The commercial. (Union City, Tenn.) 190?-193?, 1910-10-28

I
ly, without being unduly swayed by
emotion or sentiment, for the best inter.
ests Of majority Of the people, for the
protection Of homes and society and
for that which contributes to our moral
welfare.
There are no candidates for public
office here and no subsidies have ever
been allowed to contaminate our ex-
pressions. This office has never ac-
cepted money of any kind for the use OF
its columns in behalf of any political
party or candidate. Not line Of edi-
torial matter or advertising space has
ever been sold for this purpose, either
in eonsonance or opposed to the opin-
ions Of this paper What we are saying
refers to this Office alone and for the
purpose Of getting before the readers
the motives and influences that guide
us. These things we mention as an in
PRODUCTION to some remarks that very
materially concern the present cam
paign.
We have been criticised by some Of
our good friends, and we believe they
did it with nothing but the kindest in
terest, for declining to support Hooper
for Governor
The trouble with political campaigns,
and especially one like this, is that they
are more or less heated with intolerance,
passion or prejudice No man is per-
feet, and when the battle begins, every
mistake is exploited and magnifed, and
the result is that one partisan finds all
the serious mistakes on the other side.
Last week The Commercial attacked
that part Of the Hooper or fusion plat
form which proposed the making of a
macadamized road through the center
of the State from Bristol to Memphis,
with convict labor and to confne the
simply because it was found in the
Statewide platform. We criticised this
project when it was proposed by a road
convention called 10y Governor Patter-
son some months ago. 1t is a mistake
and should be opposed by every honest
citizen and taxpayer. But while doing
this we have no objection whatever to
pointing out defects in the Taylor DEM
ocratic platform. One OF the pIanks is
that the temperance question should
not be an issue in a gubernatorial cam
paign. But ii is an issue and the livest
one in the State, and no sophistry can
hide it, That the question should be
settled by the Legislature there is no
doubt, but that it does not concern
the Governor nor the platform Of prin-
ciples of either party is a very extreme
and unreasonable proposition The
question could have been settled in
measure Independently by the voters
separate from politics, but the people
have decided that it is a political meas
ure, and there is no way under the
present conditions in Tennessee to di- |
vorce it, and no use under the sun try
ing to obscure it.
The Commercial wants to say along
this line that it has in nowise departed |
from its position on the prohibition |
question, not if we refused to support a
thousand Hoopers The simple propo-
sition that the saloon is a crime and |
that the Government recognizes and |
legallzes crime when it issues a saloon |
license seems to us unanSwerablc argu- |
ment in favor of prohibition. II the
theory is true that prohibition is fail
ure the fact remains that the saloon is
source OF crime and the Government
should refuse to sanction the practice by
Withdrawing its license. II the whiskey
seller is determined to pursue his bust
ness let it be done without the sanction
of the law or the favor of Congress.
But with the withdrawal OF Govern
ment license there will be no failure to
limit or prohibit the operation of the
whisky traffic
The saloon is not onlya crime and
curse TO the nation, but it demoralizes
and disqualiiies men and women for
usefulness to the business world and to
society. 1t retards, it degrades, man
hood and womanhood. Prohibition is
right in principle, it is right in theory,
it is right in practice. The idea that
we must have saloons because it is not
Democratic to prohibit them is a propo-
sition stuffed with assertion and guilt
bility. The highest authority has de-
clared that the saloon is a crime, a me
mace TO the peace and happiness OF citi-
zens; must prohibition therefore inter
fere with Democratic principles which