Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1909-03-02

themselves on the healthy condition of
public sentiment that seems to have
been evidenced in the outcome.
The Enquirer believes in prohibition
as the best way Of dealing with the Ii
quor traffic-not mere nominal prohi-
bition; but actual prohibition as far
as it can be accomplished. We do not
believe that prohibition laws can be
enforced unless they are backed by an
approving public sentiment. While the
law in York county, for instance Is not
enforced as perfectly as we would like
to see 1t, 1t is enforced better than 1t
has ever been before, and that is be-
cause public sentiment the more
strongly approves its enforcement. In
a county where the sentiment is over
whelmingly the other way, the same
laws would be nullity.
The people who brought about the
condition whereby each county may
deal with the liquor question as it sees
proper, did more for prohibition and
more for the establishment Of law and
order than has ever been done in this
state before. We say this for the rea-
son that much experience has gone to
show that where a majority Of the peo-
pie have expressed themselves in the
making Of a law, that same majority
may be depended upon to see that that
law Is obeyed.
However 1t may be in the future,
We know that there are many counties
In the state where the sentiment In
favor of the free and unrestricted IL
auor traffic Is overwhelming. We are
sorry that this is true; but that is not
the point. The point is that where
there Is an overwhelming sentiment In
favor of liquor, the traffic cannot be
suppressed. In such a county state
law against the sale of liquor would be
a farce. The people Of each county
have entire charge Of the enforcement
of the laws within their respective linn
it's and they are not going to enforce
laws that do not meet their approval.
Under present conditions more than
half the state Is prohibition by choice
of a majority Of the voters of the res
pective counties. The law Is not en-
forced perfectly in any Of these coun-
ties; but 1t is better enforced In most
of them than it has ever been before,
and in many of them it is as we'll en-
forced as are the laws against murder,
arson, larceny, etc.
According to our view, had the state
wide proposition become a law, only a
very few Of those counties that are
now engaged in the liquor business
would have paid any attention to 1t.
The disregard of the law would have
been so general that it would have been
practically impossible to have compell-
ed it's observance, and the result would
be free and unrestricted liquor.
The arrangement whereby prohibi-
ton is to go into effect in all the IL
ouor counties on the first Tuesday in
August and continue or not according
to the result Of the elections to be held
on the third Tuesday in August, looks
to us to be fair enough. 1t is quite
possible that the majorities in some OF
these counties are ready to run out
the dispensaries. 1t Is to be hoped
that such is the case. If they are, then
the cause Of prohibition is bright In
those counties. If they are not ready
to vote out liquor Of their own accord,
prohibition forced on them by the gen.
eral assembly, would do the cause more
harm than good.
The greatest danger to prohibition as
we see II, is lukewarmness In those
counties where prohibition now OBJ
tains. The appetite for whisky is as
strong as ever. The temptation to sell
it for the profit 1t offers is no less than
1t has always been. The incentive to
gain works more strongly on would-be
violators Of the law than does the NOR
al force that actuates those who would
uphold the law. Complete success In
fighting the liquor evil necessitates
eternal vigilance; but unfortunately the
only force by which this evil can be
suppressed is ordinarily a defensive
instead of an aggressive force. 1t be-
comes aggressive only when its exist
ence Is threatened and becomes quies-
cent on the apparent subsistence of
present danger.
There are those who think that much
headway has been made in fighting the
liquor evil, and it will have to be ad-
mitted that much has been accom-
plished; but there is great deal to
be done yet before the battle is ended.