The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-02-10

tional amendments by Representative Merritt and other prohibitionists.
 The BiI Passes
 The bill was passed by vote of 5S to 45 Here follows the vote in detall Against the Bill-Almon. Acker, Avery, Bell of Pickens. Brindley, Brown of Tus- caloosa; Burton. Capps, Cranford, Dar- den. Fowlkes. Fuauay, Greene Helms, Hollis of Choctaw, Hollis of Walker,
 Jackson, James. Jenkins of Bullock, Johnson of Clarke. Kilburn, Knight, Law sen. Lee. Letson. Lumpkin. Merritt Mil ner. Mulkey, McCurdy. McGowen, Mo endon, Percy, Pittman. Preston Ramsey. Rice. Riehesons Rcberson. Rylance, Thomas, Twombly. Walden, wheeles. WrigEt--45 N
 For the BlIlZArnold, Barnard, Bell of P.ckens. Brewer Boswell, Brown of Pike. Bush. Butt. Carroll, Chamberlain, Dennis, Boswell, Eastis. Edmonds. F1an- agan. Fletcher. Gewin, Griffith. Hood, Horton. Huddleston, Jenkins of Baldwin, Johnson of Elmore. Johnson of Marshall. Jones. Judge. Lane, Lavender. Long, Lloyd, Martin of Calhoun, Martin of Jackson Mastin. Matthews, Merrill, Mol ton. Mcdonald O'Neill. Overton. Page,
 Parks. Pharr. Pegram. Pitts, Ropwell, Pruett, Quinn, Sanders. Smith. strick- land. Stollenwerck. Sullivan, Waddell, Waits. Walker, Whatley Wilhite, Will lisms-5S.
 Preliminnries to Fight As soon as 12 o'clock arrived and the Parks bill was up for considera ton Williams of Barbour protested against a banner. reading, Flight Against Rum
 and for the Women and Children" which
 an ardent prohibitionst had hung from the gallery. l5
 Speaker Almon, who at that time had
 not surrendered his chair, evaded the
 issue and instructed the doorkeeper to
 admit no one to the floor not in posses
 sion of admission cards MT. Williams
 again protested with a motion. The
 speaker, however, declined to put the
 motion, and ruled the representative out
 of order. iH
 The local optionists then began laying
 their predicates for the battle royal. MT.
 Smith of Montgomery moved that the
 amendments of the temperance commit tee be accepted, the amendmentst relat-
 ing simply to the regulation of elections.
 The, amendments were passed. Mr. Smith then offered two additional amendments, the first increasing the per centage of qualified voters who by pet- tion could call an election in the coun- ties from 33 per cent to 45 per cent, and the second, providing that the Parks bill would not be effective in any county
 until a bill of regulations for the liquor IIaHlc DE DdS6eu .DY tlle ltSlSldluIc. All these amendments were adopted
 without material opposition. Everyone was ready thereupon for the fight.
 The Debate Begins
 Speaker Almon, having surrendered his chair to Representative Rice, then
 offered his dispensary bill as sub
 stitute for the Parks bill. The bill was read at length. MT. AlmOn then spoke in its behalf 57 minutes. Ills speech
 was a strong argument for prohibition as\against the saloon.
 Representative Pitts of Dallas fol- lowed in a speech of 23 minutes against
 the substitute bill of the speaker. He
 argued that as the democratic party had declared in favor of local option,
 every democrat should support the
 Parks bill. which is tl.e very essence of local option"
 Representative Merritt, the prohibi- tionists' floor leader. then followed in
 a speech of 37 minutes. In which he as- sailed the Parks bill without praising the dispensary bill, and in which he made a strong argument for the re- tentfon of statewide prohibition. His speech was one of the most fiery of the day and he directed considerable sarcasm and ridicule toward MT. Pitts. Whenever he struck the Dallas repre- tentative the prohibitionists in the gal lcry unmercifully teered. Their ridl- cule was so strongly pronounced that | following a suggestion of Brown of Pike. the speaker threatened to clear the house of all visitors.
 -N Motion to Adjourn
 Following the speech of Merritt Rep | resentative Darden of Blount, prohi- bitionist, moved adjournment. His mo- l tion was smothered by the noisy Jop- l position of the local optionists. Representative Sanders of Pike fol- l lowed with speech of 15 minutes l in which Ire attacked the substitute of l Almon. and flayed the prohibitionists and their fanatfcai course and pol | icies."
 l He was followed by Mir, Smith of I Montgomery. who made what is con- sldered a masterful argument against l the substitute and in favor of the Parks hill. He grew so vehement In his ar | gument that perspira ton in rivulets l ran down his face.
 ], Representative Mulkey of Geneva. n ] prohibitionist. followed in a 30 minute speech in which he argued for prohI- ! l.~e~~M
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 (CONTlNUBD ON PA0B 3.D