health,
such as infected rags or diseased
meat, bnt to things which, when
used in q lawful manner, are sub
jects Of property and Of commerce,
and yet may be used 50 us to be in
furious or dangerous to the life, the
health, or the morals Of tie people,
Gunpowder, for Instance, is subject
of commerce and Of lawful use, yet,
because Of it's explosive and danger.
ons qualities, all admit that the
State may regulate its keeping and
sale. And there is no article, the
right Of the State to control or to
prohibit the sale or manufacture
Of which within its limits is better
established than Intoxicating H.
quors."
There is profit to State in any
form of license, yet license has been
held to be police regulation even
when protecting license holders in n
monopoly Of sale, until Judge Sim
onton's recent decision above Quoted
allowed liquors in "original pack
ages" to enter State $50 long as
their manufacture, purchase or sale,
or their use as a beverage by any
person are recognized" Interstate
commerce has, according to Judge
Simonton, destroyed the police power
unless State declares tho uso of H.
quor as beverage to be contrary to
good morals and against tho health
of the people. No license system
does this. We cannot, therefore,
get protection from "free liquor" by
such enactn. ont. We can, however,
get relief by doing away with tho pro-
fit feature, as the following quota
ton from the Vandercook decision
shows: "The decision of the Su-
preme Court Of the United States
must control all Circuit Courts. BY
this decision it is clear that so long rs
the State herself engages in the bus
mess Of importing and selling alco
holic liquors for the purposes of pro-
fit; 80 long as she recognizes that tho
use Of alcoholic liquors az a beverage
is lawful and can be encouraged; 80
long as she socks amonnpoly in sup
plying these liquors for that use and
in this way looks to an increase of
her revenue, she cannot under her
constitutional obligations to the
other States Of this Union, control,
hinder and burden commerce in such
articles between their citizens and her
own" Hele is the law and we must
obey it until Judge Simonton is over
ruled by the Supreme Court or by
Congress. Under license system
inasmuch as the State would receive
money, those ''orlginal packages"
would continue to como in, and
Judge Simonton would continue to
"enjoin" the State officers from in
terfering with them. Let us, thoro-
fore, do what is loft us, and wait for
action at Washington. The money
used in conducting the Dispensaries
and in enforcing the law could not
be regarded as profit, but rs expend-
cd purely and soley for maintaining
the morals and health of tho people.
Judge Simonton might declare this
not to be an exercise o. the police
power; but we will havo to risk it,
and depend for our security on what
he himself has written in various do
cisions.
THE STATES EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM.
The Constitutional three mills tax
for school purposes yields on the
present assessed value Of property
something over $5OO,00O. This is Il
large sum to collect from tax bur
dened people, and this money should