The national prohibitionist. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1907-1911, 1908-07-02

or MIR. IattS book, and accordingly notice was
taken of the matter and nothing appeared in this
paper concerning it, except an indirect reference
i'll the bulletin of the national chairman in which
two sentences of the passage were quoted and the
Vine and Spirit Circular cited as the authority
for the same.
1t is rather remarkable that although no pro-
test seems to have been made by the friends of
MIR. Taft over the publication of the passage in
the liquor papers, this reference to it in the
columns of Prohibition paper was Immediately
resented and retracton demanded The National
Pr0h1btlonSt has nothing to retract. All that it
did III the matter was to state that certain
liquor paper published certain alleged quotation
from MIR. Taft If the liquor paper lied it was
nothing new and nothing surprising, and The
National ProhibitionSt does not hesitate to say
that 1t appears that the liquor paper did lie. The
passage quoted does not appear in any known edi-
ton of the book, -Four Aspects of Civic DUTY"
nor in any published report Of the lectures of
which that book is composed Further still, we
have what ought to be the conclusive testimony of
MIR. Taft himself in a personally signed letter,
stating that he fused the words or anything
like them"
However, an examination of Mr.. Taft's book
ONlOlC HlCllllOlCu, reveals passage tTldt leaves
little doubt of Mr. Taft's hostility to the
Prohibition movement and Prohibition legislation
Beginning on page forty-six in the chapter, The
Duties of Citizenship Viewed From the Stand
point of Judge on the Bench" Mr. Taft says:
Nothing foolish, nothing more utterly at
variance with sound public policy to enact law
which, by of the conditions surrounding the
community in which it is declared to be law, is ncap-
able OF enforcement. Such instance is sometimes
presented by sumpuary laws by which sale of in
tox1catng liquors is prohibited under penalty,
ties where the public sentiment the immediate COM
munly does not and will not sustain the enforcement
of the law In such legislation is usually the
result OF agitation by people in the country who are
determined to make their feowcitizens the city bet
ter The enactment of the law through the coun-
try representatives who form majority of the legisla
ture but the enforcement of the law is among the
people who generally opposed its enactment and
under such circumstances the law dead letter This
result is the great argument in favor of socaed
option, which is really insrumenality for determine,
ing whether a law be enforced before is made
operative In where the sale of liquor can not be
prohibited in fact it is far better to regulate and
diminish the evil than to attempt to stamp By
the enactment of drastic law and the failure to
enforce 1t there is injected into the public mind the
idea that laws to be observed according
to the will of those affected need say how alto
gether perncous such loose theory is General Grant
said that the way the repeal of bad law was
to enforce it. But when the part of the community
which enacs the law is not the part affected by its
enforcement, this is not a practicable method The
constant violation neglect of any law leads to
demoraized view of all laws and the choice of the
laws to be enforced then becomes uncertain as the
of political in respect to public onnion
IS likely to make it. Such policy constantly enarges
IN the community the class of with whom the sacred
ness OF law does not exist.
lhls passage, 1t is TAR to assume, accurately