The Portland daily press., 1900-04-06
GIVES IN GOOD NAME.
No Liquor Sold Openly
In Portland.
50 Representative Littlefield Tells
Congress.
State of Maine Field
Day Thursday.
Kentucky Man Libels Quality Of
Our Rum.
ESPECIAL TO rEE rREssJ


Washington, April 5.-There was q
state of MIME field day In the COMMITTEES
of the whole Of the House for abou'
fifteen minutes this afternoon. The ques-
tion before the oommittss was the or
ganio law of Hawaii, and to the section
prohibiting lotteries. MIR. Gillette of the
Springfield district Of Massachusetts,. Of
fersd an amendment prohibiting saloons.
Mr.. Knox, In charge of the Till, oppofed
this, but the debate was mild until Mr..
Littlsfsld Of Maine, arose In the back
seat On tie Republican side and bsRss q
speech in favor Of the amendment. he
said that he was heartily in favor Of the
pr ohibitory syltsm for Hawaii. 1t had
worked we'll many years In Maine, and
no man could put his finger on place In
that state where liquor was openly sold.
The sentiment of the people there was
four to one in favor Of the Law. There
was no open saloon any where In Maine.
81 deny that" shouted John u. Fitz-
gerald of Massachusetts, rising excitsdly
on the Democratic side.
Name the place." sold Mr.. Littletisld.
"Why, any hotel in Portland"
"There 10 not q hotel In Portland
where liqaor is openly fold." said Mr..
Littlsteld confidently.
al deny It. say that 1t lie sold openly
in every hotel and apothecary shop in
Portland" retorted fitzgerald hotly.
"Nams q place" again insisted MI
Littlsdsld,
MIR. Fitzgerald then named leading
Portland hotel.
Mr.. Littlefield doubted this. MIR. Lit
tlstield then went on to say that ths
civilized nations had united to keep
liquor from the uncivilizsd tribes OF
Africa, and he thought the same policy
should be applied to the people OF Aa-
wall. II this amendment should not be
agreed to the Anglo Saxon element In
Hawaii would be voted down three to one
ON any moral proposition. 1t was time
for the United states to declare in this
bill thatit was against the saloon.
Mr.. Berry of Kentucky, q gigantic an
u. osDsl Democrat, replied to Mr.. Little
field. he was not ready to vote for such
an amendment, "even to satisfy the
fanntical Stats Of Maine" The liquor In
Maine was always worse than anywhere
else, ana more of 1t was drank there than
anywhere else. In Kentucky, where the
moral sentiment was rs high as any
where, the whiskey was pure, but when
you got north Of the Ohio river the
whisky began to be adulteratsd, and
when you got to Maine the stuff was 30
bad that 1t was no wonder the gentleman
from Maine was against 1t. But this was
no time to adopt prohibitory amend.
mentk We wsre expanding trade. Only
the other day ak carloads of beer left his
Kentucky home for the Philippine
islands.
The question being taken by q rising
vote there were tifty-six for the amend
msnt and 1fty seven against 1t. Mr..
mem ers In favor Of prohibition began
first to stream between the tellers. Fore
most were Mr.. Littleneld and bis Maine
colleagues, MIR. Allen and Mr.. Burlsigh,
and they were followed By large num-
Der from all parts Of the country. There
was Uncle Jasper Talbert, the old Con-
fsderate of South Carolina, who fights
pension sessions. Joe Sibley Of Pennsyl-
vAnia, Democrats from North Carolina.
South Carolina. Mississippi and Indiana,
Populists from Nebraska. Republicans
from New England, Iowa and California,
in fact anti saloonists OF all kinds. There
were sixty-six Of them, and only sixty
hau 50 10 ri q
amendment went into the bill. The &C
tion OF the committee of the whole will
have to te confirmed by the House and
90 to the Senate before becoming n law.