Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1909-01-06
PROHIBITION PAYS.
Truxo" Relates Happy Expert
ence ofa County That Voted
Out Liquor.

!. y .-l I,
Now that the world is gaining so
much loss in consequence of the IL
quor traffic and our county is being
aroused on the subject, / wish to
give few facts that came under
my observation few years ago. /
lived in. county that had been
dominated by the liquor traffic.
They had usually three months of
schools during the year. For these
schools the teachers were paid from
$17.5o to s27. 80 per month accord
ing to grade, and school warrants
were cashed at a discount of % per
cent. The school board was SO, 500
in debt and there were very few, /
think only three orfour, respectable
school housesEin the county.
The conntxwas $4,000 in debt,
and county warrants went at dis
count of 25. to4O per cent. There
were only q few bridges in the: coun-
ty. The Jail house would have
made an interesting curio for the
Worlds Museum.
The court house sold at public auc-
ton, for $500 oo@and was moved off
the county square. There were
practically no public Improvements.
The county had tried liquor for
more than forty years. The terms
ofcourt lasted as long as the law
would allow. one and two weeks re
spectively and / have known as
many as twelve prisoners carried
over from one term of court to the
next term at a cost sl2 per month
board each.
The dockets were never cleared.
And there qoas not a bank; aaa the
county. Butswe put liquor out not
withstauding the cry 1T will kt0the
county. We knew the county was
already dead and liquor had killed
it. Liquorswill kill everything it
touches long enough. 1t never
touches man, butt leaves a black
spot on him, blot on his character.
Now listen: As soonas the "doek-
Sets" could be cleared the terms of
court in that county closed-ad-
journed- Wednesdaynight. Ihave
known the court to adjourn at noon
EFedaesday, a few civil cases to try.
s AT the end of four years Of nfa=
Il mflihbiiti0n the comfy had good bridges
wherever they were needed. They
had a brick. court house that cost the
county about 5000 beauty.
They had a brick Jail house with
steel cells. They had $4,000 to
their credit, and county warrants
were worth 100 cents on the dollar.
The school board had built good
school houses all over the county;
they had increased the term of
school from to 6 months with priv
ilege to run 8. months. They paid
fRom $50 to S75 per month for teach
ers. School-scrip was worth 100 cts
on the dollar. The school board
had about $4,000 ahead, and when
l left them they were talking of put
ting free books in the public schools.
There was bank in the county
with S50,0OO.O0 capital stock, with
Ssso,ooO.OO on deposit, and some of
the county officers told me that tax
able property had doubled IN the
county within the four years of pro-
hibition.
The drunken men, the fst-ti-cuff
bouts, theN shooting affrays, the
pandemonium caused generally by
liquor, was not seen on the streets
nor in the back store lots, and prohi-
bition there did prohibit. 1t will
always prohibit when the officers
of the law do their sworn duty. If
/ was an officer sacorn IN enforce The
laac. Eshould consider it as person
al insult for a man to say prohib-
itory law did not prohibit in my
Jurisdiction.
Now as to the recenue from liquor
investigation shows again and again
that every dollar of revenue a city
ora county gets from the sale of
sliquor.costs tie city or the county
that got it three dollars in criminal
prosecutions, besides the wreckca
homes, the shed blood, the heart
aches, the pains and pangs, and the.
scalding tears ofwidows and hun
cry orphan crying for bread, impov-
erished by drunken husbands and
fathers.
But the most dangerous form of
the liquor traffic / have ever known
lis the dispensary.
Yours for Righteousness,
TRUxo.