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Show Vox Populi. MANY wonder why it is that sumptuary sump-tuary laws total prohibition, for instance are never strictly enforced, en-forced, but, on the contrary, are generally gen-erally more honored in the breach than the observance. Total prohibition laws have frequently been carried by enormous enor-mous majorities of the vote cast, and if votes express the will of the people, the question is a natural one. The trouble is- that -people will vote for something that they will, not take an active part in enforcing. "If they were as earnest about stopping the sale of liquor as they are in punishing murderers mur-derers or bank robbers, the liquor traffic traf-fic would cease to be. They say they are, but they lack the, gift of introspection intro-spection when they make that assertion. asser-tion. If the average citizen sees a man setting fire to a factory or breaking into a house he at once tries to frustrate the attempt of the criminal, and he will voluntarily assist in capturing cap-turing him and sending him to prison. For this he will receive the thanks of the community as one who has faithfully faith-fully discharged the duties of a good citizen. If. on the other hand, he sees a man selling whisky contrary to law, and he informs on him and secures his j conviction, he is called a whisky informer in-former and becomes a sort of pariah in the eyes of the public. Even the best of temperance people will be chary of cultivating his acquaintance, though they may formally thank him for his act. The truth is that the majority does not honestly desire the enforcement of sumptuary laws as it does those prohibiting, pro-hibiting, ordinary felonies. Until the public is as much in earnest about the one as the other, prohibition measures are foredoomed to failure. |
