New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1877-11-22
THE TEMPERANCE ISSUE.
pay 7

The decision of the Court of Appeals, in
March last, ought to have made very clear the
Issue Just now pending in this city between
the liduor dealers and the temperance men !;
but we fear neither party fully comprehends
it. At any rate, two factions of each side are
confounding the pressing issue.
That decision made two classes Of liquor
dealers. 1t legalizcd the sale of spirits in
hotels to be drunk on the premises, except on
the Sabbath, and by grocers in small quantities
TO be taken home and also of ale and beer or
other malt drinks in other than hotels or grocer
les. Of these three classes, less than 1.500 have
been. and are at this moment, legally licensed.
All the rest OF the five thousand liquor saloons
in Ncw-York city are without license
without character, and are not in demand
by any class of reputable people. Between
the two classes there is wide distinction, be-
sides the fact that one is licensed and the other
is prescribed. Those of the first class are gen
orally conducted by reputable men, and have
80 much capital involved that they cannot
afford to break the law. The latter are gener-
ally managed by men without character or
capital. The first can be regulated by law /;
the latter are utterly lawless.
Two powers just now operate to suppress
these twoclasses of liquor dealers. They are
distinct in organization they disagree as to
plans they are OppOsites in character; and
they differ in their purposes. One of them
calls itself the Law and Order League. Its
organization is chiefly unknown what is not
known is chiefly disreputable. It's plan is
to prosecute the licensed; it makes no effort
against the illegal dealers. Its system is that
of the spy and infOrmer, and thus far its spies
and Informers in this city have been of u bad
class.
On the other hand is an organization, large,
influential reputable composed of recognized
leaders in all good works. whether of charity
or reform, who labor within the law. Their
effort is in a practical as well as legal direc-
ton. They are collecting evidence of legal
character, not manufacturing it at the hands
of old liquor dealers, like Oliver C0tter, who
have nothing more profitable to do than turn
informer or Blocker, who comes as IA witness,
like Tweed, from the Penitentiary but by re-
cognized methods which the courts will not
dismiss as if obviously blackmailng proceed
ings. They direct their charges against the
mpudently illegal deaers-men who have
neither license nor excuse for conducting their
infamous traffic in poison
1t seems "A clear proposition that the Law
and Order League, in prosecuting the legal
lied and reputable hotel-keepers, grOcers, etc,
is simply serving the unlicensed and disrepu-
table dealers for, by putting the two in the
same category of criminals, the League ncites
them to make common cause, and thus unitcs
interests which the law recognizes with those
/ C L.
are clearly offenders against the law which
we understand to be the purpose of DIR. How
ard Crosby's Society for the Prevention of
Crime, arouses no resistance from those who
! operate according to the law, and until we have
law more sweeping this seems to Us the
wisest course. The construction Of the existing