Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1905-08-22
NO. 67.

II we are wrong as to either OF tnese
propositions, the act should be de-
clared unconstitutional. We will now
cite authorities to sustain these prop
ositions."
Note. then, that the language In
which you define the attitude of the
Prohibitionists Is exactly the language
In which the supreme court defines the
attitude OF the law on the subject.
That decision fixes the point Of view
from which the state is bound to re-
gard the question; and from that point
Of view the state may take control
Of the traffic to police 1t but not to
profit by II. And IL the view Of Hugh
Farley, chivalrous spirit, and others
who were opposed to the profit feat
ure had been adopted, the result might
have been different. I admit that II Is
wise to 'hobble the devil" whom you
are powerless effectually to chain; but
having hobbled the devil, protest that
1t is not right to make him yoke-fel-
low with the spirit Of progress In our
schools and open the way for our chill
dren to embrace him as an angel Of
light.
Returning to my historical parallel
I am not inclined to press the SESSIONS
Of the prohibition vote NJ 1892 unduly.
After reminding me that $4,000 did not
vote in that election, which you de-
nominate side show" you say that
"this is q government Of majorities."
True, but II is government Of ma
jorities that vote, and not Of majorities
that stay away from the polls. At
that election, prohibition received In
this county more than 1000 votes.
majority Of the total vote cast. But
when they came to fasten the dispen-
sary upon Newberry county that vote
Of more than 1000 was nullifed by q
petition of 70 freeholders In the town
Of Newberry, "a Of whom were negroes.
The attitude Of public sentiment to-
wards the dispensary law in this coun-
ty has assumed three distinct phases
In succession. In its earlier stages the
law did not have fair test. For rea-
sons that need not be enumerated pub
lie sentiment was resentful, ana the
law against Illicit traffic In liquor was
not enforced. But violations Of the law
became so scandalously open and un-
rebuked that a revulsion took place In
the sentiment Of the community, and
for years the law has been enforced.
We have now arrived at the third
phase, in which the sentiment OF the
community seems to be crystallizing In
opposition to the whole scheme. owing
largely, think, to the fact that the
moral sense Of the people Is offended
by the constant effort to justify the law
by appealing to its revenue feature;
but owing also to corruption In the
administration Of the law.
1t was not my original purpose and
I now make no attempt to refute sta
tistics or to argue the question In de-
tail. Unless the conditions Of two
states are exactly similar II is hard to
arrive at just conclusion by contrast
ing statistics of crime. But we might
quote statistics until the people are
dizzy and still I believe that a large
number Of our counties will be salts
fed with nothing short OF actual ex-
pertinent after the example Of Mari-
boros Greenwood and Cherokee.
We reach the parting Of our ways at
the concluding clause Of your letter
quote the paragraph:
II will not say that your vision Is
clouded by fanaticism but IL It be true
that he who makes two blades OF grass
grow where only one grew before is
public benefactor,' then is 1t not
equally true that he who conceived
scheme by which drunkenness was re-
duced, temperance encouraged and de-
cency and good order increased and
which made the demon whisky con-
tribute to the education of the ignorant
masses, need he be ashamed Of his
work."
I do not admit that the dispensary
scheme has reduced drunkenness, en-
couraged temperance and decency and
increased good order. Mark you, l
speak of the effect and not Of the mo-
tive. But It has made the demon
whisky contribute to the education OF
the ignorant masses" And many OF
the advocates Of the scheme vehement
ly urge this as a justifying fact. The
Ignorant masses love their schools
but do not draw nice moral distinct
ions. The supreme court said stife
this vampire and threaten the health
and life Of the community; but the
profit feature gives "the ignorant mass
es" ground to infer that what the su-
preme court mistook for a vampire Is
in reality the goose that lays the gold
en- egg. And I repeat, any restrictive
scheme that tends to make an immoral
traffic reputable and popular Is VI
cious and dangerous scheme.
do men gather grapes Of thorns or
figs of thistles?"
GEO. B. CRoMER.
Newberry, S. c., Aug. 16., 1905.