The Guthrie daily leader. [volume] (Guthrie, Okla.) 1893-1996, 1911-12-16
DEFEAT FOR
LOCAL OPTION
PREDICTED
specIal 10 me paily Leader

Speclal 10 the Daily Leader. ,~
Oklahoma City. OKLA. Dec. 1G--Con-
ference of attorneys of Oklahoma
TO be held here ON December q with
view of determining how far-reach-
ing is the decision Of the United
States cirerit court of appeals at ST.
Louis in the Friedman case, respect
I ing the shipment into and the poss IS.
sion OF Intoxicating liquors in that
portion of Oklahoma formerly Inci IN
Territory.
If the contention of some of those
interested in the case is correct, the
eastern half of the state Will remail
dry for twenty-one years from the
admission of the state into ire
Union, or as far as the federal gov
ernment is concerned until the sec
tion ceases to be Indian country .
In that event the old order OF regula-
tion exercised prior to statehood Will
be restored and would make 1t prac-
tically impossible to secure liquor nm
less il be carried into the state In
grips or hauled in wagons.
Situation More Certain
The situation is made more certain
by reason OF recent act OF con
gress requiring that ali liquors going
into local option or prohibition cis-
tricts by Interstate commerce be Ia
beled. showing the contents and by
standards of the Friedman cas- car
riers are prohibited from acce)tinS
such shipments into former Indian
Territory. The case arose from ac-
tion of Fort Smith liquor dealer of
mandamus to compel the United
States Express company to sccept
shipments of liquor TO points in form
er Indian Territory, which the com
pany resisted on the ground that be
acl of congress of 1897 was con.inu-
cd "a force by the enabling &C thus
destrcl ing the legitimacy OF IiQdor 1s
an item of interstate commerce 9h'
district court gave the m ladAHtls
and this was overruled by the cir
cult court and ordered dismissed
T he shipment in question was gcieg
to Manford, located in Weste'1 C-rsk
county. The following stateme1l
was made by s. T. Bledsoe If ;ue
firm of Cunningham & BledSoe, At
torneys for the United States Express
company:
Act of 1897
THE courts opinion IS based up
on the right OF the government to
continue the act of 1897 in force as
t. Indian Territory upon its para
mount authority to protect the In
dams against the use Of ln,oXicatES
liquors. whether such Iniia E.aV or
nay not reside within the boundary
OF any state. However, the cplnlon
is rot entirely clear as to whether II
antilles ia the entire limits o. Wrat
was formerly the Indian Territory or
only to lands to which the uja IS II
the government of the United States
or the Indian tribes, or allotted lanis
as to which there are restri ct-ons an-
on alienation. This uncertainty, per-
haps, arises to certain extent nom
the failure of Friedman & Co, TO
state with certainty any OF the facls
in relation to the town Of Manford.
The decision is, however. capable ol
being interpreted so as to restore 80
far as the indian Territory is con-
cerned approximately the conditions
existing prior to statehood. In addl-
ton to the restoration Of conditions
existing prior to statehood under sec
tions 23g and 240 of the federal pen-
al code on package containing intox- |
icating liquors rendered for shipment
interstate must show thee haracter
and quantity of the. contents.
This would certainly make prohi- |
bition effective in what was former
" the Indian Territory. The carriers
are only interested in finding out
what tne courts definite holding is,
then following it.