The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-07-08
MIR. LAWRENCE WAKES UP.

the Anti-Saioon League. has been in of the Alabama Supreme Court has been a boomerang. The conservative element in the League has been very much dissat tisfed with their Superin- tendent's indecent criticism, and the Press of the State has been making 1t pretty warm for the reverend gentle man who lost his temper and used in- temperate language.
 In consequence of the break, the Su- perintendent has been. busy trying to explain it away. He first tried an un- signed statement. which was given out Monday. and appeared In Tuesdays Advertiser. That statement was very brief and had no sort of apology in it. Evidently it was made quite un willings iy. and was a perfunctory performance. to have reached his eyes as to the enormity of his offense. Very proba- bly some of the members of the Exec utive Committee of the League woke him up. and told him that he should write a card containing some express sion of regret. Be that as 1t may. The Birmingham News of Tuesday after noon contained a letter over MT. Law rence's signature which was repro duced in yesterdays Advertiser.
 This card is a labored attempt to make the impression that Mir. Law renee never intended to make a harsh criticism of the Supreme Court, but 1t Is a very awkward performance of a difficult job He says that "the first three paragraphs of the original state- ment contained the only reference to the Supreme Court" As a matter of fact, the fourth paragraph started off with the specific words, ''The decision of the Court is mighty small comfort for the outlawed liquor traffic and its friends" The fifth paragraph began with the statement that The decent citizenship of Alabama is aroused" meaning clearly by the Supreme Courts legislative decision. The sixth para graph declares, We have only begun our fight, and we will keep 1t up until we have justice," distinctly implying that i've" had not gotten justice in this arraigned decision. This paragraph contains the further reflection: If we cannot get it in the courts, we will see to it that the courts are constituted of men who will not work overtime in their efforts to protect the liquor out Ia 0xxyc t1n nt tyo fc 0f a L. a h a that If i've" can't bulldoze this court into submission to our wishes, we" will elect a court that will. The very next sentence amplifies this idea with the declaration that 1t is proposed 'to have this law fully tested by its friends and not accept a verdict of success or failure at the hands of its enemies."1 Friends of prohibition are to be put on the Supreme bench who will render a verdict to suit Mir. Lawrence. The recent decision was virtually designat- ed as the verdict of "enemies."
 ; These quotations show unmistakably the trend of MT. Lawrence's thought from beginning to end of his arraign- ment of the Supreme Court as a part of 'the pimp domination of Alabama. The writer was full of disgust at the action of the Supreme Court, and not only every paragraph, but every sen- tence, was pregnant with his temper. Doubtless he wrote 1t in the first flush of his indignation, without stopping to weigh his words or their consequences, but his denunciatlon Is distinct. There has been no misapplication or miscon- struction. The proper thing would have been for him to have been frank enough to have admitted his whole error instead of accusing his critics of doing him an injustice.
 Of course MT. Lawrence has the right to back out of his biunder In that way, If he chooses, but nevertheless he has revealed him self again as very narrow, intolerant and bitter. A man with such lack Of self-control and wisdom is very ridiculous to set himself up as a Czar, and to decree the political death of all who don't agree to do his will He hasn't the calibre to change courts and to rewrite constitutions, nor will the Democratic Party of Alabama permit his leadership in boAsing the job. He has injured his usefulness to the pro- hibition cause here, and should return to Ohio where bosses and bossism are more in favor, and where the field for operation against the evils of liquor is just as inviting.