The Bourbon news. [volume] (Paris, Ky.) 1895-19??, 1907-03-26
VOLUME XXVIp
READ THIS RECORD.

All readers of the daily papers of
late must have been struck with the
numerous accounts Of arrests of viola
tors Of the local option law IN places
where such law is in effect. II is q
well known fact that large percent
age of the prosecutions in the Circuit
Courts o. such places are for viol atoms
ofthe liquor laws. AS general illustl;a-
ton of the state of affairs, the follow
ing clipping from the Versailles paper
Of March 9Th, 1907, is taken:
''The Grand Jury of Woodford Circuit
Court has been discharged, after re-
turning fifteen indictments. Six indict-
ments charge violations of the local
option law; four selling liquor to a
minor; one charges betrayal. The
Southern Railway was indicted on two
counts for failure to keep in order the
signal bells at railroad crossings.
AS shown by the above, two thirds
of the indictments returned at the last
session of the Woodford Circuit Court,
a local option county, were for viola
tions Of the liquor laws. An inspection
of the records of the Bourbon Circuit
Court discloses quite different state
of affairs
On January II, 1906, new Mayor Of
the City of Paris was sworn in, and at
once started to enforce the laws regu-
lating the sale Of liquor. At the last
March term Of the Circuit Court, numer-
: Gus indictments were returned for viola
lions of the liquor and gaming laws,
but with few exceptions, all Of them
were for things that happened DefOr1
the first Of January. The following IS
the record of the June term of the
Court after the Grand jury had made
a searching investigation of the
twenty-one saloons in the City Of Paris.
For keeping open on Sunday, /.
This Indictment was brought at the
request of the Mayor himself. While
all other saIoonkeepers had obeyed his
orders and closed on Sunday one per-
sisted in disobeying them. The Mayor
went before the Grand Jury, gave it a
list of the witnesses and asked for an
investigation, saying that if the Circuit
Court would convlc:, he would have the
offenders license revoked. An indict-
ment was returned and the accused
sold out that day. in order To- escape
conviction and forfeiture of license.
There has been no trouble since to en-
force the Sunday closing law.
At the November term of the Cir
cult Court, this is the record made by
the Bourbon County Grand Jury:
Selling liquor to a minor, l.
That this Indictment should never
have been returned is shown by the
fact that at the present term Of Court
it was dismissed because there was no
evidence to support it.
Read the record Of the Grand Jury
that adjourned last week:
For violations Of the liquor laws by
the twenty-one licensed saloons Of the
City of Paris. None.
Can any Of the advocates Of local
option point to a city, where such q
law is in effect. that has such an en-
viable record? It is extremely doubt
full if there is another city in the State
whether local option or license, that
has one to equal it. It is conceded that
saloons are closed on Sunday, do not
sell liquor knowingly to minors and do
not permit gambling. 1t has been
demonstrated that when officials care
to enforce them, the present laws are
sufficient to regulate, in every way,
the liquor traffic. The advocates o.
local option are now asking the people
OF Paris to repudiate the laws under
which so much good has been accom-
plished and adopt che which has proved
a failure everywhere. What will the
people gain by the change? No ad-
vocate Of local option has as yet charg-
ed that thu laws are not enforced in the
City Of Paris: no one Of them has yet
shown where or in what way, the con-
dition Of the people of this place will
be changed for the better. Then why
make or advise any change.
Granting for sake of argument, that
a majority Of the people vote for the
adoption IF a prohibitory law what
then? Unless all precedents are
broken unless the experience Of
Paris differs from that of all other