Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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' t v p if/ 1 itV'" ' ' & CABTBV | 4iMam*s& i'rtFMcp^jv : &-* <&* ?&s (>w fif i*? ?j?fiS? i\ ffflna^ ^pMflrffevaBMH^CBWMrttelJka^xtfJi. %.4^UMimaallww I ___" ? . ^ ....? r.-;^ t>r ^ jUii^WKlvKLY L A M O A 6 I E H. S. 0.. ,1 U JL Y 8, 1905 *-?? ^ ..? ~ VT^i^ "j" Senator Tillman's AtiiinriaI????.?.i? -? - ---* ' Toward the Dispensary? His V.ews Given at Length. Greenville, July 3..? Special to News and Courier: It had been accepted that Seuator Tillman would discuss the dispensary law and situation at^length iti hia speech here tomorrow Rut this ho will not do, his views being fully set forth it] his letter which is made public today. The letter possesses far reaching political significance iu Ort.lki. ri * ovum Carolina ana will De read with interest. It is as follows : senator tillman's letter. Trenton, July 1, 1905. Mr. Frances W. Higginson, Newberry, S. C. ? Dear Sir : 1 have your letter of June 28, propounding certain iuquiriet in regard to the anti-dispensary movement in Newberry and tc the dispensary and liquor ques tions in general, and to tny own attitude towards it. The questions jnu ask relate to the misinterpreted subject now agitat iug the minds of the people ol the State, and in order to oovoi the ground at all satisfactorily it will require me to answer nl some length and to discuss thi subject in its various phases, and this becomes the more necesear)' as you notify me in advr.nce that you desire mv answer foi publication I'lUCMISKS OF THE AHOUMKNT. 1 shall premise what I write by laying down certain general principles which will he disput eti ouly by those who are fanatical and unwilling to considei any subject from any other standpoint than that of bigotry and prejudice. Most men will agree to the followiu;; : 1. All men love stimulants and are usually slaves to some kind, as witness the strong appetite which prevails for coffee, tea, tobacco, beer, wine, brandy, whiskey, morphine, quinine, cocaine, etc. With the exception ' of some of the drugs mentioned the^e are no injurious effects immediately uorceutible and nnnn of tlieru intoxicate except those containing alcohol. Alcoholic beverages in moderation are not more harmful than tea or coffee, probably lesa so. 2 The abuse of liquor by men drinking to excess has caused as much or more crime and miaory than any other thing. 3. The proper policeing and control of the liquor traffic so as to minimize its abuses is one of niu niusi perplexing aua troublesome questions with which any government has to deal. Men have never agreed as to any one method being best and never will, and there is a constant agitation of the subject in some form going on all the while in almost every State in the Union. 4. Experience shows that some mou will have liquor as a beverage and that no law has ever yet been devised which will prevent them obtaining it Wise men are, thorofore, contont to r^fiuce the evils of liquor selling nnd liquor drinking to the minimum, and the question at issue in South Carolina now, as it has been those fifteen or twenty years, is as how to do this. NO NERD FOR PASSION. There is no need for any heat or passion in discussing the subject, and we should divest > uuiomwa ui tti( prejudice iu it's my , consideration. Three policies "9 have at one time or another been Co adopted in dealing with the "9 I question. License, high or low ; of I prohibition and the dispensary 19( system. Since 1893 tho last pu named has been the method fed- bai lowed in this State, but all alone tbero have been staunch advocates of the other two sysj P'( terns, embracing within their tltj ranks many of the mnst intoili- f(ir gent, and best people wo lmve. ,:0 Ii is, therefore, eminently prop- j?r I er that we recognize those earn- co, est, honest advocates as having n, just what we claim for ourselves, ( no other than that of the public a;j welfare. Aud thos.i of us who have been tho supporters of the L dispensary system must meet j i tnem in argument, and *how i } from experience through which the people of the State have (nr ) passed, as well as with force and ' logic, that the advocates of both (0 1 prohibition and high license are .ro ' in error. jie You ask, have you lest faith c0) " i*i the dispensary system, and' n ? # ? C' M do you consider it so inherent ly defective that it cannot !> *'. purged of corruption and niadej1(l, ' to serve its original purpose? ! ^ HAS NOT LOST IITS FAITH ! Wr. I answer most emphatically tin no, I believe the principle of L? State control and the sale of h A? quor through bonded officers 10 be the best tliat was ever clevis- i f01 eJ, that it comes nearer to the'i v*? 