The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-10-28

up this proposition. 'I of course have paid no attention" said he. Ito this lit tie matter. In view of the fact how ever. that 1t has found it's way into print, I desire to say that the debate cannot be for several reasons, one of them being on account of the fact that Price hasn't the $50. This sum is more than his entire salary during the extra session of the legislature.
 Tn case the debate was arranged Price would have to get the money from Brooks Lawrence, and do not want any of Rockefeller's tainted lucre.
 Seriously, however, I desire that 1t be known that when I debate this question I desire to stand up against a man, and not against mountebank."
 Appeals to Intelligence.
 T am not here to discuss the Conner administration" stated Mr. Bowie, begin ming his argument, ''as much as I would like to do so.
 T am not here to appeal to the pas sion of the voter. but to his intelligence"
 Here he referred to the sacredness of the constitution, and how. except for the most important reasons, it should not be tempered with-and never when there is a great division of opinion.
 ."They-those favoring the amendment" he said, have but one argument that demands the attention of the intelligent. And that is their claim that the adoption of the measure will put an end to agita- tion.
 We can only judge the future by what has gone before. There is a constitutional prohibition amendment in Maine. In Maine the sale of whisky has become mo- torious. There is constitutional prohi- bition amendment in Ohio, and there Is only a technical difference between that amendment and the amendment which they would put into our constitution. And how whisky Is sold and in what quanti- ties it is sold in Ohio are too well known to mention. South Dakota came into the union with prohibition in its original law. Soon it was taken out of the constitution. Then the provision for the sale of whisky under state supervision was considered And that was soon taken out of the law In South Dakota, in other words, they made four changes in a period of Il years
 They cannot name state where the adoption of a prohibition amendment has put an end to the liquor traffic.
 And 1t would be passing strange. in view of these facts, if Governor Conner, Weakley and Brooks Lawrence can do with S1 words in Alabama, what the wise men of all these states, in so many words ana uurlnB so ndny years, nave ldiieu to do.
 FutiIity of Amendment.
 T state here today that the legisla- ture of Alabama, were the amendment victorious, could, in case 1t saw fit, put 8 saloon on every corner in the state of Alabama.
 'I declare the amendment of itself in the constitution, will have no more effect than were a school boy with a stick to write the words on the sand for the first passing breeze or the first falling shower to wipe out and destroy"
 MT. Bowie then discussed the planning of the amendment election for this fall when, for several reasons, it should have been postponed one year.
 He charged that it was arranged for the simple reason that because of hard times a great percentage of the voters had disqualified themselves. He substan- tiated this statement by the interview which R. J. Goode gave out in Mont gomery some days ago to the effect that w. C. Crumpton had quoted Brooks Law renee with having confessed to practically the same reason or charge.
 MT. Bowie characterized the action of the legislature ia- calling an election when only a small majirty of the registered voters can express themselvs at the polls a fraud and an injustice.
 ''I oppose thlS amenument, contllueu Mr. Bowie, because it strikes at one of the essential principles of democracy. Ac- cording to the last census there were in Alabama 10 years ago 232,000 men who might have voted. Providing for the in crease there should now be 276,0O0.
 But it has been claimed that on the amendment but 75,0O0 votes will be cast Thus in this great state 40,000 votes can bind the hands of 276.000
 'But they will never get that 10000. have been through the hills of north Ala bama, and they tell me that they will strike hands with you of the black belt and with you of the wire grass and sweep this scheme into a sea of oblivion
 As a reason for the discussion by anti amendment orators of the statutes, Mir Bowie pointed out that "the amendment without the statutes was as branch without the tree.
 "While on one hand you hear the oppo- sition boast of how drastic they have made the law, on the other hand you see them running from the statutes
 "Those provisions of the Fuller bill, which I have not time to discuss-that search without warrant. that trial with out Jury, that presumption of guilt-are but the discarded robes of New England,