El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1911-06-05
AAT|-PRO MEETING
IN TEXAS IS
VERY LARGE
CONTINUED from Page IL

1 - =
Continued from Page IL
safeguards around the liquor traffic
it has taken too long for the ablest
| thoughts of our best statesmen. to per-
feet a system of law which has stood
| the test of all the courts and stands to-
day unexcelled by any state in the
! American union, for us to- recklessly
throw overheard these splendid meas
/ ures in single day and replace them
with what is at best a costly expert
ment"
John Kirby's Argument
! John H Kirby, of Houston, in his
address said:
Il have been during all my life a
| consistent supporter of the proposition
/ of no license, that is 1 have always sup
/ ported prohibition in local option cleo
/ lions under our constitution and In
1887 in my youth and in my zeal for
J the cause of no license, l voted for an
amendment to the constitution seeking
to establish state wide prohibition.
That was "a years ago, nearly a
| quarter of a century, and in that time
I have had opportunity to investigate
this question in a larger way. 1t is my
/ deliberate judgment that the method of
treating the question provided under
our present constitution is decidedly
the most practical and the most efffca-
eious way yet devised.
'',The present constitution has been in
effect for substantially SO years In
that time there has been much legisla-
tion upon the subject and thousands of
cases in court testing out this legisla-
ton and developing our jurisprudence
as based upon our constitutional pro-
visions. We know what the law is in
this state. Our people have acted as
pioneers in shaping this new method
Of dealing with the liquor question and
l. for one, am proud of their achieve
ments. 1 am not willing to abandon
those achievements and quit the high
way of successful treatment of the
question and plunge into the expert
ment of statewideisn which, to my GER
tain knowledge, has been a substantial
failure in every state in which it has
been tried.
Against Majority Rule.
1T is not enough to tell me that the
majority should rule 1 concur in that
dostrine as heartily as any man living
but it has no appliance in this case
The doctrine of local self government
is superior. This question Of license
or no license is purely one of moral
The only reason why the people Of
Grayson county could be interested
whether Harris county licenses or does
not license bar rooms is based solely
upon the supposed interest the citizens
of Grayson county may have in the
morality and happiness of the citizens
Of Harris county I maintain that that
interest is so remote and ephemerai
that it should never be enacted intb
law"
Judge BeIps Argument.
c. K. Bell. former attorney general OF
Texas. said in part:
In obedience to a persistent demand
from a large and respectable portion
of the people of Texas, the present leg
islature has submitted a prohibition
voters of the state for their adoption
or rejection 2---a----4..+'
ALI must recognize the radical
change in our organic law which would
result from the adoption of the pro-
posed amendment.
For over a third Of a century the
legislatures of the state have been i'm
proving the local option laws until
they are now we'll near perfect. and it
has become possible to enforce them in
a reasonable degree where the senti-
ment in their favor is sufficiently
strong to put them into operation and
this has been done TO a very consider |
able extent
1.-The question now to be decided is:
Shall we try the experiment of state |
wide prohibition or shall we allow the !
laws to remain in force and effect I'M |
der which those who oppose the Ii |
censed sale Of intoxicating liquors can |
prohibit their legal sale in the political |
subdivisions of the state in which they |
are in the majority and under which if !
a majority of the voters in such politi- |
cal subdivisions oppose the prohibition |
of the licensed sale of liquors the bust |
ness of the liquor dealer can only be |
pursued by a limited number who have |
licenses authorizing them to |
engage in it and then only after. they /
have given bond to comply with. the /
laws under which the licenses are as /
sued
"a constant effort is beinbg made |
to create the impression that we are
to pass upon some other proposition,
Ou the only real issue which we are to
determine is the one stated, and when
he people so understand there can be
10 doubt but that they will prefer to
endure the ills they have. exaggerated
rs they are. rather than to fly to those
hey know not of.
Predicts Chaos in State.
cit is well to consider the immediate
Effect OF the adoption of the prohibit
ion amendment to our constitution.
"All of our local option laws would
noreDy De repeated as would be our
license laws. Between the time of the
ldoption of the amendment to the con-
titution and the time the Legislature |
would be assembled and pass the neces-
airy laws to prohibit the sale of in
oxicating liquors, utter chaos would
revail
How difficult it is to pass effective
avs of any kind and especially effect
We prohibition laws is well understood |
Y those of US who have had any ex-
erience in such matters. 1t was at
east 90 years after the adoption of
be present constitution before any
hing like satisfactory local option
lws, that could be reasonably we'll en-
breed, were adopted in our state
hese laws would be wiped out by the
doption of state prohibition.
And after all how do we know that
he Legislators that are to be elected
i'll be in favor of passing stringent ]
TVS to put into operation the prohi- 2
ltion amendment, if it should be {
1opted?'' !
Carlos Bees Speech. $
Carlos Bee. of San Antonio, said:
The advocates of prohibition have | 7
/ erroneous conception of government | +
I'd its purposes Government was not T
stituted to compel men to do any. c
f-arr "a