1 ideal idea of teaching men to j v. t [ use liquor instead of abusing it>iop ' and throwing around it safe-it u ' guards which will be the best rol " for the cause of temperance. th> There is no inherent defect in isV ' the scheme, and if there be cor- op ruption and maladministration air 1 in the enforcing of the dispen- wi sary law, it is directly traceable tin 1 to the Legislature, and to those NVI 1 who have been.placed in charge ' of its execution. In the absence fr>) of anv positive proof of corrup an tion we muat wait with deep in | 1C i terest the investigation which is now under way and urge those in charge of that important work wj to earnest, thorough and speedy Cft) 1 action. The people believe there is corruption and a great deal of tj it. Very many things go to r< ( ' show that this holief has good f?, foundation in fact. Wo ought to know as soon as possible just jp|, what and how far men have ppr 1 been guilty of unlawful be- tj)( havior. ha DISPENSARY UNDER A J*A LI*. ati The suspicion which now wf hangs over th9 dispensary like a pall will cause many to hastily bo vote for its destruction who are &hi still or have been, strong be- scl lievers in the dispensary system ter as a means of controlling tho tor sale of whiskey. So I wouid say Ge to the gentlemen who are in boi charge of the investigation that clu they can do tho people of the tht ; State a groat service by letting Le in the light and probing to the th< bottom. We want to know what! no 1 l is wrong, and wo can then tie- an termine how to provide a rem- sh: edy, while the criminal Courts J will or ought to provide punish- thi raont for the wrongdoers. am The dispensary law has boon su< under tire in the Conrts, and on tin the hustings over sinco the sys- up tern was inaugurated. There hae pei been only one general election on in the State, the last, in which it wi i was not an issue. It won vie- wn i tDry after victory, for it was the poi tin i^suo in tho election of < 4," in tho election for the 1 nstitutionnl Convention iu I 5," and in tho State election "90," ''9S" and 1900 and ] )2 Those candidates for < biic office, who carried its I oners were nl ways victorious. I WHY THIS UPHEAVAL ? < Whit their' has caused tho 1 ?sonc upheaval? Whyaropeiou3 circulated in a dozen or 1 >re counties asking for an elccri to voi" it out uudor the y'ee 1 ?w, and that, too, in jrHi-'"- in which its known adjati'3 h i.vn always had large ijoiitics? Have the people * v greater faith in Prohibition m thev have had all these st years? J do not think so. Are the advocates of high li? \so any stronger than* they vi! h en? 1 do not think so. I ) bound to believe that the exing di.-is iMsfantion and desire destroy tho disDOnsarv cornea - - J >m the well-nigh universal bs- i f of the people thnfc there ie i ^rupt'on in its administration' '\ (I because the last Legislature b d u take an y action other n to appoint a committee. to fasti gate. There were charg? with how much truth they o-e made I do not know, that dinn?*na.try influenco in the " ~ I .jislalure was paramount. |f how the friends of the die n??ary and its enemies joined, ce at the last session to preni anv Hc,t?on, and nothings is done, and unless public inion shall drive the Lagisfa- : . ' J -? at it; next session to sthnoV form ac ton, which will purify , atmosphere, there is ti i pos>1* doubt that nil elements of position to the dispensary, led hv tunny of its old friends, 11 combine in the next decn and It ill the system. ? EE NOT STAND 11V C<1!! IUT I'TION. t I do not hesit'.te to toll you j inkly that if it. 1;as become, , d is to remain e. corrupt polit- ( 1 machine as charged, T can- x t defend it and will not do so, x t will join the ranks of those j to seek to kill it. I heli? ve it j a be reorganized and purged ( corruption w ith s ifeguards r rown around it to prevent the t jurrenco of the present unfor- j ti ate and disgraceful condition , affairs. I cannot now go at ( igth into the details and give ( vaons, but I will state briefly i causes, as T see them, which vo produced the present situon. e 1 [AT JIAS CAUSED TIIAT TROUI1LE. rhe purchase of liquor by any ard ex officio or otherwise ou!d he stopped. The original ( letr:", which was hastily gott up, made the Governor, At ney General and Comptroller ueral ex-officio, the State I ard of control. This was angerl very soon after I left ) Governor's office, and the j gielature assumed control by I. ) election of