The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1916-01-03
United States Greatly At
fected By Referendum De-
cision Sought in Courts
Big Revenue Derived By
Liquor Sales.

| fecting national, state and municipal
revenues and legal controversies have
grown out of the enactment of state
wide prohibition laws in Colorado. eff
fective January 1, 1915. Legal Ques-
lions involve efforts to obtain a. ref
erendum vote on the statutory penalty
law and the right of cities operating
under special charter to regulate their
liquor traffic.
Under the peoples mandate gwen
at the general elections Nov 8, 1914,
Ii breweries and more than. 1900 sa-
looms will be closed, cutting off more
than a million dollars revenue of fed
eral, state and municipal governments
annually received in various forms OF
taxation.
Prior to the adoption of the consti-
tutional amendment q large portion OF
northern Colorado was dry territory
under the local option law passed In
1907 Colorado Springs, third largest
city, excluded saloons, the late Gen
eraI William L. Palmer, who lalo out
much of the land upon which the city
was built, having barred saloons in
deeds to property
The vote of Colorado electors Nov.
g. 1914, on the prohibition 'constitu-
tional amendment was: For. 1883;
against, lis, OFT. Denver alone returned
a s'wet'' majority, the figures favortng
=
George A. Carlson an avowed adj
herent Of the ssdrys,'' was elected gov
ernor at this time.
The ensuing legislature enacted a
measure designed to enforce the pro
hibttion amendment and to provide
penalties for it's violation This law
was enacted by<a unanimous vote in
the senate.
The law prohibits manufacture, ~aIe,
or giving away of liquors, put pro
vides that liquor may be secured for
sacramentaL private and medicinal
use, under certain restrictions. Pur-
chasers for sacramenta1 purposes are
required to pay an annual license fee
of 81. Physicians are permitted to is
sue only numbered prescriptions which
must state the date and hour and
specify the malady of the patient The
prescription must not call for more
than four ounces of liquor, is not valid
after 48 hours and cannot. be ref1lled.
Wholesale druggists must pay an an
nua1 license of 800 and retail drug
gists IS, to ha@d1e intoxicants. Pri-
waite consumers may receive liquor
through common carriers. signing a
receipt in the form of an af1idavtt
showing the goods are for no other
purpose than medicinal or private con-
SUMPTION Each package must be la
be11ed to Indicate its contents and a
fee is charged to cover the cost Of Ill
ing a record of deliveries with the sec
rotary of state, required monthly of
railroads and quarters of firms hand
ling liquor.
Violators are subject to severe PEN
a1ties. First offenses are made mis-
1demeanorsS carrying fines of 500 to
$500 or Jail sentence Of 30 days to
six months, or both. Second or subse-
quent offenses within Eve years are
made a felony, punishable by a PEN
itentiary sentence of from one to three
years. for an individual, or a fine of
81, 600 to 50, 600 for corporations. Off
GERS refusing or neglecting to enforce
the law are subject to beng ousted
from office.
Advertising or. soliciting fntoxicat-
ing liquor Tor sale is -ohibited.
Any building used for Illegally hand
ling liquor is subject to. being closed
by the courts. Liquor.-or liquor con-
tanners found, on the property are to
be held without property rights pend
ing the decision of the court
AS to civil liability, the law provides
that any person injured or whose
prouerty or means of support has suf-
fered at the hands of an Intoxicated
person shall have right of action
against any person or firm that ille7
ga1ly furnished the liquor.
At the Denver city election May 49,,
1915, the electors by a vote of 81. 372 to
Is, TYP authorized the addition of an
amendment to the charter empowering
city officials to issue saloon licenses
and assume general supervision Of Ii
quor traffic. The enactment Of the
friendly suit to determine the consti-
tutionality of such legislation by cities
operating under special charter and at
the request of Governor Carlson the
supreme court accepted original jurts-
diction in an action brought to PIE
SriIf inc
a saloon license to August Koch. ex-
tending beyond Jan, 1, 1916.
Counsel for the state argued that it
possessed authority to enforce the con-
stitutionaI and legislative prohibition
enactments and that cities operating
under~ special charter had no more
right to adopt legislation in +contraven-
ton than they had to provide penal
ties for murder or other crimes. At
torneys for the city held that the
charter, granted by the legislature,
gives the city authorities peculiar DOW
ers with reference to liquor super
vision as well as other matters of mu-
nicipa1 government.
Prior to the, fling Of the suit, OPP
ponents Of prohibition fled with the
secretary of state a petition seekin g
submit the prohibition penalty law to
a referendum at the next general cleo
ton Secretary John E. Ramer re-
fused to accept the petition on the
ground that it contained a safety
clause'zz-a proviso stipulating that the
measure, is, necessary to 1.-The imme-
diate preservation of the health, peace
and safety of the commonwealth
Under Colorado's initiative and refer
endum law the safety clauseiA mGx
be attached to any BILL and was de-
signed to prevent referendums. Sec
rotary Raner was upheld in the dis
trict court in mandamus proceedings
to compel acceptance of the petition
and this was appealed to the supreme
court.