Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1906-08-21
STATE OR COUNTY CONTROL,
Two Systems at lrreeonsitable Con-
flict In Principle and Practice.

Two Systems at lrreconsitable Con-
fiiet In Principle and Practice.
Editor Yorkville Enquirer.
From reports of the speeches Of the
candidates Of the legislature In this
county, / do not understand the posi-
ton Of the gentlemen who are running
on the state dispensary platform.
We have now in South Carolint a
state system of managing and controll-
ing the sale of liquor. The man who
believes in this state system cannot
consistently believe in extending any
rights or privileges to the counties, be-
cause it is a state system and not a
county system he Is advocating and
the same law then must prevail in each
and every county in the state. In 9TH
er words the man who believes In the
state dispensary system Will inevitably
and necessarily destroy the right or
the people of a county to have any
voice in this matter. Senator Tillman
and Senator Cole L. Blease recognize
this fact because they declare openly
and boldly that the Brice law must be
repealed In other words that the
counties must have no voice in this
matter, because it Is a state question
and not a question for the counties.
Therefore, 1t is pure and unadulter-
ated nonsense for a man who is advo-
eating a state system of liquor control
and management to say he would not
force liquor on a county that did not
want it, He is representing a state
system and under state system the
counties have no rights.
Again, those who take the state as
the unit in this matter instead OF the
county must necessarily and inevitably
believe in the principle Of centraliza-
ton and consequently oppose the prin-
ciple of local self government, In
state government the counties CORES. +.
pond to the states in the national
government And those who believe
that the state should control the coun-
ties in this matter, to be consistent
should also go a step further and ad-
nit that the national government at
Washington should control the states
in regard to the sale Of liquor.
South Carolina is the only state In
this whole Union that has state IL
uuor system. All other states give
their counties the right Of local option
except those states that have state pro-
hibition.
Mature has framed some strange
fellows in her time," but do not see
how any man who pretends to be
Democrat can oppose the right Of To-
cal option, which is SYNONYMOUS with
the right Of local governments
principle which has been written into
every national Democrat platform that
has ever been promulgated.
I have heard on reliable authority,
that Bishop Gambler Of Georgia, one OF
the biggest, brainiest and best men IN
the great Southern Methodist church,
declared that he would not give up the
local option laws Of Georgia for state
prohibition, because under state prohi-
bition, prohibition would be forced on
communities that did not want 1t and
the law would be violated and brought
into contempt and become a by-word
and kissing, whereas under the local
option laws, Georgia was rapidly be-
coming a prohibition state and the law
was receiving the moral support OF the
people.
Let no good man be deceived into
supporting any advocate Of the state
dispenSary system. CITIZEN.