Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1903-06-12

| OF arrests and police supervision of the
disorder saloons necessarily cause. 4
sum of $255.O00 taken from the legiti.
| from the small earnings of the wage.
working classes, who need all they car
make to buy groceries, clothing and the
Irecessaries, makes the saloon evil 8
great affection to city's commercial
welfare outside of the civic and social
harm done by them. For this reason
Rankin can not fail to WIN converts and
gain support for any scheme. honestly
presented, for the enforcement of the
liquor laws and saloon regulation.
The only question is, How is it best
| to do it," Lawyers, who have heard
HIM present his plan ard who know
something of the workings of state
iconstabularS, point out that the scheme
Involves the conviction os violations in
the local courts and before local juries
just where it is now. They point out
the experiences of attorneys who have
attempted to secure prosecutions in
communities where local sentiment was
favorable to saloons, only to find on
every jury some one man who would
always hang the jury and prevent a
conviction.
1t is also apparent that state mar
shall who would enforce in our river
towns any law that would meet the
prohibitory sentiments of a majority OF
the people of the whole state must have
Il military force behind him and must
take his cases before an outside court
for a hearing. If the new scheme
should include a state saloon commits
sion, 1t still remains more than probable
that under any party's control the COM
would be largely owned by the
great interest affected as the railroad
commission in Iowa has nearly always
been owned by the railways. In other
words, to divorce the regulation of the
saloon traffic from the option of each
is not necessarily the guar
anteed success that special advocate
would plead for it.
However. there can be no denial of
the fact that the present system fails
most hopelessly in majority of cases.
The saloon evil in Iowa is a tremen-
dous one II has seemed to us that agi-
tation and organization in each COM
nunity itself to regulate the traffic |
within It's borders and, Il possible, pro- |
hibit has been the only practicable |
method. but the rational and well meant |
plan of thoughtful, fair man is worthy
Of consideration, possibly Of trial. The
party in power has labored with the
question of regulating the liquor traffic
Until il has had its fill Of troubles. It
'as builded the best it knew how and
Is later efforts, unquestionably, have
,een an improvement over former con-
titions. but 1t will be 10th to open up
he question again, believing that the
problem is now up to each community
md IL it can't be solved at home by the
'itizens directly interested IT should
,ertainly not be dragged INTO state poll
les again to upset and obscure every
,ther issue. Rankin has trouble in store
or the republican party, and plenty of
t. However. if. after ample time for
and careful judgment, the
eaders sent to the legislature decide
hat his scheme is the one we want this
newspaper is willing that the plan be
ried. In the meantime settle your liz
Tor problem at home is the admonition
se have to offer every city and county
\, JOWn