The Administration of the Local Option Laws

The question of administration lies at the root of reform. During the ten years now under review the Alliance suffered many things through the mal-administration, intentional or otherwise, of certain page 83 officers responsible for the good conduct of Local Option polls; of some magistrates who gave judgements in cases when objections were made to the official declaration of results of polls; and of the Police Department, on occasion, in the enforcement of the then existing licensing laws.

The following are but a few of the cases on record, yet these—an index of the whole—are sufficient in number to show the difficulties that confronted the Alliance in the days of Local Option.