New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1907-02-09
PROHIBITION IN TENNESSEE.

Memphis is greatly agitated over the prohibi-
tion law passed by the Tennessee Legislature
and now awaiting the Governors signature. AS
do not live in Memphis cannot help feel
ing entertained by the excitement there over
the prospect of the citys going dry.
In the first place ii seems anomalous here in
New York, where water has ceased from trOu-
bling, that while prohibition IS losing ground
in New England and while 1t is confessed to be
unsuccessful in Kansas, where, the weather be-
ing dry. it was determined TO make man go dry
too, prohibition is making great strides in the
South. Texas, Georgia, the Carolinas, Ken
tucky-think of It, Kentucky under some sys-
TENS Of local option are mostly dry" The ex
PLANTATION, OF course, Is that the Southern States
are determined to close rumshOps 10 keep liquor
away from the Negroes That Is q worthy pur-
pose, and preventing the sale OF drink to Negroes
will do much to solve the race problem. or
course. we hear no complaints from the South
such came from Maine and Kansas that the
law is a farce The Southern laws work as they
are designed TO. We doubt If any Southern
legislator ever intended that a Southern gentle
man. and white man should not get his flicker"
whenever he wanted TO. He does, too, in various
ways in the dryest of dry counties. Tennessee
under the Adams law, had statutory prohibition
In all the smaller towns. The larger cities thir-
teen I'm number, understand IT, were eX-
cluded from the provisions Of this prOhibltOry
law. The new law just passed, called the Pen
deton law prohibits the granting by the Legls
ature Of any new city charters authorizing the
sale Of liquor. ANY Of these thirteen cities may
surrender its charter and obtain new one and
by that act "go dry"
Now what troubles Memphis is that long be
fore this law passed the city had decided
that 1t had Outgrown its present charter and
wanted new one. Shall Memphis worry along
under an antquated charter. or shall it obtain
new one with prohibItory clause preposter
Gus position for a big city?
We have already intimated that Southern
gentleman passes a prohibltOry law with certain
mental reservations If we may believe THE
Memphis Commercial-Appeal" he often has
more than mental reservations about his person
when in his most prohibtory mood Now. Of
course, The Commercial Appeal" is not the
most unbiased witness, for, as we said, Mem
phs is agitated, but there is no general reason
why the beam, judlciously carried should inter
fere with the detection of the alien mote; in
fact. the beam is that experience of evil which
makes conscience tender Of the moral welfare of
others. Says The Commercal-Appeal':
The best speech in favor of this prohibitorv
measure was made by Senator who as
drunk as a lord the night before and whose
name is a household word in nearly all the lead
ing saloons IN the state.
No one can accuse such an orator Of fanat
icsm and prejudice. He spoke out Of the full
ness of his-his-well, anyway it was a great
effort. Says the same authority:
1t was full of imagery It scared into the
zenith and plucked the highbalIs of rhetoric
from the rafters of the ne plus ultra.
We are sorry did not see this masterpiece
for the eloquence was Ike the song OF the
''buzzsaw beneath the stars, or the perfume OF
"Araby in the deadhOuse, or the silvery moon
Tight on Llmburger cheese" and when the
orator reached that inviting quotation,
o, climb with me this beauteous night
The silver ladder of the moon
everybody took cue from the word "moon"