Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1914-10-31
THE DRY CAMPAIGNS In THE
WEST.
BY William q. Johnson.


ton has ben initiated oy the people.
These states are Oregon, Washing
ton, California, Colorado, Ohio and
Arizona.
In each Of these states, save Wash
ington, the issue is constitutional
amendment. In that state, the peo-
pie initiated complete statute.
There are now ten states under
statewide Prohibition Maine, Kan
sas, North Carolina, North Dakota,
Tennessee, Georgia. Mississippi, Ok
lahoma, West Virginia. The Virginia
law, however, was enacted by the
people on September 20 and will not
go into effect until next year. The
Virginia vote was about two to one
dry. West Virginia entered the dry
column last July by vote Of about
three to one.
In the six states that vote on the
question next month, all are dry in
their rural sections, the saloons be-
ing confined to the towns and cities
and, for the most part, to the large
cities.
For various reasons, the dry policy
has always been more popular in
rural sections. The lack of police
protection the larger proportion Of
home people and the more RESPONSE
BILE character Of the population has
naturally resulted in the rapid spread
Of dry territory in rural districts un-
til Prohibition has become almost the
universal policy in country sections
all over the United States.
There has been another reason for
the hostility Of the farming classes
to the license policy. In almost
every case, the towns. cities and
municipalities get all of the license
revenue while the expense Of Grim
inal courts, iails. asylums, penlten-
tiaries Is assessed against the tax
payers as a whole. In this way, the
farming classes are compelled to pay
taxes to take care of the product Of
the saloons in the cities, which cities
get all Of the license money there
from.
Another factor Is that the farmers
sons and daughters 20 to the cities
for their higher education and TO
enter the trades or business. This
is another reason why the rural class
or are interested in the conduct and
welfare Of the cities.
The fact that very large part Of
crime, pauperlsm and insanity Is due
to drink Is almost universally con-
ceded, the exact proportion being only
in dispute. It Is within the common
knowledge of all that n very great
proportion Of human Ills is on ac-
count Of drink. The only question at
issue Is, what the people are going To
do about IL.
Some people regard drunkenness aa
inevitable, that drinking lntoxcants
Is natural and unpreventable and In
sist that the way TO deal with the
problem 10 TO recognize II as u per-
manent factor in raising revenue
from II for public purposes.
The drys believe that no vice OF
evil Is necessary or inevitable and do
clare that the way to deal with the
problem Is to fight Il, prohibit tho
traffic In drunkenness and do all in
the power OF the state to stamp out
i tho buainega,
II ls frankly admitted that tho pro-
hlbitlon policy win not wholly oradi-
cate drinking and drunkenness, Just
40 no crime is wholly eradlcated by
laws prohibiting Il. Laws against
murder have prevailed for thousands
Of years and yet a large. number OF
murders are committed in every state
each year in direct violation OF these
prohibition laws. The drys scout at
tho idea Of licensing murder
The lIquor interests raise the cam
palgn cry that more liquor la sold in
dry territory than In license territory
is not seriously considered when Il Ia
patent that n more llduor was sold,
the greater would be the profit OF the
people engaged IN the traffic, A mer-
chant ordinarily will not spend
money TO ourtail his own business.
II is a curious fact that no whisky
whatever In manufactured in either