The county record. [volume] (Kingstree, S.C.) 1885-1975, 1905-09-21
CITIZEN JOSH ASHLEY
ON THE DISPENSARY.
The BEST REMEDY HE SAYS Is TO GIVE
The PEOPLE A CHANCE AT 1T.


dispensary investigating COMMITTEES
from day to day, l am beginning se
think that my position on the dis
pensary Will be sustained by the peo.
pie. AS it is publicly known, I have
always been opposed to the dispen'
sary law. | was a member of the
legislature when the law was enact
ed and opposed it aid gave as my
reasons the very things that the in
investigating committee have brought
out in the testimony, that there was
room for fraud and that the liquor
machine would at some time have
too much influence over the govern
ment. Can anybody point to "a SIM
ole act that has been passed in the
legislature since the dispensary law
was passed that was very strongly
opposed by the dispensary officials,
with the exception possibly of the
Brice bill, and that was not passed
without rider that the dispensarY-
ties thought would prevent the law
from being tried. They thought
little one-h half mill tax would scare
the voters off, but it seems the vot-
ers are not so much afraid of the in
crease of taxes, for every county that
has had chance TO vote on the
question has decided against the dis
pensary regardless of the half-mill
tax. | have believed all the time
that the system was rotten, and have
said so publicly, and it seems the
committee investigating it is prov
ing it to the world.
Now as to the remedy that will
cure the sick man. Senator Till
man says kick out the present board.
put IN a new one. That has been
done two or three times and this
committee that is kicking up so
much Gust is finding that there were
some things rctCen way back i'll the
good old times. The senator says
to make the governor chief bar
keeper AM .et two of the other. State
officers stuaI by to help him dish it
out. We'll, We have tried that plan,
too, and the time has not been so
long but that few of us remember
that his excellency,the governor, was
accused of taking rebates. Mr. Ed
itor, You are old enough to remem-
Der that far back, l am sure. Now
it seems that none of these so-called
cure-alls is the proper remedy, so
now what are the dlspensaryites to
do?
l am not surprised at the results
of this investigation, but there is
one thing thai is following these
county elections around that | don t
understand. Who employs these
lawyers'to follow these county cleo
tions and ask for lnjunctions TO pre-
vent the will of the people from be-
ing carried cut? Does the dispensary
pay them out of its profits? I am
very well acquainted with one of
these ''injuncuon lawyers" and am
persuaded to believe that he is get
ting pay for his work. So who pays
the bill?
There has been another objection
to the county elections. Senator
Tlllman says to wait and See what
the legislature will do with it next
winter. There will be the same set
of men there next winter that was
there last winter and what did they
do? Then again, the senator says if
the legislature don't make the thing
descent and almost beautiful, We can
have State election next summer
and decide on the dispensary ques-
ton by putting out II dispepsary
candidate aud a prohibition candi-
date. Now, everybody knows that
is not II Lest of any measure, be-
cause the personality of the eandi :
dates VIII c c,.ne Iii for big vote rs-
pardless of the issue. Senator Till.
man also Say, that we ought not to
have an election under the Brice law
because the law was undemOcratic,
that all citizens we're not allowed to
vote. Are not all qualified citizens
allowed to vote, and who made the
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