New-York tribune., 1911-09-24
THE PROHIBITION MOVEMENT
History of It's Progress in Twenty
States of the Union.

That the prohibition wave "Il'H '"NFN
over the South a few years ago mas spent
itself is shown by the clamor arising III
Southern States for the repeal OF pro"ipi-
tion laws. according to a summary prepared
by The Tampa (F'la) Union Alabama
at the session Of the Legislature recently
adjourned repealed a statewide prohlDltlon
law. The General Assembly has conVeheu
I'm Georgia and indications point 10 re-
neal of statewide prohibition in that state
Tennessee would have returned TO the
wet column this year had 1t not been ior
tho eieht of the prohibition minority In the
legislature out of the state 10 prevent a
quorum voting on the repeal.
There are now eight states in the Union
I'm which statewide prohibition prevails.
They are Maine, North Carolina Georgia
Mississippi. Tennessee, oklahoma, Kansas
and North Dakota. Oklahoma is demanding
sDecal election to repeal consutuuohai
prohibition some time before the next gen.
eral election At the last election IN Maine
Governor Plaisted and wet Legislature
were elected on a resubmission issue.
The return of the legalized sale OF liquors
I'm the Southern States on the local optlon
principle is repetition of the history OIL
every state I'm the Union when at one
time tried statewide prohibition.
Maine adopted prohibition in 1916, repealed
4, in 1876 readopted II I'm 1853, and appears
TO have repealed it again this year.
Vermont went dry in 1852 and MAIN
talned most drastic prohbitOry laws for
fftv wears on her books The laws were
repealed in 1902, with the representative
mon of the state supporting the repeal.
ii, aI ctQ
bitiors in 1865. and on March Is, 1903, passed
a license bill by vote of PA to l0'
Massachusetts, tried prohibition from lsoo
to 1870.
In 1853 Rhode Island adopted prohibition
and repealed the law in 1863. In 1886 she
adopted prohibition again and at the polls
i'm June 1889, the people repudiated 1t by
majority of Is, ,597 out OF a total vote of less
than $4,000.
Connecticut placed prohibition in the or
ganic law of the state as early as 1894, Dur
gave up the experiment in 1872.
New York also passed prohibitory laws
in 1854 and after two years trial, repealed
them as hopeless Of enforcement
In 1875 Maryland adopted prohibition, but
lepealed the law few months later.
The same year Delaware tried prohibi-
ton. but gave up the attempt TO enforce
the law I'm. less than two years.
Michigan. for twenty-five years, by most
extraordinary police laws, tried to enforce
prchibition and failed. She went dry In
1853 and wet" again in 1870
Nebraska adopted prohibition i'm 1850, but
repealed it the same year
The LEGISLATURE of Illinois enacted pro-
ribitorv law i'm 1855, but the law was so un-
POPULAR that the people repudiated it and
it's champions at the polls In the fall of
the same year
Iowa saw the inception of statewide pro-
bibition in 1854. after trial of partial pro-
bihItion since 1865. In 1898 the Iowa Lesis-
lature enacted the mulct law, which has
the effect Of local option in communities
where prohibition IS not desired by the
majority.
Kansas adopted prohibitory laws in 1852
and is still i'm the dry column.
Tennessee is dry" by statute. and it is
confidently expected that the law VIII be
repealed at the next session Of the Cen
eral Assembly.
North Dakota adopted prohibition in 1889
by the scant majority Of 1,l59.
South Dakota went dry in 1879 but the
state returned To license in 1896
The states which have gone back TO
local option simply discovered that prohibi-
ton could not be enforced in districts and
communities where the people didn't want
il. Florida expressed itself on statewide
prohibition in a statewide election, and II
is not likely that any attempts TO press
the proposition in that state will be made
In tho near future