The Davenport gazette. [volume] (Davenport, Scott Co., Iowa) 1841-185?, 1850-06-20
g ne GAZETTE.
ALFRED SANDERS, EpIroR.
DAVENPORT:
THURSDAY MORNING, JUNE 20, 1850.
THE LICENSE QUESTION.

THE LICENSE QUESTION.
The incorporate measures 70 which sno wy
marian. of The erroneous opinion, that the ''ainc
4, .,;r;,uous LIQUORS can be entirely suppressed
bv coercivc measures. have Teso'seo' cause -
.c.in to say few words upon the su"lecs. AZ
l.en our readers outside tue Corporation inaofns-
ed Of the progress OF matters, we repeat some OIL
~. ..,i ON taken within fortnight. So soon as
,h. ordinance took effect, prohibiting the retail
AZ .piri,uou. liquors, one Of the Coffee House
proprietors wa. pounced upon and summoned to
sppear before q Justice Of the Peace on Saiur-
day, and upon another charge on Monday last.
He complied with the summons, but owing %
m illeralty in that documen, the suit was dis
misGed. Thus terminated the FIRST pitched bat
lie, and from the same cause, 80 ended the sec
end on Monday.
Subsequently, one Of the drusgists Of this place
sse. sued for scliing brandy asa madeleine! He did
mot allow the suit to BIO carried before Justice,
bat paid the fine--,hree dollars. Comment in
this case we deem entirely unnecessary.
On Thursday las, the City Council Of Daycn-
po,t passed the following ordinance, drafted BY
enc who il not a member or the body. We ac-
cidsn,ally encountered copy tackled up in an
ou,-of-she-way place. and for the benefit OF the
community in general and City Corporations in
particular, publish i, entire. free Of charge, anti
cipa,ng aud bespeaking for j, notice from the
editorial core generally, as it is certainly unique
"a model in its way
An Ordinance.
BE il Ordained By The Mayor and Aldermen Of the
town OF Davenport, That hereafter no Druggist or
Apothecary shall .ell for medicinal, sacramensai or
mechauical purposes within the limits OF this corpora
fion any vnous sPiruons liquors in less Quantities
thar one gallon ssunder the penalties for retai srir
juous vincus liquors in less quantities than one
gallon in said town., unless the purchaser present
elder, pastor. steward or deacon Of some religious
ciety Justice Of the peace. which certificate shall
as to De be .a
store Of said druggist or apohecary and the same
shalt be his their for the sale Of such spirit
nous vnns liquors for either purposes afore-
sail: Provided that physician or Justice Of the
peace, elder deacon, elder or PASTOR shall
have the right to grant TO any one person more than
De It further Ordained, Nc, That should any per-
son or persons obtain a certificate as aforesaid
from either Of the parties Aforesaid, empow-
cred grant such certificate under false pretences,
such person persons SO purchasing said vinus or
the Mayor ether lawful authority be fined not less
49,
Passed and approved l3,h June 1850.
JAMES HALL, Mayor.
Test, JAMES TaoalxGrox, Crk.
The above contains the seed Of its own, spec.
dy dissolution and shows the intemperance, the
desperation, which characterize the present ef-
forts Of those who are determined 10 test this
question in It's harshest bearings. We regard it
a. an insult 10 the druggists Of this place, who
are known to be men of moral worth, who new
erwould sell srirtuous liquors for any other pur-
pose than for medicinal use. 1t is an impeach-
ment of their judgment, i, in effect say that al
most any other moral person in community is
better able to Judge for what purpose spirituous
liquors are wanted than are they. On the con-
tray, the physician himselfis not better able to
Judge Of the use to which the liquor sold will be
applied, than is the druggist II is not only IN
insult 10 the druggists, blu, triHing with the
rights and privileges of the citizens Of this place
TO which they will not submit.
Now, compare the honorable, upright and
manly course pursued by Mr.: steinhelber,. who
keeps the only Coffee House in the place, with
tina. Of those who pretend TO ordain laws for the
government Of this city. lie made proposition
10 the Mayor and Aldermen that they submit it
to the vote Of the tax-paying citizens, and if they
decided that he should no longer retail spirtuous
liquors, he would sell no more. This candid
and reasonable proposition was declined and the
above course pursued. Does not this plainly
prove that those who advocate the suppression Of
liquor traffic by force know themselves to be in
the minority! Yes, and their acts, as forcbly
as conduct can show, prove that they know
themselves to be wrong and knowing it have not
the moral courage to acknowledge their error
Out upon such sabterfuges, they are unworthy
and mean and but aggrava,e The evil.
There are few other matters connected with
this subject to which we will no. at present al
lude-as they Were partly done in secret, per-
haps they had better all remain SO.