Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1874-06-19
Licansa or Ne I.te.ns,.

and Con, on the subject Of whist the new
Constitution shall say upon tho liquor
trsfio, which ls attracting the attention OF
the people Of the State to greater extent
than any other subject just now. IL is q
subject that requires earnest CONSIDERS
ton, with time for ref ction:
FROM rBn CINCINNATI aAzETru.
SO far ss we car judge. three fcurths of the
salyoniss in this city will vote emo license" 81
the approaching constitutional election. We
infor that the majority of the active temper
ance workers. will vote tho same way. Thus
the remarkable spectacle will be presented of
liquor dealers and radical tempe rance people
walking 10 the polls shoulder 4, shoulder and
depositing In the ballot box the same ballet
Extremes, we know, often meet, but such q
meeting as this will be, rarely happens.
II worth while Tor our temperance frieuds
who talk 50 freely about prohibiting the liquor
hatiic, and who have little charity for those
who favor tax upon the business, 10 ask
what this means. The saloon keepers know
very we'll what II means, because "the chill.
dren Of the world are wiser In their generation
than the children Of light" They know that
under the M license clause in the present Cum
stitution they have absolute free trade in beer
and wine, and virtual free trade in distilled liq
uoFs. II Is true there are laws upon the stat
ute books prohibiting the retail traffic in dis
titled liquors, but these are seldom enforced in
large cities; but nur present laws do not inter-
fere with the traffic in wine and beer. The
liquor dealers are sensible then, Look ing At the
matter from their standpoint, In voting "NO
license" They know what this means. II
has stood side BY side with prohibitary laws for
twenty cdH years, and all that time there has
beep abselvte fvrr trade IN wine and beer, and
virtual free trade in whisky. They do not care
to take any risk by giving The Legislature the
privilege Of licensing the traffic in such q way
as ~ lay heaTy tax on one hand, or prohibit
absolutely on the other. The saloonists can,
therefore, give far stronger reason for main
taintug the present status than the temperance
people. Indeed we are not able to see either
the wisdom or the policy Of the course adopted
by the anti-Iiqunr party in opposition. We
know they say tho liquor traffic is an evil,
and that an evil should not be licensed but il
is not less an evil because il is not licensed.
A restricted and regulated traffe Is certainly
not near so bad as free trade. Yet under The no
| license clause of the present Constitution we
have free trade in all the large cities, aud so
much Of il In Cincinnati that the saloouists
| have taken possession Of the city government
in all its branches aud II has almost come to
pass shat anti-tempersnce workers have no
| rights that sAloonIsis are bOnnd 10 respect.
We hope our temperance friends will stop
and ask themselves the question why thsY are
walking shoulder 10 shoulder with the lowest
class of the saloonists 10 opposiiion 70 The pro.
| posed feature IN the Constitution thai would, u
adopted, enable the Legislature 70 pass . strin-
gent excise law, coupled with local option. that
would prohibii whore the majority favored pro-
hibitou. and regulate where tbs m.joriiy would
not prohibit.
II would, 10 our humble opinion, be blessed
thing for this saloon ridden city Il We had an
excise ~ stem that would close every saioon al
9 reasonable hour Of the evening. and ciose
them all Iigha without aida or bask deor liam
| ..i u a. a. - q
called Sunday" Would No, something prAc,
cal in this way be infinitely b-tsr than IN sorei-
ical prohibtionf II is very easy TO talk about
stamping the heel inta the head of tha mon steI
and crushing u ont. We heard Gen. Carr
talk that way in 1850; bit under che policy
then advocated BY him, and now supported BY
our most active temperance workers the nion-
rter hss grown far uiors rapidly than the Popu.
letion Of the country and 10 already TOO big for
the safety Of society.
Life 10 too short 10 try smother experiment af
twenty years with the no license theory. We
and temperance people, BY their united votes,
put " No license into the new Com ,itution, We
want il known Of all men that the GARsrrH v ill
shoulder no part Of the responsibility; and We
now warn the people Of Ohio that II they tie
the hands Of the Legislature on this subjsci
they will tie thoir own hands also, aud place
the liquor Rathe beyond their control.
