|
A
memorable scene in John Ford's "The Quiet Man," filmed in
Ireland, features Barry Fitzgerald saying one word with an expression
on his face as if he spoke with a mouthful of castor oil: "Prohibition!"
The proscription of alcohol beverages offended this Irishman and many
in Texas, where it was also the most pervasive issue in state politics
from the 1870s until 1915.
The thrust to improve society through political power is as old as
humanity, but we see it earliest in America among colonial Puritans.
They were the folk eager to use the state to enforce religious regularity,
although curiously they did not use it against alcohol except in abuse.
Our nation witnessed a real pre-Civil War effort to ban the bottle
through the efforts of the American Temperance Union. Most Texas towns
then hosted a chapter of the Union, and it usually counted some of
the community's leading citizens among its members. Some were hypocrites,
of course, in that they wished to deny the sauce to others while continuing
to indulge themselves. That was not quite what the Congress of the
Republic of Texas meant when it passed the first "local-option"
law in America, but it is another definition of the term.
The Women's Christian Temperance Union renewed the struggle after
the Civil War. In 1887, their supporters forced a vote on a statewide
prohibition amendment that failed by 90,000 votes. But the banners
of booze still had the "local-option" option, and by 1895
they had prevailed completely in 53 counties and partially in precincts
in another 79 counties. The Progressive Era at the turn of the century
renewed the enthusiasm of "dry" Texans for their cause.
The period's emphasis on social justice and improving society complemented
the historic program of prohibitionists nicely. And World
War I helped their cause immensely. Numerous training facilities
in Texas congregated thousands of young men from throughout the nation
and, it was argued, lawmakers owed it to the mothers of America to
protect their boys from alcohol.
Texas Senator Morris Sheppard introduced the Eighteenth Amendment
to the US Constitution banning the "manufacture, sale, or transportation
of intoxicating liquors." Texans ratified the amendment in 1918,
and it became the law of the land on January 16, 1919. That same year
the legislature added the good measure of a state prohibition amendment
as well.
One wag observed that on the day prohibition became effective 2,500
saloons closed and 5,000 illegal stills went into operation. Correct
or not, this suggests a reality: efforts to criminalize an activity
in which a majority are determined to participate usually creates
different problems.
Prohibition remained until the ratification of the Twenty-First Amendment
to the US Constitution on December 5, 1933, though it recognized a
statešs authority to ban liquor within its own borders.
The struggle continues.
All
Things HistoricalSept.
29-Oct. 5, 2002 column
A syndicated column in over 40 East Texas newspapers
(Archie P. McDonald is Director of the East Texas Historical Association
and author or editor of over 20 books on Texas) |
| Books
by Archie P. McDonald - Order Here |
|
|
HOME
