The Lancaster news. [volume] (Lancaster, S.C.) 1905-current, 1917-11-13
VERSUS LIQUOR
CERTIFICATES.


ing the month of October the re-
cords show that approximately five
hundred permits were issued in this
county, and for the first week Of
November, only sixty-five were is
sued. We have no hesitancy in say
ing that 1t is doubtful that the five
hundred quarts in October and the
sixty-five quarts in the first week
of the present month were used for
medicinal purposes, and yet it seems
that the number of permits issued
has been kept within reason. There
are twenty-six thousand people in
this county.
That the privilege is abused in
some sections Of the state is quite
natural. We are not familiar with
the details of the passage of the
prohibition law in South Carolina,
but we doubt not that the quart
shipment for medicinal use" feature
of the bill was a compromise. Pro-
hibition. as matter of fact, has
| worked best, in our opinion. in those
states where it was brought about
gradually. North Carolina, at first,
passed very mild prohibition law
and it has been necessary for sue
ceeding legislatures to strengthen it
from time to time. Virginia
clamped the lid down and nailed it
all at once. 1t cost a lot OF money
! in Virginia to enforce the prohibi-
ton law but that state is about as
dry as they ever get The legis-
lature provided for the office of
prohibition commissioner" a rath-
er large plum, a soft job and a fat
salary, and the commissioner had a
fund of, it we mistake not, fifty
thousand dollars to spend in en-
forcing the law during the first two
years of its operation. There are
two distinctivciy different methods
of bringing about prohibition and
both have been successful.
Some of the newspapers in South
Carolina are discussing the is
suance Of liquor permits and mostly
are inclined to the belief that the
prohibition law should be strength
ened and made more rigid. The
Newberry Observer puts forth the
argument that the fault lies in the
fact of allowing fees to those who
issue the permits The News does
not agree with the Observer on this
point, assuming that the right me..
are elected to the Offices where the
permits are issued. AS a genera,
proposition, ii could hardly be saiu
that the probate judges would en-
courage the issuance of permits i'm
order to increase their own bank
accounts. But, the Observer saws:
The grand jury of Chester coun-
ty SAYS there are "tOO MANY nermitS
which is true. And one reason there
are too many is that it is to the in
terest of too many persons that per
mits should be granted:
l. The probate judge is allowed
a fee for every permit he grants;
2. He is allowed a fee for every
affidavit he signs from an individual
who swears he needs liquor for med
icine.
3. And OF course the liquor-seller
makes a profit out OF every permit.
The law has curtailed very mate
rally the sale, and consequently the
drinking of liquor; but the law
should be drawn tighter together
with one or two amendments.
1t should be made impossible for
any officer to make anything out of
the liquor traffic. All affidavits to
obtain permits to buy liquor ought
to be made by some officer and free
and the permit Issued freely the
clerk of court preferably. rather
than the probate judge. The liquor
order should have tax OF Is or %
cents a quart imposed on 1t. and
collected at the delivering Office and
turned over to the county treasurer
monthly, with the report the eX-