The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1900-12-16
BITION MEASURE GROWING IN
NORTH DAKOTA
QUESTION UP THIS WINTER
Enemies of the Law VIII Ask the
Legislature to Repeal the Pen
atty Clause in the
Statute.


legislature took steps to carry the con-
stitutional provision into effect by en-
acting a drastic prohibitory law. The
law has stood rigidly the test of all
courts, including the supreme court of
the United States, and, although Eumer-
Gus assaults have been made upon it,
stands as firmly upon the statute books
of the state today as ever. Numerous
attempts have been made to find loop
holes for the evasion OF the law. The
Original package decision was seized
upon as a means of selling liquor, but
the state courts discouraged that. At
tempts to repeal the penalty clause of
the prOhibitOry law and to resubmit the
question to the people have met with
failure, and the rGsubmission element
in the state is preparing for final charge
upon the works of the prohibition enemy
during the session Of the Legislature that
cOnvenes in January.
The North Dakota aw offers from that
adopted or in force in the other prOhibi-
ton states. The law is only quasi
criminal in it's operation. 1t is pro-
vided with an injunctiOnal machinery
that brings the matter specially within
the province of the courts without the
calling of juries. 1t was this feature
of the law that took the case Of Nor
man Markuson, of Valley City, to the
of North Dakota provides that upon the
relation of the complaining witness, the
nuisance of liquor resort, may be en-
joined from the sale of liquor. The
injunction Is issued directly by the dis
trict court and is accompanied by a
search warrant. The discovery of liquors
upon the premises enjoined is prima facie
evidence of the violation of the law, and
places the injunction at once in effect. Vio-
Iii hpir
ing liquor dealer into contempt Of court.
The penalty for the first offense is i'm
prisonment in jail and for the second Of
tense, Imprisonment in the penitenttary.
Upon this provision of the law, judge
GlaspelI sentenced Markuson 10 one year
in the state penitentiary, without a trial
by jury. The case went to the supreme
court Of the United States on the ground
that no court could deprive man of MS
constitutional right of trial by jury.
The case came back on q technicality
and the mooted question was not decided.
But the courts of the state are still work,
ing on the same theory and offenders are
still sentenced in the same manner.
WHEAT GROWERS FAVOR LAW.
The operation of the North Dakota pro-
hibition law Is peculiar. In the Red
river valley, the great Wheat-groWing
timent is strong for the reason that hei e
the big bonanza, farms are operated In
the thu ASKING season, when thousands of
harvest hands are engaged for
the harvesting season, the presence Of
saloons leads to drunkenness, free fight,
neglect of work and consequent loss to
the farmers, who find it impossible to get
reliable and sober men to gather their
crops. Prohibition, with this class of
citizens of the state. is a purely business
proposition and matter of self-interest.
While hundreds of "b0ot-leggers' and
blind piggers'' do a sly business in the
valley, the wheat farmers claim the
liquor evil IS not nearly so great as with
the open saloon. Consequently these BIZ
farmers are for prohibition. They voted
it into the constitution and they propose
to fight for it's retention. So strong IS
the prohibition sentiment in the Repub>
lican party that, although large e,e-
ment of the party favors resubmlsslon,
no Republican platform is adopted with
out specific declaration for prohibi lOn
In the western part of the state con-
ditions are different. There is larger
foreign element in the population and the
Germans, especially, are opposed to any
legislation which denies them the right
to buy their beer when and where they
please. In several Of the larger towns
of the western part of the state, notably
Bismarck, ManGan and Dickinson, there
are licensed resorts paying a revenue to
the city government and supposedly op-
rating resorts for the sale of liquors.
Local officials wink at the violation of
the prohibition law. The sentiment for
the enforcement of the prOhibitory law
is lot strong enough to secure convic-
tons in court If cases are brought and
SO, for several years, the saloons have
rim lInmOleSte0.
EFFORTS AT ENFORCEMENT.
But there is another adjunct TO the
prohibition law in the state that is par
ticularly irritating to the communities
that believe in local option. This is the
state enforcement league. This Is an or
ganization Of believers in the Prohibition
law and its enforcement all through
the state banded together In a formal
union for the better eforcement of the
law. 1t has it's regularly elected oiIlcess,
an exchequer, replenished occasionally by
the contributions of the faithful, and an
army of detectives, who are set afOot
in the communities where the league be-
lieves the law is being violated, These
detectives assume a manner Of DISCUSSES
and visit the resort where liquor is sup
poed to be sold. Securing what rotations
they can, they make affidavit of the fact
of their having secured liquor. These
affidavits are filed with the attorneys for
the state enforcement league, and the
arrest of the suspected resorts and raids
upon their stock of wet goods follow. In
some cases convictions are obtained At
the worst, the resorts are closed for
year and the keepers subjected to incon-
venienCes which in many cases drives
them out of the business. Under the
state law, the building which is closed
is liable for the costs of the action This
makes the owners of property chary- OF
leasing it for liQuor-se ling purposes.
Another complicating feature OF the law
Is the druggists sales affidavits" Drug
eists, having a regularly established drug
store, with a stock, the minimum value
of which is fixed by law, are allowed to
sell liquor for medicinal purposes. These
sales are made upon affidavfts Of Gus
toners, who state the amount of liquor
desired and the complaint for which 1t
is needed Colds seem to be The prevail
ing trouble. The enforcement league
has found in some parts of the state drug
stores that have sold thousands Of pints
or half-pint of whisky in a brief period
for the cure of pectoral troubles Sus-
picion being aroused by these discoveries
detectives are set on the track of the
drug stores and ultimately some Of in IN
are served with injunctions The su-
preme court of the state recently decided
that drug stores were liable to the
same penalties as nuisances as blind
pigs, if the proper convictions We're had
Under this decision the furniture and
fixtures of a drug store and the stock Of
wet goods might be publicly destroyed
by the sheriff If SO ordered by the court.
This has been done in several Instances
in the state, where thousands of dollars
of expensive bar fixtures, glasses, decora-
lions, mirrors and other property has
been broken up with axes and set afre.