the board, and in instance since ban my advice d opinion bad any weight in ?p;ng its utanagetnent, though havo tried to prevent some u;,h which wore being done d have urged others without J icesa. It stands to reason U men who h.ivo to depond , on the suffrage of the whole 1 Dpio to get high oflice are, or ght to be, of n higher type, ( th bettor characters, in every | y better fitted for responsible < sitions involving the handling t af public money, than those who, with petty salaries, are elected Legislature. Politics always enters into a Legislative election. People who yotfi tor a Governor vote for him because of other qaulifications lhan that he would make a good lispensary diroctor, and for th 16 rery reason the (lovoruor is the ueet possihlo man to place in men a responsible position. DKFKCTf# OF T1TK LAW. But the law is fatally defective in regard to the purchase of whiskey in not spocifically defining in the moat minute and biodir.g manner ju9t what kinds af liquor shall ho bought and bow it shall be bought, without leaving it to the discretion of any board. Every detail should So woiked out, and then the Caw would execute itself as far is that feature is concerned. Too hoard would then need only to suporviso the conduct of State and couuty dispensers, tho same as the Asylum and Penitentiary are run. OU.IKOTS TO COUNTY ELECTIONS. Hut as regaies tho proposed elec lion to vote out the dispensary. If the dispensary is to he voted out it should, and must, he voted out. of the state, not by individual counties. Of^course, I recognize the deep-seated love of tho people fori cul self govet nmer.t, and 1 won id not compel any county to i stain the dispensary or have one established therein if a majority of their citizensjwanted pro liihiti in, with its acknowledged failure to prohibit. Hut, judging simply by tho facts in the numerous elections that havo been Ik Id on the subject, I boliovo that t largo majority of the people of Ihe state are as strong believers n the dispensary system as I am, ind that they aro only casting ibout now for n method of reioving themselves of the con opt nuchine, which is said to ho in jhargo 111 Columbia. Many states n tho Union have had corruption n their State G ivernments and heir State Treasurers havedefaul ,ed, have sometimes stolen liunirods of thousands of dollars, but 10 man has ever thought of tnxaion l)3causo of this. We have got ,o ileal with liquor some in form ind provide for its legitimise sale ir we know it will find illnoriti n ? iiate. OBJFCT TO IIIGII I-ICEN9*. Shall wo have high licenso? I >ay no. That gives the monopoy to the wealthy man as against he poor man, and we know from jxperienco of bar rooms that it willbe impossible* to give any man ho right to fill his store with liquor to hoII, and then have him comply with the constitutional requirements and not sell it at night and not havo it drunk on the premises. If the disponsary is abolish3d 1 will stump the State for prohibition rather than see high lijense. I have said this, and it is the reason, probably, that the itory is going the rounds about tnv stumninc for Prrthihifinn nr 0 i n " w *" high license either, I ex poet, if my hoalth continues good, to a;ive a very earnest discussion to the subject of how to reform the dispensary instead of destroying it, find to showing the true in* wardnoss of the present movement Let us suppose that the present campaign against the dispensary by county olections shall progress notoriously, as it has thus far,and that tho majority of the counties I in the State vote it out. Will l tho question bo settled! By no t men us. Tho alliance of ldrohibi- s tionists, high licenso people iv:> I ; blind tigers, which is now waging successful war, will have ? < u- < t inue the war between tlu-in solve* ' after tho dispensary is defunct, c Sensible men will not lend their 1 aid In any crusade which only gives us "confusion worso c n- t founded'1 and produces a chaotic < condition with no compensation. ! Under the decision of the uu: - j t ed States Supreme (Jon rt pn-l.N'J bition and nootherSiato rcgidati n can prevent liquor being ship: d i in by express for pers ?ntil us individuals and jug county tt.fi:, with Wilmington, (dlni'lotto, \t Unta, Augusta ntid Savannah w be immense under prohibition,' i ! the money which now go. in Iko dispensary for the use of t:towns and counties oj tlie Si ' > . 1 and tho school fund -Till b- -?cnt out the State to enrich the dimlo and distillers of other State* Sti will ho run in every swnmp ami , wagons will peddle lhpior all < -*" the country. The only fm worth enlisting in South <" is botwoen Prohibition r ; enforced as it can bo ! peusary, us honest! 