FROM rBs wEsrxRs CHRISTIAN ADVOCATE.
Whatever else "iicenss" means, il means
permission, authorization. In return for this
permission and author izston the 'license ays.
tenn proposes to impose on the liquor traffic Q
In regard to this system the arRumep. aRsins.
il, so often repeated, has not been answe red
and 10 unauswersble, namely An occupation
Giima g hsRsafiaa iaa d,serin h na.
TED against: and the occupation that is improp-
or IN itself, that is nos beneficial 20 society.
ought not to be Permitted, oven though Il Be
willing to pay for the permits sion.
But We are told lissnce system also means
restraint and regulation. aud that il will dunn
ish the number of saloons and the amount Uf
liquors sold. These are mere umpiiOns. II
| Is safe TO say that wherever q salben eouid be
psOdtable tothe iquor trade, there one would be
EestNb4ishcd-the liquor men would see 10 that,
| bat IL the number Of saloons were somewhat
smaller, the amount Of liquor sold and drank
at each would be proportionally greater. II
might be somewhat less offensive 70 the ewes
| OF temperance people 10 see but two saIoona
where they NOS see three, but they would know
| that the two which remain had divided between
| them the pa tronage Ofthe third; that the ouan
tity OF liquor sold aggregated as much as when
the three saloons were in operation; aud that
| the number Of drunkardS manufactured and
killed year br year, would, by that So stem, re-
ceive no diminu,inn.
But let us ask the advocates or license. how
can you restrain and regulate the saloonists Af.
ter he has paid the public sum Of money for
| liberty to do just what he is dcing better than
| you could beforeI Is il not obvious that the
very act of i'er'ai'tinq. Of Rcen.inq. abridgss
she power TO regulate, fixes limit within which
| you VIII not further regulate or control the
| traffic. NO matter how great the evil wrouRbs.
| no matter how enormous the quantity sold. or
| the number of people made drunka ards?
hut the desire to regulate and t0 restrain 10 in
| prnporiion To Otemperance. And the po,oer 10 do
| 40 IS in the same measure. But this desire will
be stronger. and this power can 10 more easily
| exercised, where and when the comm u nity has
not sold its permission and its authorization of
| the traffic for money.
II Is siid that the "lcence system impases
! regulations and restraint. But will Il in that
way iessen the evil results Of the liquor traiicf
On the eontrary, would nrt such regulation in
crease the attraction Of the saloon and m ks !,
all the more destructivei Would not The
amount ot liquor consumed be - great. and the
cases OF drunkenness be az numerous az under
the present sysiemf Fully as great fully NJ
numerous! Yea, morei And raiionAlly so
Tor the increased sales made by each saIOonist
would enable him not only tn more easily per-
FORM his part OF the contract bv pairing his n.
eense tax promptly and regularly, but also 10
naks his saloon more elegant anI attractive,
and, therefore. all the more deslructiyei
NJ. Mansfield, who, bv his familiarity with
statistics and his large experience 10 most com.
petent 10 give information Ou this subject, said
recently in pnblic that under the Incense sys-
tenn, twenty -hye years aRO. Cincinnati had pro-
portionsllV as many drinking places and a.
much drunkenness As il has to-day, But we
may aiso refer TO events Of recent date. About
two months aner the women commenced their
temperance Efforts 10 Ohio, the liquor manufae.
tnTeFs aad dealers OF Cincinnati began 10 bestir
themselves to get mp . pro-lieense meeting in
Exposition Hall. his said. and with good evi.
denee. that the first move in that direction was
made by the propristnFs of . wholesale IIauor
house. Men Of the same class we're the busiest
on Change and on the street 20 procure signeFs
10 the call, and officers and speakers for the
nesting. And aherwsrd, in the same places,
they were busies, in rideulinR and in oppOs-
ing, IN every MaI possible, the call for the anti