The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1901-07-04
NAMES pRoH1B1roRY LEGISLATION
Succinct Record Of the Early PrOhibitory
Legislation of Maine.

Succinct Record Of the Early Prohibitory
| Legislation of Maine.
! Recent reference to Names prohibit
! tory history seems to render necessary
/ in the interest OF all accurate record, n
| brief statement of the exact date whea
were enacted the various prohibitory
! measures that have been placed upon
/ our statute books.
AS everybody knows, Maine, at the
birth in 1920, inherited from the mother
| State the license system of that COM
| monwealth, and for over a quarter Gen.
fury continued it. And though there
were mutterings deep and loud by way
of protest, no organized effort to re-
place tine restrictive with the prohibi-
tory principle, was made until in the
| late thirties-say about 1887 1t was in
that year that Gen. James Appleton
first advocated prohibition in the legis-
lature, and followed it up, year by year,
in season and out of season, until the
passage of 1.-THE law of 1896" A favor
able committee report was held upon it
in 1888, but the bill failed to become a
law Indeed it was not until 1S46 that
the State Temperance Society squarely
committed itself to prohibition. And
it did just that in the spring of 1916,
and sent Gen. Appleton, Neal Dow, and
one other before the legislative COM
drafted by Gen. Appleton-"a law which
shall effectually close up the drinking
houses and tipping Shops In his
"reminiscences Gen. Dow says Of
, this measure-and he speaks of it as
''Maine's first prohibitory law" "While
l was speaking before the legislative
committee in favor of the bill, petit
ton, 50 feet long, containing the names
of $500 citizens of Portland was fes-
TONED over the speakers chair in the
house of representatives" The bill
passed. 81 to AZ in house, and % to in
Senate. 1t was approved by Gov. An
derson, Aug. Z, 1916. 1t was Names
first prohibitory law.
"The law of 1S46' was amended and
strengthened from year to year. In
1S49 was added an amendment making
imprisonment the penalty for selling OF
exposing for sale liquors within two
miles of cattle show and fair. This law
remained until the coming of the law of
1851. approved by Gov. Hubbard June
3, 1851. Neal Dow was then Mayor of
Portland. He was the author of the
1851 statute. Judge Henry Carter was
the Portland representative and prime
ldClOI III inc leSlaldllOl L llc NOlc w DIS
90 yeas to 80 nays. The first seizure I'M
der it was made about June Is, 1851, by
Mayor BOWS Portland chief of police
The law of 1851, succeeding the law
of 1876 remained upon the statute
books until 1S55,-the Wells administra-
tion-when it was swept away and the
license law re-enacted.
The exigencies of the situation seem
ed to render it best not to attempt an
immediate e-enactment of prohibition.
Hannibal Hamlin was the 1885 candi-
date for Governor, and of course won
by a very large majority. That legiSla-
ture left the Maine Law undisturbed.
In 1857 Lot Nj. Morrill, was the candi-
date and the Maine law was made
squarely an ISSUE coupled with a prop
osition to submit the legislative enact
ment to the people for popular ratifica-
ton, and to take the question ''out of
politics. The Democrats were as
square1y committed to liense. Result,
THE Prohibitory Law of 1858 or The
License Law of 1856" was the campaign
battle cry, heard at every schoolhouse,
church and country crossroads. The
Prohibitory Law won, 2S,Soo for pro-
hibition to 3,912 for license. The law
of 1858, therefore, was enacted, en-
dorsed by popular vote and has been the
| law of the State from that date until
now.
The submission in 1882, and the ratifi-
cation by vote of 20, 7S3 for to 20, S11
against. of the constitutional prohibit
tory amendment, made not the slightest
change with the conditions as to the
statutory law.
Therefore, to recapitulate, it would
seem: Names first prohibitory law was
enacted signed by Gov. H. J. Ander-
som Aug. I, 1916. This law intensified
and made more rigid as to its require
ments, was supplemented by the law
signed by Gov. Hubbard June 3, 1851.
This continued until 1885, under Samuel
| Wells, when it was repealed and license
re-enacted. That is to say, on first
heat, prohibition in Maine had a run of
a trit1e less than ten years Aug 1916 to
1856. The license interregnum contin-
ued until 1858, or about three years.
| Then, strengthened and rendered i'll
every way more potent by the recent
experience and popular endorsement, it
has continued for a period of forty three
years, the two periods making about
tifty-two years of prohibition in Maine,
rather than fifty years, as was thought
| by many last week. So the suggested
anniversary was applicable to the law
of 1851, and had no reference to ''Maine's
| first prohibitory enactment 1t might
have been much more to the point had
the date selected been June 18th, OR the
! tiftieth anniversary of the first seizure
of liquor made under the provisions Of
the law, since "enforced law" is so
| much more to the point than the enact
ment of law; and, we take it, very little
was done in the way of enforcement of
| liquor laws until Neal Dow furnished
the first object lesson in that line of
business as Portland's Mayor.-The
Bridgton News