The times-news. [volume] (Hendersonville, N.C.) 1927-current, 1937-05-15
SOME OF THE RESULTS OF LEGAL
lied LIQUOR TRAFFIC
MINISTER'S and MISSIONARIES

We quote from the Ruthertordton news,
edited by that sterling citizen and distin-
guished civic leader, R. E. Price:
Dr. Holland HOtOn, head of the School of Edu-
cation of Duke University. director of the Duke
Summer School and leading member of the faculty
Of that great university resigned recently as
member of the Board of Education of Durham
county when that county voted for liquor stores
on April 81 Dr. Holton for years has been men,
Der of the Board of Education of Durham county
and at one time was county superintendent.
DR.. Holton's letter in part to the chairman of
the board on April 80 follows:
please transmit this my resignation as men,
Der of the Board of Education TO the members OF
the board and see that it is properly Incorporated
in the minutes As you know, the liquor laws
impose upon the members of the Board of Educa-
ton the task of acting with the board of health
and county commissioners, in choosing the liquor
officials for counties that vote to go into the busi-
ness of selling Intoxicating beverages. | do not
believe this is a proper function of the board of
education and am convinced further from study
extending over 30 years that of all bad ways of
handling the difficult problems of regulating alco-
mol and other habit-formng drugs the worst is for
the state and county to make themselves financially
and politically interested in the business. / am
convinced that we shall see these three probable
results work themselves out in our North Carolina
counties:
/. A steady and overwhelming increase in drink
ing as we'll in Bookkeeping
= Steadily expanding expenditures of liquor
funds in primaries and general elections.
3. A steady tendency to frame" officials I'M
friendly to liquor, in order to coerce them to en-
courage the traffic.
am convinced also that the men who serve on
nd and unusually
good chance of being corrupted by the traffic they
are chosen to serve. That proved in South
Carolina in the most extensive experiment ever
made by state and county in trying to sell liquor
for profit, the so-called dspensary system,
named control. Being convinced that similar cor
ruption is already taking place in the liquor con-
trolled counties and will begin to take place in
Durham when our county goes into the business
l cannot conscientiously participate in choosing
to assist in the traffic"
DR.. Holton is to be highly commended Our
state needs more teachers like him. He is man
of convictions. He has given his life to help the
youth of our land He realizes the evils of strong
alcoholic drinks.
To the foregoing this newspaper desires
to add few lines of comment. DR.. Holton
makes three predictions as to the outcome
of State and county participation in the
liquor traffic under the present North Car
Dina ''hquor control law.
First, Dr. Holton predicts "a steady and
overwhelming increase in drinking as we'll
as in bootlegging" in counties where the
legalized traffic is established.
This is a reasonable and probable re-
suit. Dr. Holton refers to South Carolina s
experience under the dispensary system.
That regimes record is a matter of history.
What is the present state of the legalized
liquor traffic in South Carolina? We have
frequently quoted from the news and edl-
torial columns of South Carolina newspa-
pers, nearly all of them wet in their views
of the liquor traffic, to show that the plant
ing of liquor stores down there has vastly
increased drinking and, has probably IN
creased bootlegging, in many sections.
We quoted from The Greenville Pied
mont statement made by Sheriff Martin
of that county asserting that he estimates
there are 1000 bootleg joints and peram-
bulating bootleggers in Greenville county
In Greenville county are THIRTY licensed
liquor stores now doing business.
AS to conditions in North Carolina coun-
ties where liquor stores have been estab-
lshed, it is certain they parallel those
cited in South Carolina. This newspaper
has a large amount of information about
North Carolina conditions in the liquor