New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1852-04-26

Of them Is ever PTcstrbten VIII 'i'o O"''
miss;ouers Of Excise Mayor and Alder
men) habitually violate their official obi
yutious that men are licensed of whom
nothing is known but their names; that u
censes are signed in blank, to be filled up
by the Mayors Marshal in favor Of whom
soever may apply; that, practically, the
only qualification for license is the pos
session of "ten dollars current money -
and that "by some. The License system
seems 10 be regarded as a mere trick 6y
,rh;eh 10 collect tar on trade, and Of Sc
curing to a fer officials an ertra per diem,
out of the fund so raised."-It seems So
does it. gentlemen Well, we should MT
wonder.
And here is uncovered the abyss which
must ever yawn between the enactment
and the enforcement of License laws. They
stand on no moral foundation, and so do
not properly stand at all. They command
no respect, enforce no intrinsic obedience.
Poor devil No. raises ten dollars where
with to buy a license, and so IL legalized
Rumseller, with good moral character
&C., &C., duly proved and certified. Poor
devil No. 2 has no ten dollars to pay,
Though a wholesaler will give him credit
for few gallons of villainous Liquor at
profit of fifty to two hundred per cent,
payment to be made as fast as sales can
be efiected,) and he is an illegal Rumseller
the moral difference between them con-
sisting simply in No. is ten dollars and
Nc. 2's lack of that sum. But No. ,, in
spite of this serious lack of morality, has
a vote as well as No. /, and his groeshop
gives him hold on other votes. What
ever functionary should undertake to prose-
cute a Rumseller without license would
thereby make war on some Two Thousand
Voters who are in that interesting cate
CORY, and who may be able to control as
many more votes. But our high func-
tionaries are nearly all aspirants for still
more desirable offices, or at least anxious
to hold on where they are at the very
least, they are afraid of "injuring the
party and so Rum rules the City, not
only under the law, but over the law, and
the License seems TO be regarded as a
mere trick.'-.Seems, Madam! says Ham
let nay, ii is y
The enhancement of the License charge
from $40 to 500 per annum, the sepa-
ration of the Rum Traffic from other BUSH
ness, and the suppression of unlicensed
GROCERIES, might afford some mitigation of
our present woes; but only the first of them
can ever be effected by anything short of
the MAINE LAW. So long as there are
thousands of Licensed Grog-shops in our
City, there will be nearly half as many
unlicensed; the latter are but the compile
ment of the former. Our Mpicipal Of
ficers, holding their places at the pleasure
of Rumsellers, do not thoroughly enforce
the laws; those who .could do it cannot
tell which GROCERIES are and which are not
licensed nor can they realize that there is
anv serious moral difference between them,
nor that any great good would be secured
by breaking up one sort and thus increasing
the gains of the other. What odds whether
our Youth are trained to idleness, debauch-
cry and crime in unlicensed or licensed
groggeries! And so of separating the
Liquor Traffic from other business. 1t will
never be decreed while Rum rules the City;
would not be enforced if it were; and
would be worth no great amount if it were
enforced. The MAINE LAW will effect
such separation no other will.
We should be glad to see the Grand Ju-
rvs recommendations carried out, as
preparation for something better. and will
take the risk of 1.-the spirit of Total Absti-
nence being destroyed by them; but there
would be hardly one tippler or one criminal
less if all the Grand Jury propose were
enacted. Still, as a fair specimen of Moral
Suasion with legal edge to it, we hear
tily commend their Presentment to general
attention. Though it does not point to the
right road, it may nevertheless enable some
of the careless to see it.