The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1902-04-30

4 A recent issue of the Southern
& ;;SFSCbristian Advocate Has q number Of
Articles against the State dispensary
gsvstem. It is the organ OF the great
2Methodist Church in the State and the
Sseries Of Articles thatliS publishes is
likely to mean something.
4 One Of the strongest letters, is that
szof Mr.. G. G. Featherstone. Of Laurena,
and it may be intcreeting Just at thia
Aime. He says:
q The advocates Of the dispensary law
attempt to uphold il, generally, on two
4 Grounds, viz: First, they urge that it
rs moral institution, and will event
Aually lead to prohibition; second, they
insist that it is good business insti-
Aution and will save the people mon
& ev. that is, will b.ing in q revenue to
hc State and thus aeoreass taxation.
#Therc was a time, no doubt, when q
treat many South Carolinians opposed
{be law to large extent, through
= aAprejudice, but that time has passed
;aud most of us can now take a calm,
#iispassionate view Of the situation.
with this end in view, let US then look
Dat the question and find out where we
Stand, whether the law is good one
"a 3. OIL . n IS ~.
sbr bad one.
4 The law was passed as a substitute
for tie Childs bill, which. was q
Straight, pure prohibition measure. At
Ahe time it (the dispsnsary) had the
support Of many good prohibitionists
%n the State, who honestly believed it
would ultimately lead to something
3better-to out and out prohibition.
Nhere cannot be shadow of doubt
sbut that we would have had prohi-
Sbition had it not been for the dispen-
7eary.
Has the law tended, is it tending,
towards immortality OF prohibition?
Such is the practical question before
3us. The dispenaary records show that
5the sales Of whiskey have increased
2aevery year since the concern began to
sdo business: Year By gear mere whis-
key is being bought, and, Of course, is
being sold. Year by year new dispen-
ysaries are being established; commu-
mites in which an old-time barroom
WAS never seen now have dispensaries;
3every year elections are being held for
athe purpose Of allowing the people to
vote on "dispensary" OF "no dispen-
3sary." Greenwood and York and 9TH
3er Counties, naturally prohibition
}Counties, are voting, on the question,
and some Of them have voted "dis-
}pensary." People who were, under
the old system, bitterly opposed to
]t the sale Of whiskey have been led to
believe in the dispensary and are vo-
ting for it. What does it all meant
/ Is it leading, will it ever lead, TO pro.
hibition7 "A problem that some Of ite
advocates ought tobe asked to solve
lis: ''If the dispensary is increasing
tits sales :,ear by year; if new dispeu-
saries are being established month
by month and year By year, how long
Twill it take the law to get to prohibi-
ltion?" &
And it's advocates are not Satisfied
| with the sale Of whiskey alone, but
beer dispensaries are being establish
led all over South, Carolina. They
claim that the people demand beer and
|the dispensary givesit 70 them. In
stead Of curtailing che sale Of intoxi-
eating beverages the effort is to go on
and on increasing. The effort is %
increase, not decrease. 55ss,
People who, under The cid system,
had horror Of the traffic, are becom-
ing accustomed to ii. The very fact
that the State is behind, and in con-
troll Of the business, lends to it an aiI
Of respeotability that it never possess.
ed before. Our people are being gStold
and some Of hem madA 10 Believe,
that the revenue dsrriiyed from tie sele
Of whiskey will decrease taxation, and
thus put money into their pockets.
And some Of the revenue (blood mon
ey) is being put into the free school
fund, to help educate our children.
and men who could not be reached in
any other way are by the dollar argu.
ment being led to favor the dispen.
sary Some cities and towns in South
Carolina are deriving mere revenue
from the dispensary than they avel
got from barrooms, and tLeir streets
are being handsomely paved with th'
money. The dollar argument is ire
mendously strong with q great man,