The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1911-09-27
THE PROHIBITION AevEnENr
History Of tie Progress In Twenty
Stat9e Of the Union

otatoe OF the Union
That the prohibition wave which
swept over the south few years ago
has spent itself is shown by the clam
or arising in the southern states for
the repeal Of prohibition laws, accord
ing to a summary prepared by The
Tampa, (Fla.) Union. Alabama at
the session OF the legislature recently
adjourned, repealed q statewide pro-
hibition law. The General Assembly
has convened IN Georgia and indica-
tons point TO a, repeal of statewide
prohibition in that state. Tennessee
would have returned to. the wet" coli
umn this year had 1t not been for the
flight of the prohibition minority in
the legislature out OF the state to
prevent quorum voting on the re-
peal.
There are now eight states in the
Union In which statewide prohibition
prevails. They are Maine, North Car
DINA, Georgia, Mississippi. Tennessee
Oklahoma, Kansas and North Dakota.
Oklahoma is demanding special cleo
ton to repeal constitutional prohib-
itlon some time before the next gem
eral election At the last election In
Maine Gov. Plaisted and wet" leg
islature were elected on resubmis-
sion issue.
The return of the legalized sale OF
liquors In the southern states on the
local option principle Is repetition
Of the history Of every state in the
Union which at one time tried state
wide prohibition.
Maine adopted prohibition In 1916,
repealed 1t In 1856, readopted 1t In
1858, and appears to have repealed II
again this year.
Vermont went dry" In 1852 and
maintained most drastic prohibitory
laws for 80 years on her books The
laws were repealed In 1902. with the
representative men of the state sup
porting the repeal.
New Hampshire adopted statutory
prohibition In 1856, and on March Is
1903, passed a Incense bill by a vote
of 214 to 107.
Massachusetts, tried prohibition
from 1855 to 1870.
In 1853 Rhode Island adopted pro-
hibition and repealed the law in 1868.
In 1886 she adopted prohibition again
and at the polls In June 1889. the PEG
| pie repudiated II by majority OF 49,
SGT out of a total of less than $4,000.
Connecticut placed prohibition In
the organic law Of the state as early
as 1864. but gave up the experiment
In 1872.
New York also passed prohibitory
laws in 1854 and, after two years tri-
al, repealed them as hopeless Of en-
forcement.
In 1856 Maryland adopted prohibit
ton. but repealed the law few
| months later.
The same year Delaware tried pro-
hlbition, but gave up the attempt to
enforce the law In less than two
years.
Michigan for 20 years. by most ex-
traordlnary police laws, tried to en-
force prohibition and failed. She
went dry" In 1853 and wet" again
in 1875.
Nebraska adopted prohibition In
1856, but repealed Il the same year.
The legislature of Illinois enacted
a prohibitory law In 1856 but the law
was so unpopular that the people re-
pudlated II and its champions at the
polls in the fall OF the same year.
Iowa saw the inception OF state
wide prohibition In 1884. after trial
of partial prohibition since 1855. In
1893 the Iowa legislature enacted the
mulct law, which has the effect Of To-
cal option in communities where pro
hibition Ia not desired by the MAORI
~.
Kansas adopted prohibitory laws In
1882 and is still in the dry" column.
Tennessee Is dry" by statute, and
II is confidently expected that the law
will be repealed at the next session
OF the General Assembly.
North Dakota adopted prohibition
In 1889 by the scant majority OF 1859,
South Dakota went dry" in 1889,
but the state returned to license In
1ss6.
The states which have gone back
to local option simply discovered that
prohibition could not be enforced In
districts and communities where the
people didn't want IT, Florida ex'
pressed itself on statewide prohibi-
ton In a statewide election. and II IA
mot likely that any attempts TO press
the proposition In that state will be
made In the near future.