Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1917-02-01

to the bill in its present form. The rea-
sons given showed that II the clause al
lowing innkeepers licenses was changed
to prohibit these, the vote would have
given a majority in tavor of the bill. Prac-
tically all of the ballots which carried
reasons showed that this was the obicc-
ton to the measure. That this is true is
shown by the result of the first vote.
"The student body undoubtedly opposes
the open saloon as shown by the first
vote The second vote appears to contra
dict the first but the difference is explain
ed by the opposition to the clause discrim-
mating in favor of the innkecpcrs which
would make the bill ineffective.
"(SiEned)
John r. BERRY.
'F. w. HACkETT
"R. f. JOYCE,
Committee
The chapel. where the meeting was held.
was taxed to its capacity. President Guy
Potter Benton, at the request OF n special
committee appointed to look into the
measure and bring it to the unions atten-
ton, gave "A long. somewhat impassoncd
address in which he expressed his APP
prevail of the bills aims. He said he
hoped the students would send a repre-
sentative to Montpelier to speak for the
Oill at the coming hearing, or at least
pass a vote against the open saloon. He
said he believed the bill would pass. but
THAT was q matter beyond the RESPONSE
blitN of himself and the union
Practically all of the eight or ten speak
ers were seniors. President +. r. Church.
i'll Of the senior class presided and J. f.
Berry opened the discussion in behalf of
the committee. He and his colleagues, he
said had decided to throw the question
open to general discussion in order not to
continc it to debate by n few. Tho COM
mittcc was unanimous in asking President
Benton to speak to the union on the
bicct.
Or. Benton said he ''likcd to think Of
himself primarily II teacher, a school
master" This. then, was his hour" and
he intended to take what time he needed
and give the students plenty Of time for
the discussion.
He had no intent to dictate to the stu
dents what action they should take: and
he had had no intimaton that the bill was
to be introduced until he read of it in the
Free Press. However, he was glad that
men outside of the city, 'the rectitude Of
whose motives cannot be doubted" had
brought forward the reform. In spite OF
the general wording of the bill there was
no doubt as to it's special application to
tho university He had met the author
of the bill, he said. and the latter had
| asked him whether the students would be
willing to send a representative to the
capital to back the bill when it was heard
| The students were doubtless famiia r
with the opinion of Chief Justice White
Of the United states supreme Court, up
holding the constitutionality of the Webb
Kenyon bill. which prohibited the export
| Of liquor from a dry into a wet state. He
| assumed also that the students knew OF
| the widely prevailing sentiment through
| out the country against tho liquor traffic.
| The Harvard Union already had voted
| against the open saloon.
| The op0osition's reasons in favor Of the
| saloon were: / Tina, 80 people of the
State had voted for local option In fact
| llm voters had expressed themselves
against the liquor traffic, while the people
of the towns were against the open sa-
| loon. II. That the city had vote in favor
| of the saloon system. But the students
had not voted on the question. And so
| far as the city was concerned, the uni
verSity was a State institution. The uni
verSity had made the city and not the city
the institution. At the same time the city
had shown its appreciation of the univer-
sity by giving it half a million dollars
| The students on the other hand spent
5000 "A week in the city.
The president said his approval Of the
Hunt bill was not due To the fact that it
would safeguard the students The stu
dents as "a whole didn't need such protcc-
ton. Only a few men needed it, ten, say.
But the compact said to have been made
by loc;.l iquor-sellers to protect students
was worse than scrap of paper" They
did sell to minors Every year there were
students who were 'VictimiZed by the
open saloon" The University of Illinois
had passed u four-rnle law several years
ago and Cambridge hadn't had an open
saloon for years. DIR, Benton said his
chief reason for opposing the liquor traf-
hc was that ne saloon and an educational
institution ha nothing whatever in COM
mon. tnivcr tiles were designed to pro-
mote physcal and mental development
and the sal on was an "unsocalizing
force opposi < such ends. II don't ask
any quarter from the Saloons he de.
clarcd vehel lcntly, and didn't propose &c
give any qu lrter
President John Hitchcock of the v NJ
G. A., who followed President Benton
spoke hric ~ ON the rights which people
of the ". ious communities in the St?t,
possessed to have their sons welfare
guarded v'llc in college.
II. T. Way. the next speaker. discussed
the que on from several points of view
lil' lb'l' ne l''u VI SNCIl "A law, lis Ell
feet ct He 7aemed opposed to the bill
II. ! Powers thought few l.. V. NJ
men f.ank IN open saloons.
T. chatterton though, there was n,
more need to safeguard college student!
than high school students
T. X. Johnson a junior, gave by far tn,
best speech for or against prohibition, ano
said that President Benton had told hin
, privately the exception made of hotels an,
pharmacies within the nve-mile radiu.
would be struck out. The author OF TN.
bill had informed the president that /
would be altered as he saw fit. Presiden
Ira l.. Reeves had told him, johnson, tina
he favored the bill Mr.. Johnson auotec
ilgures to show that local option mean
) more crime, less savings in the banks
and even higher tax rate sometime
: than prohibition in towns where both ha,
been tried
: James L. Jameson said he had neve
heard more inspiring 45-minute speccl
man that of President Benton. But tn
bill was discriminatory In making an ex
ception Of hotels and pharmacies. Mr.