The Caucasian. (Shreveport, La.) 1900-192?, 1907-10-13
RISE or PROHIBITION
Cause of Aati'i9u0r Le-- ;;ss..sa. i: n
In the South.
THE NEGRO IS RESPONSIBLE.
Whites Fear ths Drunken Black Man.
Free Access to latoxicants Cause G.;
Racial Wars--EIearat and His LEAGUE.
The Oklahoma Constitution.
BY WILLIS j, AHEOl

The Oklahoma Constitution.
By WILLIS }. ABBOT.
IN the October Review Of reviews
appears an article by the Wash
ington correspondent of the Atlanta
Constitution, putting Tor the first tiluc
into complete form the record Of tie
spread OF prohibition. local or state,
throughout the south The article is
TOO long 10 summarize, but il i: well
worth the careful attention Of tne pee
pie who still cling to the Old cou1cp-
ton of the south as TIE home Of re
toddy and the juiep. AS n matter q.
fact, by far the create: part OF ti4a
south is now undo. stringent proh,ni-
tory laws. Under LEGAL option 30 pc
cent OF the counties of Virginia are
now dry. and Il prominent editor IL.
Richmond told me there oaly fe.9
weeks ago that that city would be CA.
ried for prohibition If the matter. were
brought to Il vote-somethins that do
not believe could be said for any cit,
Of equal size in the north. The poiit-
icai foundations Of Senator I'illman'a
eminence We're laid upon his diSpcn-
sary system in South Carolina, but
only recently the governor Of that state
told ne that the dispensaricS would
have TO go. not because they regulated
too strictly the sale Of liquor, bat be-
cause complete prohibition was dc-
manded by the people. Tie greater
part Of Texas is dry under local op-
ton. and the editor Of one OF the most
prominent newspapers in thai state
told me that the time is near ut han5,
when il Will have state prohibition.
Meantime its lawmakers amuse then
selves with Such statute rs one ma
ing it a nisdemeanor for q man 10
take Il erii-. on Il railroad train, AMI
only within y week or two the sheriff
Of a count.s III another state who I'm
Willingly committed this offense V-a3
dragged of Il train and fined By Il
country sGEirc Georgia OF course fr;:a
state prohibition, adopted by &)Totc 50
large that Governor Hol.c Smith. PEE.
konally disappearing the bin. felt him
self obliged to sign it. Kentucky.
which makes more whisky for the de-
lectation Of its sister states than any
other commonwealth. permits its sale
In barely a tenth of its own counties.
Hp1eover. state laws adopted in many
otefhe southern communities prohibit
railroads. under severe penalties, from
carrying liquors of any sort into local
option county This applies only to
freight originating within the state
but this year bill in congress viii lie
pressed for national legislation which
shall estop Interstate railroads from
carrying liquors into prohibition states.
It is to he supported by southern con
gressmen. who in this cause seem ready
to forget their ancieGt state rights COZ
victions.
The Exploration G.. This Phenomenon.
Curiously enough while the south has
made this prodigious advance in the
cause of Temperament prohibition
means temperance. which some doubt
the north has progressed little, II ut
all. Since Maine led off with constitu
tiOnai prohibition and Kansas follow
ed there has been an almost entire ces-
RatiOn Of agitation for state temper
ance in the north. Why should the
south. whose public men are always
preaching individual liberty and STATE
rights. have been SO ready to wink at
violations of both when the suppression
of the liquor traffic is involved: Here
/ is the answer as given to me the other
day by the mayor of one Of the largest
cities OF Virginia.
Its the Negro said he. The right
Of the negro to vote and his use Of hi:
vote have kept southern white men
voting the Democratic ticket for easily
twenty years after they had come into
sympathy with Republican policies.
Now the black men are turning the
Democratic party Of the south into q
prohibition party. Every man who has
lived long in the south knows that tn
districts with large colOred popuia-
tl0n the whites live in constant dread
Of riotUus outbreaks. They dislike the
negro sober: they fear him drunk.
Much Of the great majority given to
prohibition in the city Of Atlanta,
majority that could not have been OBJ
tained IN any northern city Of like
character and size. was due to the At
lanta race riots of year or more ago
These riots hardly would have occur
red except for the free access to 1ntox-
fcants possessed by both whites and
blacks mt the time. Mark my words.
n long as the negro is as powerful an
element numerically in the life OF the
south as 1t is now prohibition VIII ell, |
dure and win be extended
Hearst's National Programme.
Mr.. Hearst. who has led or perhaps
thrust his Independence league INTO
Preparation for national activities. does
not read history very well. though he
stands a chance of making some his +!
tory himself
Last week he held meeting III ma
fional sympathizers coming TO New