The Montgomery advertiser., 1908-09-07

ling.
 have said throughout this eongres-
 sionai District everywhere. that If am elected to the Congress of the | United States, and I say this wheth- I CT win or lose. for I would rather make this statement and be losing
 candidate than make contrary state. | ment and be a winning candldate-l declare to you that if I am elected | to Congress I shall never cast bal | lot there which will be an abject. a 1 mortifying, humiliating confession that my people are no longer capable l of self government Let us analyze | 1t and go a step further. One admis- sion of power on the part of Con- | gress, like one sin. easily leads to another: Every time that the United States Congress grasps one power 1t
 it will go on and on until finally the | autonomy of the States will be de- | stroyed. local self f-government be ob- | liberated and individual liberty be a dream of the past. My fellow citizens.
 have seen this danger. have point l ed it out everywhere: have argued it | with people all over thts district, and
 has been able to answer the proposi- l tion.
 am in favor of the enforcement of 1 your prohibition law. and of every law l in the land. My record as a prose- I cutting attorney of Montgomery Coun- | ty shows that I have endeavored with
 my utmost ability to punish the viola | tor of the prohibition law In the
 County of Montgomery. I do not be- I lieve there has been a session of the l grand jury in Montgomery County since have been the solicitor of that 1 county that l have. not had these cases l before me. and worked hard to pro- I cure indictments and convictions, and
 I have procured the convictions of both | whites and blacks for violations of
 the liquor law in Montgomery County.
 So that my record upon that proposi- | ton is clear.
 I am in favor of the enforcement of | the State prohibition law, but l want | to see 1t enforced through our own | tribunals, and am not willing to con fess that we must turn the whole thing | over to the Federal Government, and
 I am pointing this out as warning | to the people of the dangers that lie ahead. I will favor If elected to the Congress of the United States, q bill, will advocate it and will try to have it passed. prohibiting the Government of the United States from issuing an internal revenue license to any one for -AtC o0hC Ol ltQuotA III duy AOi III 1u q prohibition State or Territory. That
 Is the only practical solution, and the
 only practical remedy that can pos- sibly imagine that has been suggested
 in this campaign by which your pro- hibition law can be aided in ts enforce
 ment by the Government of the United
 States. for I do not believe that the
 Government of the United States ought
 10 be party to crime. do not believe that the Government of the United States ought to issue license to a man to sell whfskey in the County of Montgomery when the sale of 1t is de- clared by the law of Alabama to be crime. and think that ought to be with hdrawn, and if withdrawn, then the enforcement of your law from the. Federal Government without destroy
 ing individual liberty or obliterating
 the doctrine of local self-government. You will have your State and Federal omctals cooperating together for the
 accomplishment of the same end to
 prevent the unlawful manufacture and
 sale. but each working in its own
 sphere and Jurisdiction and not inter- fering with the Jurisdiction of the 1 other This is the only true solution
 of the question and 1t Is the only one that would not fiually result in the
 destruction of your lib critics.
 Now, right here before I leave this
 subject. I am sorry that I have, to
 say it. but 1t has been forced upon 1 me, and. having been forced upon me, do not hesitate to speak out: I have
 been conducting the campaign upon a high plane in this district, and have gone all over it presenting my, views
 to the people in as logical and intelli- gent a way as I was capable. I have
 discussed the political opinions and v 4A .k..
 indulged in any personalities, but I
 am going to indulge in some right
 now. It was forced upon me; I am
 sorry it was but having been forced
 upon me I do not fear to meet, 1t.
 whenever anyone assaults me- he may
 expect that will strike back. and I
 do not believe you would have any
 respect for me or any other candi-
 date for Congress, who would sit si-
 lently by and allow an unprovoked at-
 tack to be made upon him without
 resenting 1t. I believe you want a
 man of courage and convictions to
 represent you. I do not believe you
 want a man who will not resent an
 unfair. an unprovoked and unjust at-
 tack upon him.
 few days ago, in the city of
 Montgomery, q good friend of mine,
 who is a staunch prohibitionist, as
 strong as any man in the State, a man
 who never takes a drink of liquor
 hlmself, man who does not go into barrooms, a man who would vote for prohibition every hour in the day if
 you gave him an election for that pnr-
 pose, brought me In great indignation a- circular letter over the signature of the Rev. Brooks Lawrence, dated at Birmingham, Ala, in which he ad- vised the people of fthe Second Con- gressional District to cast their ball lots for Mir. Sanford and particularly to vote against Mfr. Dent. You know who MT. Brooks Lawrence is. Now, he has issued this circular letter in the closing days of the campaign, in the eleventh hour of the contest, when l Wills not have a sufficient op- portunity to reply to it or to answer It throughout this district, in which he commands the people of the second district who they shall vote for as their Congressman, and particularly that they shall not vote for n1e. Why was this. my fellow citizens? It was all right for Mir. Lawrence and his friends to get through the prohibi- ton law and if that is what the peo- pie wanted and the Legislature rep- resenting the people passed the law. that is what they ought to have had
 put he has got his prohibition law. ana now that he has his prohibition law, want to know why 1t is every tlme a contest comes up for ofiSe that he has got to stick his mouth into it. or in this campaign to dictate to this people who shall be their Com gressman Why does he single me out? Why is it, my fellow citizens that he mentions me? Why is 1t that