The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1902-11-05
ON TEMPERANCE
Public Hearing Before Joint
Committee and Crowded
House.

before the joint committee on temper
ance occurred ON Friday evening and
the exercises in the Hall of Represent
atives will, beyond doubt, remain
stamped upon the mind OF every
person present for many months, If
not years AS the several speakers
occupied every moment from eight
until half past eleven O'Clock, their
remarks were necessarily extended
and accordingly but brief abstract
can be given For halI hour before
the meeting was called to order by
Senator Emery the throng gathered
until every seat in the House and gal
lery was filled and the line of the
standing reached so far back into the
lobby that some were beyond the reach
of the speakers voices.
| Hon. Percival w. Clement, in open
ing his remarks, said that the question
of prohibition VS.. license was not what
the committee was there to listen
| to- Referring to House bill 1, drafted
by himself and associates, he said 1T
! had been copied from the Massachu-
setts law as far as was practicable and
he claimed that the prohibitory law mas
never defined what constituted intoxi-
eating liuuor-a thing the Peck bill
(H.1 J did do. He thought the Peck
bill would tend to eliminate politics
from the enforcement of liquor laws,
and believed that the county excise
board was the best means of attending
| to the licensing of saloons, and that
! both of the leading political parties
| should be given representation upon
! such board. Much of Mr.. Clements
time was taken in analyZing different
| sections of the bill. He was applaud
ed when he said the theory OF the
Peck bill was to charge those who
would run a saloon 81 200, rather than
| let them pay 81 for druggists
| license and conduct dram shop as is
done under the druggists clause OF
! the Massachusetts, law. Referring
briefly to that clause of the bill re-
garding the rights of abutters to the
location of any proposed saloon he
said that the reason why the Peck
bill would allow such places to be
located nearer to chuches and saloons
than does the Massachusetts law was
principally on account of the smaller
towns in this State, making mention
If the conditions existing in this city
which would preclude the Pavilion
ootel from holding license, as it is
, within 200 feet of church. He was
enthusiastically applauded at the close
of his remarks.
Mrs. G. B. B. Denny of Montpelier
followed saying that, as women are
interested in all kinds of philanthropic
work, it was their right and
duty to speak regarding the prohibi-
tory law. She averred that two
thirds or three-uuarters of Massachu
setts was under prohibition and that
was the reason so much approval was
expressed concerning its liquor laws.
Believing that it is wrong to license
the sale of liquor in any way, she
closed by saying, Let us have what
ever law we can, but 1T will never
remove the stigma
Miss Amy Fisk of Montpelier advo-
Gated drafting license bill, remodel,
ing the present prohibltory law, ana
letting voters of Vermont choose be
tween them, giving the women an op-
portunity to participate in the referen-
dunn. Referring to that clause in the
several bills which provides that
liouor shall not be sold to drunkards
she said, "Sell only to drunkards ~
She advocated law that would pre-
vent persons who live in no license
town from securing liquor in license
town, thereby making local option
exactly what its definition implies.
In closing Miss Fisk said: "Unless
the license law can carry itself out
doom it, -
Mrs. Ida H. Reed of Shelburne
whose hair is silvered with many
winters made most magnificent
opening asking, "Why are we obliged
to come here and plead with these
men law -makers?" Referring to n
portion of her life passed i'll license
otates-some fifteen years-she drew u
graphic description of the curse of
intemperance as she had seen it.
Touching the pathetic side of the
question the white haired woman
pleaded before those members of the
General Assembly, for the young men,
saying, "What is your boy worth?"
Referring to the danger in legislating
upon the sale of iutoXicants with the
purpose to legaliZe the same Mrs.
Reed was at her best, as she turned
her face to the House and gallery and
holding out her trembling hands, said
in words that awoke slumbering
echoes, "NO flag of Vermont ever
went into the hands of the enemy. ="
Referring to license law she said
never saw license law that was
enforced ~ Turning again to the
audience she closed with an eloquent
plea to those who should make the
laws. Eyes were moist as Mrs. Reed
said: 81 want you to remember the
homes of Vermont and the women
who gave You birth. "
@. j. Ferguson of Burlington said
that he appeared in the interest Of
"the hand that rocks the cradle" and
that the women of \ ermont give
no consent toward the enactment of
license law" The bulk of his re-
marks were of statistical nature
tending to show violations under
license. He said that license was
just as much II farce MS prohibition is
claimed to be.
Daniel @. Remick, Of Littleton, n.
H., the famous temperance advocate,
opened by saying license was fail
ure, as it had been tried for over 200
years. He made facetious references
to his recent trip through Europe
during which he drank nothing but
water and suffered no i'll effects. He
referred to the pledge of the Republi
can party which called for tho sub