The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1867-10-16

STATEMENT OF Irs rRocEEp,yes nY con-
starr Nx~G tN.H H.

| Count OF the operations of The State pciio
since their appointment in April last NJ
oEil the introductory portion OF his remark.
which We find reported in the Lewiston ,Iou
| nal: ...l. .. ~
Mr.. Nye said thai he entered upon his du
ties in April, and appointed mt that time an
subsequently about twenty five deputies 10
| the sixteen counties of the State. He sOurh
to get the best possible advice in seieciinl
these deputies, yet he might have erred il
some Cases. 1t would be surprising il he ba,
not done SO. But mistakes, ii any there nav,
peen, III carrying out a new system, sbolIlf
mo- not iead 10 condemnation oil the system itself
mere are mistakes IN every department. o
os;an aosI,nnieni, , YET no one thinks OF throwing
| aSiue government on tnat account He sins
Ply ciaims to have acted honestly and tai.b
iu'iy according to his best Judgment. and he
| nau instructed every officer 10 execnta tI,f
| law without fear or favor. Cnnnla;I,. H..
Deen made In some quarters that The rich anI
powerful rum seller has Jared no better IN On
the poor dram vender but SO long as he o,,1.I,,
pied ms present lTos'llon there could be no
distinction OF persons. H.t 81 q Fsa-- -
Mr.. Nye said he had not commenced ncnse
cutiOns without notice and followed theu, n,
harshIy, as has been charged. He had sen
his deputies first to visit every man who wa
engaged in rumsellns throughout the State
and had kindly almonished all OF them 1,
leave the business, assuring them ilIat il the
did not do so, the law would surely be execu
ted. 1hirty-One hundred places tgore fOaHo
.ohere liquor aoas SOLD as a beccrdge--ioul
hundred IN one ciiy-and a large number o
open bars. In ninety-nine cases ont or 4
hundred these men went out Of the busines;
when they saw this determination to enforce
the law. Many hotel keepers said they were
glad the law was to be executed, because il
their neighbros did not sell they would not
have to- The mere occasional visit OF a dep,
uty through these sections have prevented
most OF these men from reSumns their terri
bic business, without prosecution g.
NOW the question arises has there been any
change in consequence of this work of the
State Police? OF course in Androsco rgin
and lew other Counties where the law was
previously executed aud intoxication infre-
quent, you do not notice so marked an inn
provement as is apparent in other counties.
The very fact that every rum-seller and rum
sympathizer throughout the State is so clam
Orous aSninst the Constabulary, shows that
their business is interfered with by it. These
fellows never denounce a law or officers that
do not interfere with their traffic. You might
cover your Statute books with prohibitOry
laws having the severest penalties, and set an
ofhcer at the door OF every rum shop, but SO
long as the laws were not executed, and the
officers " minded their own businessr-to use
a common phrase of liquor-selIers- long
they would not have a word to say There.
fore the amount OF clamor raised by rrin-seIl-
ers, is an index Of the efficiency of the means
used to stop this business. .II
But there IS cleaIer proof than this of the
efficiency OF the amended law, enforced by
the Constabulary. MIR. Nye said it is ac-
knowledged that there are no open bars, in
the State at the present time. That certainly
is one point gained for our youth are usually
in little danger OF going into secret dens ~
take the first glass. he, however, was pre-
pared to show that there was not one tenth
as mu ch liquor sold and drank now in the
State as there was one or two years ago. The
Boston and New York Wholesale rum-selers
say that last year they sold one and q haIf
million OF dottars WOrh ot liquors to 90 in
to Maine, but at the rate they have sold ihe
same for the past six months, they will not
dispose of too hundred thousand d0lLtrs
icOrth the present year to go to Maine Hoes
not this falling OFF in the sales OF liquors. of a
million and quarter OF dollars, indicate The
marked decrease in the traffic aud use OF
them? go sui -u@ta .as.ltint .l
But the people of nearly every city and
town in tile State have ocular proof OF this
fact. II is generally agreed that drunkenness
has been much less prevalent than ever be
fore. Mr.. Nye saidhe conyersed short time
since with an Insurance agent who had been
accustomed to travel over the State every
summer. and the agent voluntarily said to
him that he had never witnessed such a
change tor the better, and that instead OF mes t
ing intoxicated men frequently as formerly,
he had scarcely seen one for the summer. Mr..