1 it ought to t>e. High i: nnot to be thought "f f ? mont. Yet tlio prohibit;. n" say they prefer the dm- en* w ' license and the licen ? p ; > they prefer prohibit'. ponsary, while the H in?. prohilntionhecauso they !< :, means free liquor. WIIY IIK l'lUUKKS A : IX i I V O'l The olectiona now heiv.g held ir. the counties to vote ti.d1 sary out are very dill r.nt tv . tho Democratic primary cloo; which will nettle tho question nallv. In the lir.it place, the vote in those counties where elections have been held against the dispensary has been held against i the dispensary has been v.-ry small < as compared with tho regular ( election. It requires a cortilicate of registration to vote at such an i election, while in the primary the ' club rolls of tho Democratic clubs t govern. Then men are indifferent, as ... 1 ' flintr ttrnan in inuj u vi u iii iuvj |n uiitun umi UiVJv. tion in 1802, when only sixty ; thousand of ninety two thousand ' voters voted in that box. There aro probably thirty thousand or 1 more good Democrats :n the State, J who, from one causa or another, 1 are not able to vote in the elections held under the Btyee A t. j ' That law was shrewdly drawn and . ' for the express purpose of killing j the dispensary, 1 have boor. told, j These thirty thousand will deter , mine the*question in the fntui as they have in the past boeau * they will elect the Legislature u: 1 j State officers in the State Djmo-, cratic primary in spite of any com i bination, such as is now giving >: - prohibition by a negative ptoctv. voting out the dispensary, i >1 K cause tho peoplo want {>: - >h bit; but giving us prohibition l.rra soniepenplo want t'r eliqu. people prefer to buy ill Home people want high . cr. -o a a return to the old 'our rootn -v tcm, while many poop! ? will do any thing to kill the dispensa with tlu hope of pivlibng by it destruction. I woul i :i<!\ <vo advocate of tho disponent } wh in doubt, to vote against putting : tho dispensary out of his county, until wc aoo what tho report of the investigating committee i?, and then whether or not the Login, i I ut", a' is ; \l , will purge i n ui of iho dispou|>t; safeguards v <1 ' . ' '?! . I f ay un? iPf i i. 'o MlCCC'Sflllly undueli-il. c d. '.\snty s) s.1 -iu..\ ; >i v ngth in *mst "Ot l! - h.iCJHS ip't thought t \vsis lio I'-'.ly id a. la'.stored. All t! S A ; Ov - ')' iS to huvo hnn m? h"stnnti hoy will unlet 'a d k\ l'J ' t they inuat til: fa; i.ov i ? te to got rid of lie v?.i .A.iuti, 111 y will make >ho> \v. L . f it. It ni'i ' h?* made < lean or it mist ; i \ i pics- .it the camd, e tiinty l?y u ' v, v j . j-nil eonfus* ... t n o:'.: - M?rer.s and o u ! State lo .. i y !. o- not ling, v. ! t.? .-eltlo the ;u? s' m .. v 1 repent it hi ho j^oneral i>? . i turn nil tho [.? ; '.<? h ' i i , i 'p.! and ..ft\ < tne. ' r ' i' mind intellin-nii?. I : >'? . < n'Ciu u>n ' i l'rohibiViV.hink 1. 1 bo U ^ 111 < 4 I).! .1- i uo . OVll lit : I< |UOI", I '. >111.' t, but ! . irc'iing 1 o officia 1 i . \*a - (jovi i ! nc. and Kau. ; c i Vo'.t x It>ii pi evade, t b .; in cu . v. f ' dismal t'ail i f< i"? l:i(j law, i prefer the eusnry h the lesser ovil I ' ivo ten slid in tbo r . tl. d State control 11 the management ' . t- > question than > he i . I a : no pe r.- on a! intei -;t i;> . mid in only actual i by ' public duty in talti ^ the \ -\I >n T have corn >?ed*io , i t i vv. :ch I shall Mntinue to occupy. I . o id iy believed in tho i -i{\ lint I want it to bo he iIi.\ o' tbo Democrats in 1:0 State. iSI'jn I . lb 11. Tillman. Sever.! L'u ons Ii-ullv Wounded. Joliur.bia Uccoi 1, ili Inst. Xov was revived in the city '.his afternoon fr on Gaston, in Lexir.et*!! county, about sixteen iiik-r mi!',:, of C. !..nibia, of * jerious >hoot ii'L a ft ray It seems Lb at a public barbe me was given Ihoro to-day and c r nvd.s of people from the sui undiog country were prefer1. Mae1; Jerriette, Ivtmbert " ! o \ iV:i Pound, T. K '.I"? n ' v ^ F.eeee were Mr w 1.1 . . > i! . ; . o; tunity to aat.1 annfif old nnnrrola been .'i e.\ trnee n number of ye.is It >f nrte .1 by Found ; HL'' r.ot: ^ n, and when the l itter in . * ic-gan .-dionting. The others pu! 1 ; \a T* and \r !i". ' v ' c ' C'twd finally -v h found . - u>* in the d b Keecc r ' \vn ? 1 NTick ,/ei i ! ( - .nd buck. II ,; iv v ...> . r.)\ e fatal. I) 77 LM v ! itli kidney r t ' vftnv '' nrl > .\. i 1 1N i\: of Mfc, Ster! iivr, la., "but two bottles of iul.'v s Kidnc etVectod a p TUinuont euro." Sold by Fun<lei burk Pharmacy. 3: