The Montgomery advertiser. [volume] (Montgomery, Ala.) 1885-1982, 1909-10-23

cnaracterizeu the passage OF the Dill
through the Legislature submitting
the constitutional amendment. no
thought was taken OF the sanctity Of
the homes Of Alabama. or the rights
which had been secured to people
jealous Of their liberty, through gem
sration after generation There was
but ONE sacred cause. one sacred word
by which all were to be saved and
humanity was to be purged OF all evil
prohibition. It was to be prohibition
forever and forever--and down with
any inherent or constitutional right
that stood In the way.
The politicians had reckoned with
out the voter of Alabama. When the
noise and the shouting died away the
proposed amendment was read coolly
and dispassionately. The hidden dan
ger in Section 2..and which the Mont
somery Conference charges was put
there purposeiy. opened the homes of
the people Of Alabama to search and
seizure. which could be made upon the
Information furnished by a mans enc
my who would not be responsible for
any damage or humiliation he might
cause. The Legislature was given the
right to say where intoxicating IL
quors should not be kept or stored.
Under existing laws the only place
where intoxicating liquor can now be
| kept Is In the home.
The leaders who had regarded moth
| ing as worth while, nothing that was
sacred except the cause of prohibition
was made to realize that they had
brought a storm about their heads
which threatened their political exis-
tence. And then there came the ex-
plantations and the apologies. Each
speaker seems to have a new set of
explanations. And not one has yet
submitted an explanation that ex-
plains.
Senator Henry f. Reese. said quite
frankly at Maplesville that II he had
had the drafting of the amendment
he would have eliminated the homes
Of Alabama from the provisions of the
section. This touches the core of the
issue. If 1t was not intended that the
amendment should subject the homes
to the same search and seizure as a
blind tiger why was it not put in the
amendment? Three words would
have been sufficient to except the
homes. They were left out of the
amendment and the scosciusion. is in
evitabie that they, were purposely
left out.
Governor Conner says that a man
can order three barrels of whiskey,
put it in his home, and invite his
friends in. all get billing" drunk and
the law can not touch them. But, il
the people vote away their rights. and
the amendment is adopted. the Cover
nor win hardly undertake OF say that
ths Legislature could not avail itself of
its opportunity and make the keeping
of liquor in the homes unlawful.
Judge benson says liquor shipped in
from another State is protected under
clauses of the Fourteenth Amendment
to the Federal Constitution and will
continue to be protected. no matter
what action the State may take.
Judge benson Is an eminent lawyer,
but other eminent lawyers disagree
with him on this important ques-
ton.
Judge Weakley in his Montgomery
speech says that liquor shipped into
the State is protected in the home by
the Interstate Commerce law. Yet the
Anti-Saloon League. of which, Judge
Weakley is a leader. has sought to
secure pledges from Congressman that
they Will support a bill which will
forbid the shipment of liquor from a
wet" to dry State. Because Hon.
s. H. Dent declined to give tina.
pledge two years ago in the Demo-
cratic primary war was made on him
by the Anti-saloon League leaders.
The fight in the Second District ives
on that very issue which Judge Weak
4 lev and the Anti-Saloon I,eaRua hava
now abandoned.
| In a recent letter to a Huntsville pa
per. Judge Weakley writes:
Furthermore under the Constitu-
ton of the United States a citizen of
Alabama has the right to have liquor
shipped him from other States and de-
hvered to him and given this right he
certainly has authority to keep it
somewheres."
This is exactly the position TAX en-
two years ago by the present Con-
gresham from the Second District.
Yet the prohibition politicians raised
an issue, on which they hoped to elect
their man. but which they now find
II expedient to abandon. 1t is nota-
BILE. too, that this is the position held
for years by Speaker Cannon, in OPP
posing all anti-shipping bills in Con-
gress. Judge weakley and the Anti
| Saloon leader have run away from