The Marlboro democrat. [volume] (Bennettsville, S.C.) 1882-1908, 1904-11-04
THE DIsPENsARY.
,'cONTINuRD From pAaE'41


THE DISPENSARY.
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ICONTINURD FROM PAGE 4
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the campaign, but large mo jority Of
the prohibitionists were my friends,
and as the Issue promised to make
things very complicated, It was finally
agreed that box should be provided
at each democratic club In which the
question If prohibition or license
should be voted on.
Prohibition won by majority of
ten thousand, the vote standing 25,-
900 against and $4,000 for prohibi
tion. But there were more than 80
600 voters who die not express them
selves on the question, therefore,
prohibition did n # receive a>m2i1rity
in the State. / mention this bee irse
l have been repeatedly Charged with
cheating the prch bit'on!s,s out Of
their victory aud Of forcing the dis
pensary Inv on the people. When tie
Legislature met the House Of Repre-
sentatives felt constrain to pass a
prohibition law and they did pass
such till, but sugg sted to he
Senate the advisability OF substitute
ing the DspeEsary Law r the proai.
bition bill and tie House accept d the
comprOm Sc. The wJrd "DiSpenss ~"
was in the prohibition bill. A of
the frame work OF the pr. sent d spen-
sary law was In the prohib tinn bill,
only changed the title, struck out
some provisions and put in Ithers and
provided for the dispensary system,
having liquor sold by the State
through its bonded officers with the
profit going to the people rather than
having it sold by an individual with
the profit going into his own private
pocket.
think did my duty. So far know
you have voted on this issue five
times and the Dispensary always won
and until you see lit to change 1t am
willing to let it stand, aud l still say
it is the best control OF liquor ever
devised by human hands, and you
have to deal with men and matters as
they are rather II an as you would
| like them to be. Now the particular
| law giyer and man who deals with
conditions as they are and knows
who Is best qualified to determine
what shall te done in governments.
The man who no ds his head high and
looks at a beautiful star and moves
forward, with his eyes on the ideal,
| :OeS not see the pill falls which are
about his feet. try to live up to my
ideal, but l keep my eyes on the
ground 80 that l can see where the
| pitfalls are. I am rot here 10 say
anything about the prohibition idea.
II felt that 1t was pos sible, would
vote the Dispansary Law out, but l
know the prohibition idea can not be
carr led out. The quest ion Is, how
VII you handle this d,!coH of "h.s
key? The Dispensary system is sale
in the way that teaches the people
how TO use it instead of abus ns it,
There are people who hold it is d crime
to sell liquor except for medicit a. pur
poses. There are some who go SO far
as to say, it is crime 10 drink whis-
key. l Lever saw it that way. | had
it out with the preachers ia 1900
The Bishop down he e at Spa -tanburg
called me liar right out IN Confer
ence, and another high muckimuck
from the Baptist Church in Grtenville
preached a sermon and tilyed me
alive almost, SO l went to the Bible,
which l had not studied over muc1,
but no where could fad any where
that 1t was a sin to drink wniskey or
to sell IL. There was one text, L don't
care to quote it, giving that view
whereas, there are dozen or more
whele men are told to drink, and in
stances are told in the lives Of pro.
phets where they drank.
Rev. Mr.. Hickson: They didn't
have any liquor in that time.
Senator Tillman: Well they had
something that made them drunk, for
old man Noah was made drunk. Tney
did not know how to dlStill whiskey
but they used the juice OF the grape
and it made people drunk.
Rev. Mr.. Hicksop: Does the Bible
justify old Noah for getting drunk?
Senator Tillman: l didn't say the
Bible justified it, A good many
things are done which the Bible
doesn't Justify. Come up here, | want
to shake your hand.
Rev. Mr.. Hickson comes up on the
rostrum shakes hands with the Sena-
tor and sits down.
Well, as l invited joint discus sion
when l got up here, supposed If any
thing OF the sort was to come off there
would have been an underS tanding to
that effect, but l invite the advocates
Of those fighting the Dispensary to
me on up. II my friend here makes
any holes In my stocking, | simply
want two or three minutes to pick up
the stitches. Taking my view Of pro-
hibition, think L have made IL clear
enough that 1t is a little too high for
us. The old bar room idea is simply
an impossible thing now, and / Can't
conceive Of the people Of South Car
olina wanting it back again. l can't
conceive OF how the people Of South
Carolina will ever so back to the Old
scheme OF selling. The bar room with
its tinelmirrows and cut glass which
would draw your boys in through the
back door on Sunday.
In 1900 when this issue was last
voted on, ered what appeared
to me to be plain fact, that the
preachers and tarkeepers were allied
together, the angels Of light and the
sons OF darkness, fighting side by side,
the one to have bar rooms and tie
other to have prohibition. Are they
together in this fight? | don't know