The spirit of democracy. [volume] (Woodsfield, Ohio) 1844-1994, 1874-08-11
from the Pittsburgh Christian Advocate
License or No License.


quest of subscribers, who think it the
best article they have seen on the Ii
cense question, and desire that it shall
have general circulation,-ED SPIRIT
I AS this subject is now prominent
one in the State of Ohio, where vote
is to be taken on it on the 18th Of Au
gust, in connection with the New Con
stitution,, and as we have large circu-
lation in eastern and north-eastern Ohio,
we deem it fitting to give facts and ar
guments on the question. The follow
ing article is from Rev. A j. F. Beh
rends, supplemented by some notes
from that wide awake temperance man.
DR.. Drummond, of iCadiz, Ohio. Read
mark, and ;inwardly digest. ierait-
Licenseshas been tried everywhere; |;
and it has uniform history, one Of
absolute failure as check upon intem-
persnce.a New York City has license
law, which during the first year Of its
operation collected an average fee of
one hundred and fifty dollars. Under
the pressure of the liquor traffic, the
price of licenses has steadily decreased,
until at present the average price is less
than one hundred dollars The saloons
have, on the contrary, steadily increas
ed, until in New York and Brooklyn
they number between eleven and twelve
thousand more draInshops in these two
cities than can be found in our entire
State with double the population! In
1872, New York City had one saloon to
every .139i inhabitants; in 1873 there
was one to every 1873 and in 1874 the
proportion is one to 13l in the popula
ton. The smaller cities tell even a cad.
der story, where it might be supposed
license could more easily be prevented
Yonkers, with population of about
$4,000. is said to boast no less than 225
saloons, one to every seventy OF its
population. On the other hand, Haver.
hill, iu Mass with the same population,
but under law that prohibits the dram
shop, has but forty saloons within its
corporate boundaries, No legislation
can prevent drunkenness, but all polit
icsl experience shows that the only ex,
pedient by which intemperance has al
al. been curbed, by which the sale and
use OF Intoxicating liquors have at all
been checked, has been the suppression
by law of the dram shop. The "polit.
ical prohibitionists" go very much far
ther. They demand the suppression
by law, of the "maaufacture, importa.
ton, and sale' of all liquors, or theit
tcontrol, so far as necessary, by govern
ment. The writer does not question
the honest zeal of political prohibition
lists; but he cannot regard them a;
skilled students in political economy
Prohibition of the manufacture is ex
tremely difficult, it is visionary and i'm
practicable; the legal suppression o.
the dram shop is the only prohibition
within reach, and it points the mosi
natural and easy path to contraction
! in the manufacture. Throughout this
tract, prohibition is used in the sense o
suppression Of the open saloon.
Such prohibition Massachusetts has
tried for ten years previous to 1867
and in the fall of that year the State
fell into the hands of the license party
They retained it only one year, but The
mischief of that one year has scarcely
yet been overcome. Previous to the
election, under rigid enforcement o.
the law, the Internal Revenue receipts
had fallen to nine thousand dollars {
month. In the first month after tht
election, they had bounded mp to TWEEN
ty-two thousand dollars. In 1867 tbt
county OF. Suffolk, which includes tht
city of Boston, had 900 saloons, ant
these piled their business in secret
within one year, under1a stringent Ii
cense. law thesame territory was Gov
cred with 1,500 dram shops, an increas,
of nearly two hundred per cent. On
single street, North, 1l6 saloons wer,
in full blast, where a year before The
police could only find two. The Spring
field Republican,, which favored a Ii
cense law, said: "Intemperance has in
creased, is increasing, and ought to b.
diminished. In Beverly the town pa
per lamented that 'ssincei the new iav
went into operation, as we are inform
ed by the police, drunkenGess has in
creased salarmingly.'. 2n =
The official documents tell the sam,
story. Governor Claflin said in his in
augural address,, January /, 1869, IA
moral and Christian people cannot re
man inactive when they see such re
suits as are following, and are sure t,
follow, the sale of Intoxicating drink
to the extent that now prevails in ou
hitherto quiet and orderly State Th
increase of drunkenness and crime du
ring the last six months, as compare,
with the same period in 1867, is yer,
! marked and decisive as to the opera
ton Of the law. The State prison, jails
and houses Of correction are hein,
rapidly filled, and will soon require en-
larged accommodations IF the commit
ments continue to increase as they hav
since the present law went into force.
He then shows that the commitment
for the higher crimes had more tha
doubled The Chief Constable supple
ments the Governors statement b
showing an Increase of nearly 800 al
rests in single quarter of 1868, a
compared to the same quarter in 1885,
and adds: drunkenness is ON the in
crease to melancholy extent. TIL
rapid increase Of crimes and violenc
during the past year over former years
is withou! precedent in the history @
criminal experience" The Board Q
State CHARITIES sums up long array G
statistics in the suggestive sentence =
During the past year, 1868, it appear
that while crime in general has increas
ed about ten per cent, drunkenness ha
increased more than twice as much, o
twenty-four per cent. This fact offer
the best possible comment on the cor
) dition Of the public mind and of th
legal repression of intemperance sine
the State election of 1867" One year
experience of relief by license satisfie
Massachusetts. The people were read
for return to the law of 1867.
first it was somewhat modified-win,
,, , ale, beer and cider being excepted; an
,, the modification formed an open doc
through which the swollen torrents {
intemperance rushed with increased "
hemence, until in 1872 the old law SUI