The Highland weekly news. [volume] (Hillsborough [Hillsboro], Highland County, Ohio) 1853-1886, 1877-02-08
THE coTHENRURc SYs-
TEN.
How Drunkenness Is Check.
ed in SWeden-The System
Under which Intemper-
ance and Crime have
been Reduced.

| 'ASt "ntSU stt0hhSOt
ance and Crime have
been Reduced.
At the conference held at Man
chester, on Monday, November 29
1876, on the liquor traffic question.
Rev John W. Bradsley, M A., vi
car of St Savior's, Liverpool, read s
paper on the Gothenburg system. In
it he explained the system as follows:
"Within the last few years Swe
len possessed the evil pre- eminencf
of being the most drunk n natior
fin Europe. So rec ntly as 1850 tn.
average consumption of brandies-
that is TO say, of Swedish brandy
was ten gdllons per head of Mf
'chole population; while, in spite OF
universal education and the estab-
ishment of pure religion, the Grim
inal calendar had no parallel in mod
ern history. In 1865 the act was
passed which is substantially the law
IN which the traffic is now conducted
The essential points are the follow
ing
a. The prohibition of sale without
= license, except for quantities moi
ess than s 35 gallons b. fixing b,
local authority the maximum nun
her of licenses for each town or par
Ish, with power to the Governor O;
each Province to decrease, but not
increase, such number-a princip
involving local and imperial control ;
C the sale of such licenses severally
or collectively to individuals or 6
company, for a term of three years
by public auction, the profit arising
from such sale being applied in par;
o local, in part to countiypurposes ;
d. the possible abandonment of ali
,icenses in any district, such power
arising from the fact that no mini
nluDs number of licenses is fixed fol
any district.
The working of this act, so far as
the country districts are concerned.
has brought about a marvellous
churge for the better by universal
testimony The power to abolish Ii
.:enses ny abandonment has beer
1sei 70 50 great an extent, that for a
pppUrtlon numbering 100000
.ilere ere 450, or one in every 400.
Ihe result of this act in the large
towns was far otherwise. AS the
amount paid for licenses sold by
.uction averaged ELS year, self
inter, st impslled the publican to
ush his sales TO the utmost, and
TINS intemperance, immortality, and
crime still continued to abound.
The. condition of affairs in Go
thenburg-the second town in the
kingdom-became so appalling that
committee was formed in 1865 to in.
vestigate the causes of the constant
ly increasing pauperism and the So
cial evils connected Herewith. Their
report recommended that all tempta
ton to extend tie sale of spirits un-
.luly should he abolished, and declar
ed that such abolition could only be
effected by the introduction of sys
lem which allowed no proprietor or
manager of a public house to de-
rive any private gains from the sale
of spirits.
Subsequently, with the sanction OF
the municipal authorities, a company
was formed of the most respected ot
the citizens, who undertook to ac-
quire as far as possible all existing
licenses, and to conduct the bust
ness of these houses in the interest
of Temperance and morality, the
profits, whatever they may be, to
be appropriated to public purposes.
The managers of such houses art
bound over (a) to make them victula
ting houses, and to supply hot
meals at reasonable rates to all com
ers; (b) to refuse to sell liquor on
credit (r) to rec i've all their spirits
from the company, to sell according
to tariff, and account to the eompa-
ny for all spirits receiv d from them.
Financially and morally, the re-
suits have been most satisfactory.
Year by year a substantial cOntribu-
lion, equal to the poor rate OF tha
town, and which otherwise would
have gone into the pockets of the
publicans, had been paid over for To-
al purposes. The number OF houses
has been reduced by one-half, and
the convictions for drunkenness and
crime brought down so per cent
That there should have been some in
crease latterly is not matter OF sur
prise, when it is borne in mind that
The wages of the laboring classes
nave recently been doubled in amount
Such prosperity in Stockholm, with
,ut the Goth enburg amendment to
,he Swedish Licensing act, has re-
,ulted in convictions for drunkenness
being qu,druple,i during the cores
period.
nHzzanss7.zls.s4
Coed Advice.
Now is the time of year for Pneumonia.
Lung Fever, &c Every family should
-, Sryr,r