Morgan County republican. (Versailles, Mo.) 1906-1914, 1907-09-05
Local Option Endorsed By
Honest Men At Home.
twenty. second Judicial Circuit,
J. J.. Fort Judge,
Dexter, No, June 20, 100,


NV Dear Sir and friend.
Replying TO yours Of the g6,h
inst | have to say that since prohibition
was established in this circuit, the Grim.
inal docket has gone down from an aver.
aye Of FIVE hundred ca,es per wear Gn.
Guiding felouies ani mislcmeonors, to
an average of seventy. five case, pcr wear.
There is but one man in any ,lil or
prison house in this circui, to-day, and
he is confined for failing 10 nav a fin,
assessed apairst him for violating the
prohibition law. Before the alout;ou Of
prohibition in this circuit the criminal
costs were more than three times what
they have been since the aJoption of
prohibition. There is no cnmrnrison he.
tween the general moral tone Of the pco
ple in this circuit before and since the
adoption of pralib,tiou. There is not n
blind tiger nor auv pl,c, where iui,xi.
eating liquors are ILLEGALLY disp,scd of in
IN this circui,
During the opcn saloon pcriod in this
circuit, we had deficit in this county
treasury and in the treasury Of every rity
apd town in the circuit. The rate Of tax.
alton has no, been raised nor is the q,
>essed valuation Of orr property greater
than II was before the adoption of pro.
hihition.
The argument that a prohibition town
is dead town IS the variesl rot. The
only business t',lt is lr'ucd by the sn.
'uGn i, the waiskev business,
Friends OF tie saloon industry circu-
late stories which they themselves man
ufactorc tn the effect tina, rrDhib.,i,u can
not be enforced when adopted. hut they
did not go further AVID tell ~ that they
are tie only people who have ever. or
who have proposed to violate prohibition
| laws We had lrlnsaop Law. in thi,
circuit fpr long tine. and when thev
existed wh!skey men violated them hut
temperance msn did not Ifprohibili,n
is adopted in Oklahoma whislcv men
will violnte the law now and then bu,
temperance men will not violate it. In
other words, thc argument ot win-h,y
men against the adoption OF prohibition
Is that they will violate TIE law when it
is adopted. The truth Is that whisRcv
men have violated about all the laws
which have been violated at all. They
begun in l1y4, when the distillers of
North Carolina and Pennsylvania met IN
8raddocI's Ec,l in the latter stare, in
army 1000 strong, to iorciby resist the
tax on domestic spirits, and it required
1000 militia from Pennsylvania, New rcr
sey aud Virginia to drive them from the
field The president said tina, one of the
questions involved in TINT insurrection
was whether small proportion of the
United states shall dictate to the Union Of
Messages and papers OF the president,
Vol. |, PAGES l2I. 1873. l6I. los. 40. IL,
and lSi
In ls75 the "Wllsl,y Ring" wa.
| brought to life. This King yasac close
association between distillc,s and Federal
Office holders for the purpose Of defraud.
ing the government of large amount OF
revenue on distilled a2irits and us:lIa the
proceeds IN political corruption
President Grants secretary Of war. ".
W. Bclknap, was inpeachcd for accept.
ing bribes in making appointments in his
departments He was acquitted on the
ground tllat. having re,ipucd the srualr
was without Jurisdiction in the case.
Messages and papers of the president.
Vol. ~, page 663. Historians History Of
the World, Vol. o. pages BOZ and BOB.
Good people cvcrywhefe lo,k upon the
licen.ed sale Of Intoxicating spirits as be-
ing criminal bccaus, it produces crime,
and intelligent people know that tl,s ma.
ture and effect Of Intoxicating liquors
cannot be changed by giving Their sale
the sanction OF the law. No one doubt.
that any one will get last as dlask on