The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1909-09-27
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR.
Wants Reasonable Construction.

To the Editor of The Age-Herald:
In the attempt of my friend, Mr.. NJ.
M Ullman, to answer my article in your
paper of the 23d inst, he does no more
than to shift the scenes. The objection
to section 2 of the proposed amendment
that I undertook to discuss was that 1t
would authorize violation of the sancti-
ty of the home with reference to searches
and seizures. When it is made plain that
ample authority already exists and has
existed for the issuance of search war
| rants to search any place where liquors
are kept with the intent to use them as
means of committing a public offense,
as for instance, their sale, or other I'M
lawful disposition, then it occurs to the
gentleman that perhaps the legislature,
under the exercise Of the police power
would undertake to forbid the keeping
of liquors in the home and forbid the
use of wine for sacramental purposes
in the churches.
This would bring us to a consideration
of what is the police power of a state
I know of no higher or better authority
to quote from than Judge Cooleys excel
lent work on Constitutional Limitations,
from which we read on page 705, Sixth
Ed as follows:
I'VE think it is a settled principle,
growing out of the nature of well or
dered civil society, that every holder
of property. however absolute and I'M
qualified may be his title, holds it under
the implied liability that his use of it
shall not be injurious to the rights of
the equal enjoyment of others having an
equal right to the enjoyment of their
property nor injurious to the rights of
the community. Rights of prom
erty, like all other social and conven-
tional rights, are subject to such rea-
sonable limitations in their enjoyment
as shall prevent them from being in
furious and to such reasonable restraints
and regulations established by law as the
legislature, under the governing and con-
stitution, may think necessary and ex-
pedient- The power we alude
to is rather the police power; the power
vested in the legislature by the consti-
tuition to make, ordain and establish all
manner of wholesome and reasonable
laws, statutes and ordinances, either with
penalties or without, not repugnant to
the constitution, as they shall Judge to
be for the good and welfare of the com
monwealth, and of the subjects of the
same"
Again quoting from the same author
on page 7os:
This police power Of the state, says
another eminent judge, extends to the
protection of the lives, limbs, health.
comfort and quiet of all persons, and
! the protection of all property within the
state"
Again we read on the same page that by
this general police power of the state
persons and property are subjected to all
KINDS OF restraints and burdens, In order
to secure the general comfort, health and
| prosperity of the state; of the perfect
rght In the legislature to do which no
question was ever, or, upon acknowledged
principles, ever can be made, so far as
natural persons are concerned.
In considering section and the au-
thority that will be by It conferred upon
the legislature, we must consider il In
the light of what is meant by the police
+ power of the state, well as in the light
of contemporaneous history. 1t will be
seen that the police power is not one to
be exercised capriciously by the egIsa-
ture, but that 1t must be exercised in rea-
son. and that the restraints authorized
under the police power must be reason
able restraints and reasonable limita-
j tons.
Again, section must be construed as
being in harmony with section of the
same proposed amendment. Section
expressly authorizes the sale of alcohol
for medical, scientific and mechanical pur-
j wi ta1
poses. Could it ever be true that the
| constitution could authorize the sale Of
an article and that the legislature could
then make it a criminai offense to keep
the article so authorized to be sold, pro-
vided. of course. 1t was kept for the pur-
| poses for which it was authorized to
be sold?
Mr.. Ullman says: "A tyrannical legis-
lature may provide by statute That it
shall be unlawful to store in any place In
/ the state of Alabama any vinous, spirit
uous or malt liquors Of any kind what
soever Is it not plain that an enact
ment in this, or similar, language would
clearly violate the express right conferred
] by section ! to buy alcohol and wine for
| the purposes therein mentioned, and of
necessity the implied right to store them
] and keep them where such articles in
tended for such use are usually stored
and kept. to-wit, II, or about the nome. /
have right to the reasonable enjoyment
of every constitutional privileges after the
adoption of this amendment one of those
express rights will be to buy alcohol for
medical purposes and wine FOR sacra-
mental purposes, and 1t would certainly
be a peculiar state of affairs and an I'M
reasonable restraint Of constitutional
right, for the legislature to undertake TO
say to me that I could buy. and yet I
| could not store It or keep 1t. Such an
| enactment would be in direct violation of
| the implied right conferred by section /
Of the proposed amendment Could the
] legislature. under section Z. by the en-