The Birmingham age-herald., 1910-12-05
PROHIBITION FIGHT
 HAS BEEN AvERTED
Some of Atlanta s People After
 Near-Beer Saloons
ARE ENFORCING THE LAW
Georgia Anti-saIoon League Is Work ing to Bring About Better Observ- ance of Prohibition Through
 out the State

Atlanta, December 4.-fSpecial )-Rather than precipitate a fight to the finish
 which was threatened on all the near 1 beer saloons of Atlanta, the city council has decided, upon petition of the resi-
 dents of Inman Park, an attractive resi- dence suburb, to refuse a renewal of the
 licenses of some three or four near-beer
 saloons located on Edgewood avenue,
 which Is the only practical .horoughfare
 between Inman Park and the city.
 Inman Park residents demanded that
 these saloons should be closed January l 1, and threatened, if it were not done,
 to provoke one of the hottest prohibition
 wars this city has ever known against
 the near-beer saloons generally. l compromise was reach.d by which
 they are to be refused further license
 when their present licenses expire on
 July l, next. Thus has the threatened
 prohibition fight been averteo.
 Stil. such a fight is promised from an
 other quarter, not locally in Atlanta, gut
 generally over the state. The Georgia
 Anti-Saloon league has already begun it's 1 fight in a quiet way for the better en- l
 and the suppression of the beer business 1 all over the state.
 The league has taken no J.dblic action
 as yet, though 1t was to have held a
 mass meeting to launch the campaign at l Wesley Memorial church in 'nis city last
 Sunday afternoon, at which Judge w. A. 1 Covngton of Moultrie, noted prohibition l leader, was to have been the principal l speaker. But owing to temporary indis- position Judge Coyington could not comn
 and the meeting was postponed.
 l It is the purpose of the league to make | an onslaught upon the new legislature
 with a view to securing Legislation that | will still further tighten up the situation, | such as was unsuccessfully attempted l two sessions ago. In addition to making
 the law more stringent in It's operation l the league will seek legisla ton similar
 to that attempted at the session in ques- ton when it was sought to limit the sale l of near<peer to an article containing less
 than per cent Of alcohol.
 The league took a hand in :he election Of members of the legislature in the last
 primary, but just how many Of it's friends
 it succeeded in landing remains to be l developed. Officers of the league hero
 say they have canvassed Tho situation
 and are satisfied that the prohibition | sentiment controls the legisa ture | Possibly so. but the same thing was | thought of the last legislature, which re-
 fused to put into the general tax act
 provision outlawing the sals of beer. | Lease of Railroad
 l Will Gov. Joseph M. Brown following 1 the decision of the railroad commission | of yesterday, in which that body declares | that the Nashville, Chattanooga and St
 Louis, as lessee of the Western and At
 lantic. is not complying with the terms | of the lease, call upon the Nashville l Chattanooga and St. Louis to show cause
 why 1t should not forfeit it's lease of the
 states property?
 | This Is an interesting question that IS
 raised following the commissions action,
 in which that body points out to the gov ernor that the railroad has refused to l abide by the provision of the lease, which | requires that interstate hauls between | Georgia points and Chattanooga shall be | made at the same relative rates as are charged for hauls within the state. In other words. where the local rate in | the state on a certain class of freight is
 B cents for 100 pounds for a distance of | 100 miles, the Western and Atlantic charges for a similar haul, crossing the
 Tennessee line, 40 cents This is done,
 of course, upon the theory that 1t is an in- 1 terstate haul, and it is claimed that the
 railroad commission has no jurisdiction. 1 But now comes the railroad commission
 and says, following hearing upon a pe- tition filed by the Atlanta freight bureau. | that this is a violation of the terms of the | lease contract, and that under the lease
 the lessee must haul freight across the | state line at the same rates charged for similar hauls within the state.
 | It is of particular interest in this con- | nection that the clause in the lease under
 which 1t Is claimed the lessee is com
 pelled to make the same relative charge | for interstate as for local hauls, was put there at the suggestion of Gov. Joseph I M. Brown.
 l He brought the matter to the attention of the legislative committee which had the
 lease contract in charge. and 1t was de- cided to adopt his suggestion.
 Thus 1t is put up to Governor Brown l to take steps to compel the observation of
 d particular feature of lease contract
 for which, in a sense he is responsible 1 Governor Brown has been out of the l city all the week attending the congress l of governors in Frankfort Ky. He will
 probably take the matter up on his re- turn to his office early next week and de- | eide as to what course he shall pursue after conference with the attorney gen l eral.
 | It is an interesting question from more 1 standpoints than one. and if the position l 1 found tenabe, Georgia will be the only
 state in the union which Is in a. position
 to exercise any control whatever over in- l terstate rates.
 Pay for State Soldiers
 Along with the military authorities | of other states Adjt. Gen. A. J. Scott of Georgia has taken up with the sen ators and representatives in Congress from this state the matter of secur- ing federal pay for the officers and men of the state National Guard. To each of them he has sent copy of the tentative bill drawn by the of
 ficers of the NatiouRl Guard at their recent meeting in St. Louis, with the
 request that he support 1t strongly | when it comes up for action.
 | The measure provides in a general l way that officers of the National Guard ] shall receive regularly from to 20 per cent of the pay allowed officers of similar rank and duties in the regu- lar army and that the enlisted men shall receive 25 per cent of the pay l of enlisted men in the regular army. These payments are to be made semi annually and in consequence' the men are to be strictly required to attend a certain number of drills annually. Of course when the troops are on regular duty such as riot, invasion or en- l campment, they are to receive full reg lcentage of the pay of the renllar troops. it is proposed shall apply to all times.
 It, is generally believed that the en- lactment of such a law would stimulate an interest in the National Guard such as it has not known since it's organ
 ization. It would provide an incentive