The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-12-01
ExPERIENCE IGNORED.

The action of the lower branch of the
Legislature of this state in passing pro-
hibitive liquor bill is being very generally
commented on by the newspapers of
other states The tone Of their comments
is that where public sentiment upholds
prohibition there, and only there, can a
prohibition law be successfully enforced.
The Philadelphia Enquirer for ms ance,
in commenting on the Willingham Dill
says: 1T had been generally supposed
that the impracticabihty of compelling the
disuse of alchohc beverages by legislative
enactment had been sufficiently demon
strated by the long series of more or less
picturesque failures which have been re-
corded in that direction, but they evil
IDENTIFY don't think so down in Georgia."
Further along in the article the Enquirer
says: Should the bill become a law il
will be interesting and instructive to
watch the course of the reiterated ex-
pertinent for which it provides So far
the enforcement of prohlbitive enact
ments of this character has only been
found possible In sparsely settled agri-
cultural countries, where the purpose of
the law had the earnest support of a
considerable body of public sentiment"
Speaking particularly of the Georgia bill
the Enquirer says:
The legislation which is now projected
is directed against the few cities where
the saloon has not been closed by local
sentiment and 1t Is therefore a rather
striking example of the tyranny of the
majority. Whether it can be made effect
i've must be left for time to demonstrate,
but if so, all experiences will be beied
In communities where the law Is not up
held by a strong public sentiment means
for its evasion will undoubtedly be found.
We have pointed out a number of times
what the Prohltitionists refuse to see, but
which the Enquirer states very clearly.
and that is that the evils arising from
the liquor traffic win be increased in the
counties which have not adopted pro-
hibition under the local option law because
it will be found impossible to enforce a
general prohibitive law, and alcoholic
beverages will be sold freely without any
of the restrictions which are now thrown
around their sale 1t is probable, however,
that the purpose of the author and sup
porters of the bill is not so much to stop
vent the sending of liquor from the cities
into the prohibition counties. But, as a
matter of fact, would the proposed leg
islauon accomplish that object? Would
not people in the prohibition counties be
able to get all the liquor they wanted
from cities outside of the state? They
undoubtedly would.
The passage of the Willingham bill
would be an exhibition of the tyranny of
the majority. The Prohibtionists say,
practically, that although they have not
vet been able. to convince some of the
counties that prohibition would be a good
thing for them, they viii force it upon
them simply because they have the power
to do so. If there were anything in the
experience Of other states which justi-
ned the belief that a general prohibltive
law could be successfully enforced there
would be much less opposition to it than
there is, but when experience teaches that
such legislation does not accomplish the
object aimed at il is not strange that the
opposition to it is so determined.