Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1907-12-06
Attorney General of Iowa De-
clares He Will Make Effort to
Enforce Mulct Law
NO ALL NIGHT 'nFRAcrIoNs
Action Of Davenport Saloonists in Ask
ing for Half Way Enforcement
Causes Attorney General to Say
Compromise Won't Do-Amendmen
Agitation Present Law.
Special to rimes-Republican.

Special to Times Republican.
Des Moines, Dec. 6.-Attorney Cen
eral Byers proposes to see to 1t that
there are no more Sunday saloons and
no more all night saloons and he will
endeavor to bring this about just as
soon as human ingenuity can get the
courts into operation; if not with the
assistance of the county officials then
without their assistance.
This attitude of the attorney gener-
al. in which he will have the full and
complete cooperation of Governor
Cummins and all the machinery OF the
executive department, was learned to-
day when the attorney general was
shown a dispatch from Davenport IN
which 1t is stated that Mayor Waldo
Becker has issued proclamation call
ing upon the saloons to close at IL
O'Clock and not to open on Sundays TIL
g in the afternoon. The proclamation
of the mayor came in an order to his
chief of police only after the saloon
keepers, fearing they would bring
upon themselves complete enforcement
of the law, notified the mayor they
were willing to be compelled to partly
live up to the provisions Of the law
and set forth the things they were
willing to do, asking him to enforce
the law that far on all saloonkeepers
IN order that there be no impartiality.
IF don't accomplish any thing else
during the remainder of my two years
term Of office, propose to see to II
that there are no more Sunday sa-
looms nor all night saloons in Iowa,
even II I am limited to one term De-
cause of that action" said Attorney
General Byers when shown the news
paper account of the Davenport may
or's order II don't mean to say there
by that I will wink at other violations
of the law. 1 will endeavor to see to
it that all the provisions of the mulct
law are enforced but the Sunday sa-
loon and the all night saloon are the
grosser of the violations and the ones
the state is giving attention to just
now.
'There is no warrant for violating
up to it in others nor of partly OBJ
serving the provisions Of the law. The
state will not compromise with viola
tors of the law in any particular.
"I will seek the cooperation of the
local authorities to enforce the pro-
visions of the mulct law but if they
will not enforce the law / will find
some way of doing So"
Driven to a corner thru fear of the
anti-saloon sentiment sweeping over
the state, the Davenport saloon keep
ers signed a communication to Mayor
Waldo Becker in which they consent
to the following nine reforms in the
operation of their saloons:
To close at II and not to open till 5
a. m.
Not to open on primary or election
day.
Not to serve free lunches.
Not to open on Sundays till 2 p. m.
No side or back rooms with closed
DOORS
Not to sell to minors either by glass,
bottle or pitcher.
Not to harbour women in saloons. g
No curtains at windows.
Not to sell to intoxicated persons.
More than usual interest will attach
to the action of the ministerial as
sociation in regard to constitutional
because of the belief with
many that campaign for a prohibi-
tory amendment at this time will so
TO that Of 10
good the state is likely to reap from
the present sentiment for law en-
forcement will be lost.
The Des Moines Ministerial associa-
ton will take the matter up Monday
when it meets. Some of the members
have alread communicated with the
of the Anti Saloon league and
learned that the league has already
decided to enter upon campaign for
a constitutional amendment. Rev.
Mr.. Barber, the state superintendent,
is being quoted as saying to the min
listers that the league is confident that
inside of three years there will not
be saloon left in Iowa and that as
a result of the awakened sentiment
the league is confident that there will
be little difficulty in getting a con-
stitutional amendment
OF course it is well understood that
the state can vote on a constitutional
only after a resolution
the matter to the people
has passed two successive legislatures.
The first legislature that can consid-
er the matter will meet in January,
1909, and the next after that to meet
will be in January, 1911, unless, of
course, a special session of the legisla-
ture is called. Should the attitude Of
the saloons toward the mulct law and
the Indifference Of the county officials
be such that it will finally be neces
sary for the governor to call special
session of the Thirty second general
assembly, it might pass the resolu-
ton. Then if it was passed by the
legislature convening in -909 the
matter could be submitted to the peo-
pie during the year 1903.