The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1904-03-23
Recent Liquor Legislation.


pass local optioa law til at would have
been positive relief to the people
will in the end, perhaps, prove to be
blessing. 1t will help to stir up the
friends of temperance, unite them, aud
incite them to real earnest efforts in
behalf of an improved condition. The
Brice bill as originally presented to
the Legislature was o good measure,
bat as it was finally passed it is little
short of an iniquity. The amend.
ments tackled on to it practically make
local option an impossibility. Those
amendments impose special tax and
cut off q large part of the appropria-
tion from the dispensary funds for
school purposes in case county shall
vote out the dispensary, CT dispensa-
ries, in said county. Those amend
ments were not in the interest Of tenn
perance and morality, but the reverse.
They were proposed and pushed
through by the friends, and in some
instances, employees Of the dispensa-
ry system. This legislation was not
SO shaped as to encourage the people
to vote out dispensaries, but rather to
prevent that, and fix the dispensaries
On those communities whore they have
been established. A town may vote
for dispensary and have one estab-
lished bat it will take the vote of an
entire county, with the penalties at
tached, to vote out dispensary. If
the friends of the dispensary in the
Legislature wished to be perfectly
fair, why did they not provide exactly
the same machinery for getting rid of
diapensaries as is now provided, and
has been all the time provided, for
their establishment ? The answer is,
because they do not wish any diepen.
saries closed they wish to increase
their number, to build up the business,
to increase the revenue. For these
REASONS, perhaps, and others, the
friends Of this enormous liquor busi-
ness, this gigantic trust, this all-pow-
erful political machine, do not wieh to
encourage and aid the people in their
efforts to rid themselves of these cor
rupting places.
1t is not probable that any county
will undertake to vote out dispense.
ries under the new law. Perhaps it
will not be wise. People are not will
ing to vote upon themselves increased
taxation, and there are many who do
not wish to vote for the loss of the
revenue for school purposes, and be-
tween the advocates of the dispensary
and those influenced by the above f.
nancial reasons, it is not probable that
in any county, under the new law, the
majority &C The .ote5 would be cast in
favor of closing the dispensaries.
Those members Of the Legislature
who are responsible for the amend
ments to the Brice bill would be glad
to see few counties try to vote out
the dispensaries under the new law.
They expect defeat, and they would
then take the position that the major
ity of the voters wish the dispensaries
to remain. The friends Of temperance
will do we'll not to undertake any cleo
tions at present.
The advocates of temperance, law
and order, need not be idle, however.
We can agitate, and create sentiment
in favor of civil liberty, the rights of
freemen, local option, and awaken the
public conscience to the injustice of
the new law as amended, and the tre-
mendous, overpowering influence of
the present liquor business in the roI-
itios of South Carolina. We can vote
for men who are in favor Of the Brice
bill as originally offered, and whenever
possible elect such to the Legislature.
1t is not too soon to begin this agita-
tion. Men are already announcing
themselves for the Legislature. Let
them come out and tell the voters how
they stand ON this question, If they
are in favor of olean-out local option
law, and If they will vote for such in
case they are elected to the Legisla-