New Britain herald., 1917-01-16
LET THE PEOPLE RULE.

LET THE PEOPLE RULE. Nationwide prohibition and equal l suffrage are two vital issues before the public mind The former has l been brought to the immediate at tention of the country again because of the recent decision of the United
 States Supreme Court on the Webb
 Kenyon Bill. The latter Is now in
 evidence because of the insistent at- titude of the silent sentinels'' doing guard duty around the White House.
 Both are worthy Of debate from social and moral stand- points.
 There are two ways to bring about nationwide prohibition and equal suffrage in all states of the union. The one way. and the democratic way. is by action in the separate and individual states. The sweeping way is by an amendment to the Federal constitution. The advocates of 3 dry nation would sooner have their ideas thrust upon the rest of the
 
 Constitution. This method would re- uuire action by the national Congress and ratification by three-fourths of the state legislatures. The same ap- plies true to the suffrage. Oppo- nents to nationwide prohibition and equal suffrage are calling for a hear ing of the cases by the people in the states. Their claim is In keeping with democratic form of government. From the very foundation of this na- ton until now we, as a people, have carefully refrained from forcing our ideas upon each other unless the majority is consulted and acts fa- vorably. Except in the case of the District of Columbia where the people have no vote. this holds true through- out the country. Men who have never tasted liquor in any form. as in the case of the two senators from Massachusetts, are against instituting nationwide prohibition by an amend ment to the constitution. To be against prohibition for the reason that 1t should not be enforced by an action in which the people have no voice is merely an complication of democracy. To be against woman suffrage for the same reason does not necessarily denote an enemy to "the cause"
 If the people of the United States want nationwide prohibition, and there are a great many of them who do, there is no power on earth strong from being created. If the men of the country are satisfied that the women should vote they will event.
 ually yield before the insistent de- mands that are being made; but they
 would rather consider the case state
 by state. The arguments against nationwide prohibition and equal suffrage brought about by an amend
 ment to the Federal constitution are
 the same They all evolve back to
 the question of state rights. Now | that the United States Supreme Court has decided that the Webb-Kenyon law is constitutional, and that the Federal laws will not hamper any state in it's efforts to keep liquor on the outskirts, one of the real argu-
 ments for. nationwide prohibition is taken away. It has been previously contended by some advocates of a 'dry'' nation that all efforts went for nought since wet states could fur
 nish liquor to territories already visited by a drought. To insure pro- lection for the states whose people had voted them dry these pro-
 ponents of prohibition wanted the en-
 tire country in the same boat. Any state that Is ''dry" now or intends to
 be so in the future need have no fear that prohibition within its confines will not prohibit. Because of this. because the states that arc dry can