Nye saw the manager OF a circus which bad
travelled through our State for several sea-
sons, and although he was a license man, vet
he bore cheerful testimony to the wonderful
improvement. Ills own men, the manager
said, instead OF being frequently intoxicated,
as usual, had been unable to obtain liquor,
and had kept sober all summer. Hardly a
case OF intOxication had been noticed in the
crowds in attendance upon the circus. When
The circus was at Waterville not one man was
intoxicated. Ten years ago there would have
been FIFTY. AT Skowhesan only one was
seen; at Dexter none. The same has been
true at the Camp Meetings. and Cattle
Shows. 7aa.a tHer ..a -ua .
The Belfast Age says that s75 900 worth OF
liquor was sold in that place last year, while
thus far the present year none has been sold
and that several men who have been aecus
toned to make yearly from $1,000 to $1,000
each by rum-selling, have been wandering
a1out the streets all summer, out of business
Ihe Rockiand Free Press says that rIlm-sell,
ing is practically broken up in that city, and
that drukenness is rare. The Bangor Wbio
testifes to the marked Improvement in that
city. Other papers speak in similar terms.
A gentleman who had occasion TO travel by
stage from Bangor to the Aroostook, states
that he did not see single person who ap-
peaied to have imbibed liquor, and that the
stage driver informed him that whereas near
ly every hotel on the route has heretofore sold
liquor, now it is utterly impossible to obtain
a hr.AIa IIixxl bnr fl.ns.. N..,-
drivers never before came in so sober. In
Aroostook the liquor dealsrs have gone out OF
the business. The effect ON the upper Ken
nebec is equally marked. Mr.. Coburn OF
Skowhegan, says that never before has he
been able to have the large number of men
whom he employs, drive by Moose river with
out having long drunk there. This year
not one was intoxicated there, Thus saving
thousands Ofdollars to him and the men,
One OF the largest hotel keepers in the State
recently told Mr.. Nye that the eastern hotel.
keepers had all suspended rrm-selling until
the repeal OF the legislation OF last winter.
These and a multitude OF other facts, said
Mr.. Nye, make it as clear as the day sun
that the COnstabulary has wrought a wonder
ful change in the State. Now it is proposed
to abolish the machinery that is working such
wonders and repeal the penalty that makes
prohibition reality. Who demands this and
why? Only three classes lead oil in this. L.
Those who want to buy liquor to drink and
can't find it. I'd. Those who would like to
sell liquor but don't dare to. g. Tie politi-
clans who are afraid that they shall lose the
votes of some ofthese classes 1t is the LIQUOR
interest that makes the demand in order that
it may have an opportunity to rob the State
OF millions of dollars and fill our streets with
driInkards. There is reason to fear that the
large political Influence and immense wealth
OF this interest will secure the end they aimed
at. f.f a.at -EH
But it is in the expense OF the Constabula y
that this system of base instrumentation
has done its work. Said Mr.. Nye, stories have
been set afloat that the State Police would
cost 1900, 100000, and esen 100000 the
present year. Even il il did cost these sums,
it would be money in the pockets OF the peo-
pie to continue the system, for it will certain
ly save immensely more in taxation, misery,
crime and even death averted. The State
would be the gamer, said Mr.. Nye, if by ex-
pending eveh these sums the sources OF in
temperance could be SO nearly dried up as
they have been. The saving in taxation alone
would defray the expense. In 1916 a thorough
execution OF the prohibitory act of that year
saved $1,000 in the pauper expenses of the
single town OF Fairfieli.
But, said Mr.. Nye, the baseness of these
Misrepresentation is seen, when it is known
that the whole expense OF TIE Constabulary
for the six months ending Oct. lst, will not
mtch if any, exceed nine thousand dollars
and out OF this are to come the fines imposed
on rum-sellers. The aggregate expense tor
the whole year cannot exceed thirty thousand
dollars, said Mr.. Nye, and from this is to b,
deducted all the fines, reducing the cost sew
eral thousand dollars.
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