The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1911-09-27
LIQUOR WILL BE
NATIONAL ISSUE
AuEsTIoS WILL BE PREs SEED
NEXT YEARS AS NEVER
BEFORE.
TO FIGURE IN CAMPAIGN
DEMoCRATfC PARTY ON RECORD
ALREADY AND NATIONAL pro-
HIBfT1oa wILx. LOOK FIRST
IN THAT DIRECTION.
TO FIGURE IN CAMPAIGN
BY VICTOR ELLIOTT.

over the repeal of constitutional pro
hibitton has brought the question to
the front again, and advocates OF the
anti liquor propaganda declare that
they VIII go further than they have
ever gone toward impressing the
country with the necessity of outlaw
ing the manufacture and sale OF in
toKicating spirits.
The manner OF presenting the issue
this time Will be changed In tho
past 1t has been the practice of the
prphihitionists to 20 before the coun-
try through the old and iaconsequen-
ual prohitdtion party They have
never, however, been able to get any
where through party Of their own,
and now propose to present their
cause to both the Democratic and
Republican parties,
Party platform that Is most favora-
BILE TO prohibition next year. there
fore Is guaranteed the influence of
tho anti-lfquor people. This promise
10 already given. and that it viii be
Kept Is one OF the few CertaInties Of
politics.
One of the strong hopes of the
prohibitionists lies In the weu-known
liquor views of the two leading can
didates for the Democratic nominal
ton. Governors Harmon. of Ohio, and
"
record as fayoring local option, and
have urged local option laws In their
respective States.
Turn to Democrats First.
The anti-liquor people will there
fore turn to the Democrats first They
Will try to capture State delegations
prior to the meeting OF the national
conye ntion, and will work hard to
send the convention enough pledged
votes to make plank against whis-
Key possible in the Democratic plat
form,
/ They will declare at the same time
That either Harmon or Wilson viii be
sa tisiactory to them as a candidate
on such d platform land will quote the
recorded views Of these two leading
Democratic candidates for support of
| their cause, Many OF the Southern
Estates have prohibition In one form
or another. and they Will be looked
to to lead an tho fight.
IN appealing to these Southern
States on the liquor question, how
eSsf, the prohibition people will en-
counter the argument that the South
eRners are for prohibition for them
seayes because Of local conditions. but
are not necessarily for ii as Il ma
+ uonal proposition. The negro and
his taae for bad whiskey caused the
wave Or local option to sweep over
the South. and nothing else did This
/ viii be one OF the things which the
nationalists in the prohibition move-
Inent Will have to recognise.
Should the auu-whiskey forces find
! that the Democrats are not willing
! to lead their fight, they will try the
| Republicans. The Republican party
has at this time no recorded anti
! liquor views, but 1t is urged that this
body of voters might be made to sec
| the advantage Of cultivaung such
, Hews> This Is especially true at this
time, when the Republicans seean to
ba on she losing side of the political
fence,
| ReEore making prohibition or local
onetqn or any other form Of anti
W hesaEey propaganda a party tenet,
tho leaders Of the two parties Will
weigh the losses and the gains con-
tingent upon such an act.
1t is widely known that the liquor
people are deep in politics. They
| put up large sums of money and
promise to deliver large blocks Of
votes in every State and city OF i'm
portance In the country where their
business Ii an issue. Should the legal
| ICED selling of whiskey become
national ISSUE they could go even
and their share of the woes
Democrats Are Recorded.
| As against this the prohi bitionists
| would urge that there are in every
! community in the country thousands
! OF persons who would vote for either
| the Republican or Democratic ticket
| that might happen to favor the cause
OF constitutional prohibition. These
voters. 1t is argued, would vote this
way in spite of any beliefs they might
have as to economic or other political
| questions
| And thus 1t happens that both the
LIQUOR and the anu-liquor people have
som ething substantial 10 offer the
party most favorable to their views
| upon -fiqaer- selling
Az for candidates and their attitude
| toward this question, the positions
taken by tho two Democrats Is re-
ferred to because they have recently
| been recorded, Not long ago Cover
| nor Wilson stated that he was for
| local option. He said, however, that
Inc question OF whiskey Is a moral
and not IA political one. He did not
aay. however. that It could not be-
come a political issue.
] Governor Harmon has been for To-
ca, option during his two terms as
chief executive OF Ohio. He has stood
on this proposition and when the
| whfsk ey people put forth their strong
| est efforts to defeat him for re-elec-
| ton he caYried the States for more
! than the majority received In his first
! election. This fact. the anti-hquor
! people contend, ought to show what
such an issue could do in a great ma
tional campaign.
/ In tho past the local opuonists
have confined most of their efforts
against intoxicants to the various
| States. They have organized power
All anti-saloon leagues and have
| worked through these organizations
| Nationally they have done but little
except to urge laws which would
make State prohibition moro etfec-
| tive. They have asked that Con-
rress prohibit the shipment Of liquor
| into dry territory and to prohibit the
manufacture OF liquor in states that
! have voted II out
| Now. however, the prohtpidonists
| feel that tho time has come to strike
! for an amendment to the Federal
I Con~ttuttop which will drive that
,raff,c out OF the country. To com-
/ init a great national party TO such
Drovram would certainly be an
4 achievement worth while, and II this
! comes to pass the anti-saloonists can
reasonably hope for satisfactory re-
/ suits In the future