The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1899-01-18

,,.ss-s.x=-s-,z-
because tbe- feel sure that under that
system there will be practically no re-
straint On the sale Of Thlskey.
Turning now to the practical consid-
Grafton of the Dispensary, do not
think whiskey should be sold in any
county where majority of the people
favor prohibition | therefore recon-
mend the submission Of the liquor ques-
ton to the qualified electors Of each
county. That each county may
vote as it prefers. Any county,
however, that votes for prohi-
biton should be made to bear all ex-
penses of4nforcing the prohibitory law;
and such county should not receive any
of tn, profits from the Dispensary. IN
der the Constitution, the profits accru-
ing from the sale of liquor 60 to the
support of our free schools. Now, the
county of Marlboro, which never had a
Dispensary. and which is now under
the most rigid form of prohibition,
with no possibility Of legal liquor trattlc
within its borders. receives 1t proper
tionate share of Disppensary prohts,
while at the same time the State IS
charged with maintaining constables IN
that county to enforce the law and pre-
vent the sale of liquor. l submit that
this is unfair to the other counties. The
same thing obtains in the county OF
York, where the only Dispensary,
the one at Tirzah, has been discontinued
leaving the county without any place
where liquor can be legally bought.
You will call to mind that these two
counties are close to the North Carolina
boundary, and it is well known that
there is large influx Of whiskey from
distilleries acorss the line, by wagons
and other coaveyances,
OF course, these counties may have
LIQUOR imported for personal use with
out restriction, but it cannot be sold IN
them legally. I believe that it IS but
right and just for those counties which
have prohibition, or may hereafter
adopt it as the means Of controlling the
LIQUOR traffic, to be taxed to enforce
such law, nor should they receive any
part of the profits arising from the sale
of liquor in the other counties, to add
TO their school funds. If the county
officers, magistrates and sherifs, en-
force the law, well and good-there
will be no need for constables; but it
they do not, the Governor should be
given the authority, upon petition set
ting forth such violation, to appoint
constables, and to require levy IN
such counties sufficient for their maid
tence.
Now let us consider matters concern
ing the administration of the law other
than those mentioned as dealing with
its violations. When the Dlspensary
system was first inaugurated, ,sthe State
Board was composed of the Governor,
the Comptroller General, and the Attor-
ney General, ez oficio, and in these
vas vested the power to appoint the
State Commissioner and the County
Board Of Control, and to exercise gem
eral supervision over the working OF the
Dispensary in the whole State. After
| the retirement of Governor Tillman, in
the middle of Governor Evans term,
the LEGISLATURE changed this provision,
and created new State Board of Con-
troll, consisting of FIVE members, to be
| elected by itself. The Governor was
left without Official connection with the
Dispensary, except the right to appoint
| and control the constables. This sys-
TEN has uow been in force three years,
and, in my opinion, it has failed to ac-
complish the purposes Of its advocates.
The idea was to divorce the Dispensary
system from politics and to put it un-
der a strictly business management.
No such result has followed. 1t is
notorious that the Dispensary is as
; much or more in politics than it ever
was. As Governor, I have had little
OF no authority in connection with the
administration of the law and no
power of restraint or direction over it;
and yet I have been held responsible
BY the people at large, and by my enc
| mics in particular, for the mistakes and
shortcomings of its management. Re
sponsibility without authority isa most
unpleasant and unjust burden, and
while / do not seek additional response
bilities in connection with the Dispen-
cory T sinh nit that Justice and fairness
make it necessary either to relieve the
Governor absolutely Of all connection
with this institution, or else give him
some potential voice and influence in
it's affairs.
The Legislature itself, last session,
by a particularly unanimous resolution.
deprecated and almost forbade the
granting Of beer and hotel privileges,
but the State Board of Control paid no
attention to this expression of opinion
from the law-making body, and | had
to use the constabulary to suppress the
nuisances in the form of open bauooms,
which resulted from the granting OF,
these privileges. This brought me into
antagonism with the State Bord Of Con
trojan antagonism which might have
been avoided had these gentlemen paid
any heed to my suggestion or consulted
me as to the best policy to be pursued.
As long as the original package stores
were running in open competition with
the Dispensary, and Illicit sales were
also unchecked, there was, perhaps,
some excuse for the State Board of Con,
troll to continue that policy; but after
the Supreme Court of the United States
had confirmed the validity of the Dis,
pensary Law, and forbidden Judge
Simonton's support Of the States COM
petitors, leaving the Dispeneary Law in
full possession of the field, l did no;
think there was any excuse for the con
continuance of the policy upheld by the
State Board: for l believed the former
| low ord 7 ha1;aya the present law