Elmore County Republican. [volume] (Mountain Home, Idaho) 1910-1915, 1910-09-24

the state were fast gong underneath
the iron heel of the saloon power
The friends of the prohibitory sys.
TEN rose up in defiance to the pre-.
vailng conditions and insisted that
when North Dakota was admitted TO
the union, there should from that
time forward be no lawful sale of in
toXicating liquCr as beverage with
in its boundaries.
"T'he farmers of the state of North
Dakota are largely responsible for
bringing about the adoption of ar
ticle 20. 1t will be remembered
that the state was admitted into the
union in November, 1889 House Bill
No 6 was introduced by the late
Representative Arne F. Haugen of
Grand Forks county, early in Deem
Der of that year. 1t passed
the house by vote of 50 ayes.
nay, two members being excused.
1t passed the senate, the vote being
% ayes, 8 nays, and on December
10, 1889, at the hour of three o'clock
and five minutes Governor John
| Miller added his signature to the
bill There were present during the
signing of the bill besides the Gov
ernor, Senator H. j. Rowe Repre-
sentative Arne p. Haugen; Private
Secretary Gregg; Senator Smith;
Representative Lutz; II. T. Hedge
son, the then commissioner of agri-
culture. and the recent nominee for
congress on the republican ticket,
Mrs. NorNille and Miss Enright, who
were clerks in the governors office;
Mrs Linda w. Slaughter and daugh-
ter and myself.
while the prohibitory clause of
| the constitution was before the
people, there was constantly used the
same arguments against it as are
now being used in other states. |
believe the business men, with rare
exceptions, were opposed to the law,
and that those who supported it
in many instances did SO because the
people We're demanding a change
from the prevailing conditions under
the license system. Nc law upon the
statute books was ever more dis
obeyed than the license law, and in
communities throughout the state
where there was inadequate police
protection, there came constant de
mands for a change of systems.
"The rainy day proposition, too,
was serious, especially during the
harvest season. The men on the
farms. in those days, would so into
the towns and villages, become in
toXicated, and it would require from
one to two days before the work
could again be resumed. Fights,
brawls, stabbing affrays and murders
We're the constant result of these
conditions.
Twenty years have passed since
the law took effect Looking back
over the history of the state since
coming into the union under the
new system, Notwithstanding the
ups and downs which naturally come
during the transition period from one
system to another, in governmental
affairs. | am persuaded that there
has been complete revolution in pub
lie sentiment, SO that now, in our
larger cities especially, where the
law is we'll enforced the business
men would not wish to return to- the
old saloon days, while the farmers
and others engaged in agricultural
would believe it to be a
serious mistake to change systems.
While it is true there are some
places where the law is not well en-
forced, yet the general trend of
public sentiment and official actions
in the past years has been towards
larger and more complete ODE
dlence to the law. The people are to
be congratulated upon this happy
result.
Il do not believe that there will
be any change in the general policy
Of the state, other than to see to it.
hat the laws are obeyed, and if nee
sary, that more stringent rules may
De adopted to prevent not only open
.olations, but evasions of the law,
which SO constantly appear only to
fltate and annoy. Fargo IN. Dak.)
'orum, July s, 1908
Make q Friend a Day.
Ono ~ tL1