Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1908-04-22

cy OF promotion which seems to
be spreading all over the country.
1t may be, however, that the asser-
tions made by this writer in regard
to the manner in which the law
operates in Maine are true. We
have never been in Maine, never
sampled the product of her joints,
and know nothing personally about
the amount of booze that is unlaw-
fully sold in the Pine Tree State.
But we read the article pretty
closely and analysed it. In every
case where the writer alleges that
the law is flagrantly violated he
states that the jointists have an ar
rangement with the officers of the
city and county to protect them.
Now, if the state of Maine is in
tested with gang of corrupt off,
cials who sell out to the joint-keep-
ers and brewers, of course the law
is violated, but it does not seem to
have occurred to the writer that an
officer who is corrupt enough to en-
ter into that sort of a deal with
jointists would be corrupt enough
to enter into a deal with saloonists
if Maine were a license state.
There never was license law
framed that the saloonkeepers would
not try to violate and if they could
buy protection from the prosecut-
ing officers they would do it, and
the higher and more stringent the
license law the more they would
pay for immunity from prosecution.
The trouble in Maine, according to
this writer, seems to be the same
that has been in some of the coun-
ties Of Kansas. Officials fail to do
their duty; enter into corrupt deals
with law violators and make the
law a nullity. Is the corruption or
ineficiency. of an official to be
charged up against the law? On
the contrary, it should be charged
against the official, who should be
promptly fired out Of office and pun
ished for his misdeeds. If the peo-
pie fail to do this then they are
either towards or corrupt them
selves-Mail A. Breeze.
State Secretary Calderwood of
the Minnesota Prohibition Commit
tee is just closing very successful
three weeks campaign tour in
South Dakota.
The Retail Liquor Dealers Asso-
citation is still after blind pigs.
The announcement was made a
month ago that 1900 such existed
in Minneapolis, and considering the
fact that three-fourths of the local
saloons are owned or controlled by
the brewers themselves we venture
the opinion that an excellent oppor-
tunity is offered to the Flaw enfor-
cers' to trace up all consignments
of booze sent to illicit places. The
fanatical, jmpracticable prohibi-
tionists have, in the meantime,
caught several such lawbreakers
without the advantage referred to
above, yet the saloonists have not
a single case in court to their
credit. The public has been treat
ed almost daily to long winded ar
ticles on "what the retailers are
going to do to the piggers. but
they haven't done anything but
blow about it. The situation is
most humorous. The blind pigs
are safe. and will continue to be
safe from any annoyance on the
part of the Association. The only
sane way to solve the saloon prob
lem is to stop this dilly-dallying
work of catching a blind pig here
and there. and to pass the whole
business over into the auriferous
hence.
Chief Of Police Bodecker of Bir-
mingham, Alabama, which is now
dry under local option, declares that