The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-08-23
Mir. Pratt's Account

'Tne south Carolina dlspensary was born in crookedness, was reared in graft and has been the greatest burden ever 'saddled on the public" said George w. Pratt, who was born and lived in South Carolina for more than B years The dispensary was put in the constitution by Ben Tillman in order that he might build up a political machine and remain forever in power. and how successful he has been Is everybody's knowledge. Votes of counties in the constitutional convention were held back until 1t was ascertained whether they were needed to carry the convention for dispensary and then they were voted according to the dictates of Tillman
 q say without fear of contradiction that 90 per cent of the dispensary com mission in South Carolina retired rich men. Their graft methods were many. It was found that they were In cahoots with the whisky houses, getting & rake off for selling certain goods; it was found that they were defaulters in great many instances; 1t was found that they bought noonshIne and rebottied it, selling it for legitimate makes and pocketing the money.
 Charleston had 173 open but unlicensed saloons running in opposition to the dis pensary, and many buying their goods from outside the state. The conditions became so bad that the grand juries of Charleston county, which met four times a year, publicly announced that they would not find true bills against the violators of the dispensary laws, because the laws were so obnoxious and so opposed to public sentiment
 Tn order to enforce the dispensary laws Tillman appointed a floating state police force of 2C0 men, who proceeded to search houses and commit other offenses against public morals, creating a reign of an- archy that was little. If any. better than the reconstruction days. These POO men also acted as a political machine for South Carolina's governor, organizing and upholding the reign of the crowd that had forced the dispensary on the state. This condition resulted in many murders, entire families being wiped out on several occasions.
 'I would say, conservatively, that the dispensary has cost South Carolina thou- sands of people in populations has made that state the laughing stock of the coun- has retarded the growth of the state at least 10 years: has created hundreds of criminals, many of whom have gone un- punished; has created hundreds of law suits against the state by those wishing to recover the money that the commis- sioners of the dispensary grafted.
 Recently conditions became so bad that the senate and house declared for county unit in deciding about dispensaries and pensary. This is the best evidence that can be had as to the evils of the dis pensary. There are five counties left with dispensaries, and they took the dis pensary in preference to being dry. It is a constitutional requirement that whis- ky can be served in South Carolina only through the dispensary. Every one of those counties would vote for the open saloon in preference to the dispensary If it were possible to do so.
 "The claim that dispensaries will build schools. reduce taxes, build roads, and, in fact, pay all the burden generally sad died on the people, has proven untrue fin every instance in South Carolina, as evi- denced by the fact that B counties out of AZ voted 1t out.
 'The United States government has to maintain an extra large force of revenue officers to keep down the moonshlners, who multiplied rapidly under the dis pensaryj and infested every mountainous county in the state.
 "The statements I make will be con- cured in by large majority of the peo- pie from South Carolina. I claim that the dispensary is a far greater evil than the open saloon, for I have had 39 years experience in dispensary state and know whereof I speak