The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1917-10-03
ASST. ATTORNEY GENERAL SAPP GIVES OPINION
AS TO THE STATUS OF Shoe POLISH AND
LEMON EXTRACT AS A BEVERAGE

quors mean anything or will the
court disregard them and go off into
CONGRATULATIONS of what Intoxicating.
liquors mean?
"ln reply thereto / beg to advise
that it is not the purpose of this Of
flee to add or to detract anything that
is contained in the constitution Or
statutes of this state, it being the
sole purpose of this office to enforce
the laws as they are passed by the
Legislature and written upon the stat
ute books, and this Office stands ready
and willing at all times to exert it's
best efforts in enforcing the prohibi-
ton laws as written for the purpose
OF safeguarding the citizenship
against the evils of intemperancc.
Il am thoroughly convinced that
the words of our statute on the sub
ject of prohibition mean exactly what
proper construction by discrimi-
mating court would construe them to
mean upon question Of fact deter
mined by an intelligent jury, but my
opinion is for what it is worth, that
it was not in contemplation of the
legislature, in passing the prohibition
act, to entirely disregard the rights
and welfare of the households of this
state in the matter of securing bona
fide medicines, preparations or Gull
nary articles, and l do not believe
that any intelligent jury in this state
would declare medicines or culinary
preparations, which are primarily for
use as such an dso recognized by
standard authorities, to be in.oxicat-
ing liquors and thereby fall within
inhibited class as prescribed by the
statute, because perchance some sot
or glutton might be able to drink
enough of such preparations to be-
come intoxicated in rare incidents;
in other words, because of the fact
that occasionally some person would
so crave the effects of alcohol to such
an extent as to drink camphor, lemon
extlact, or shoe polish (Which last
named article l am informed that a
fore the recorder of Columbia on the
charge of being intoxicated claimed
was the Intoxicating liquor response
bit for his condition), do not believe
that these recognized, necessary
household articles, which cannot be
denied to be necessary and beneficial
to the citizens of the state, should be
outlawed in prohibition crusade
against the evils of intempcrance,
nor do / believe that any intelligent
jury in South Carolina would so out
law these and many other legitimate
preparations which contain alcohol.
for the sole reason that it might be
possible that some individual could
become intoxicated from their use.
Our statute prohibits the use, as
stated by you, of any compound or
mixture, by whatsoever name known
or called, which contains more than
one per cent of alcohol and is used
as beverage and will produce in
toNication, if drunk to excess, but
these words, in my opinion, are sus-
ceptiblc to and properly should be
reasonably construed and for this
very reason, in my former opinions
to you on this subject, 1 have refused
to concur in the idea Of proceeding
against drug stores or other parties
dispensing these articles by injunc-
ton and have insisted that a question
of this kind should properly be pre-
sentcd to jury in order that all the
facts and circumstances connected
with the matter may be intelligently
applied to the law as construed by
the court and thereby prevent the
enforcement of the criminal statutes
by injunction.
"Hoplng | have made clear my po-
sition in the matter, l am
"Yours very truly,
"CLAUD N. SAPP,
cSictopt