Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1879-02-01
One Of the Results.

from the fines resulting from arrests
made during the year on account of
the liquor-selling traffic, is turned
over to the school fund, but tits, after
all, but cold comfort to him. The
principle of robbing Peter to pay
Paul, or anything that smacks of it.
is not q general favorite with con-
siderate people. When the con-
science stricken and miserable Judas
refunded the thirty pieces of silver
he had received for betraying his
blessed Lord and Master, the Jews
considered it 4" blood-money," and
would not put it into the Golfers of
the Temple. And Judas doubtless,
considered it virtue to steal a rope
with which to hang himself rather
than draw on his bounty-money to
buy one. One of the highest excel
lences of human legislation is to en-
act laws that shall not initiate the
one against the other; in q word, to
provide code of consistent and
mutually sustaining rules of action
for men. Now it would be an in
teresting business for an expert ac-
countant to draw. up such balance
sheet as would give us bird's-eye
view of the profit and loss attendant
upon the liquor-license revenue. In
other words, to show whether our
country is out or IN, at the end of
the year, on account of the money
received and disbursed in the inter-
est of the liquor-traffic. Let us
suppose a case: An industrious man,
with moro talent for making money
than for keeping or judiciously in
) vesting it, comes to our town with a
J few hundred dollars in his pocket,
r spends it in riotous living and then
| becomes public charge. The ques-
, ton to be settled is, whether or not
/ the hcense-money annually received
: for questionable callings, actually
' exceeds that paid out. for expenses
= clearly traceable to such licensed
trades, being, in fact, their Legitimate
, results. The case we have supposed
= finds full and complete exemplifca
s ton in a reality now existing in ou
C midst. A usually Woodworking ant
/, industrious man came here q few
/. days ago with between two hundred
. and fifty and three handred dollar,
: in his pocket, dropped into den O
I, Bedouins, and come out withou
e money enough to buy his next mea
s of victuals. After wandering abou
. the streets day or two, he applied
| weary, sick and exhausted, to one O
. our lodging houses for temporar,
relief. The humane proprietor Of
t the house provided the unfortunat.
. man with board and lodging unit
< he was resuscitated in body ant
spirits. Finding it a pleasant life t.
) lead, the stranger manifests no de
, sire to leave his easy quarters, ant
, the proprietor of the restaurant ha,
: applied to our County Commission
, ers for payment of expenses incurred
> and his bill has been allowed by tn.
} Superintendent of the Poor. w,
believe we have stated the case as i
. substantially is in all its important
points, and while it may not be with
in the province of our Commissioner,
to assume the regulation of bust
: ness that properly belongs to tn.
Legislature, we would advise then
to use due amount of caution il
applying money drawn from the
: poor fund in cases like the one
{ under consideration. We trust tina
, we have taken proper view of thil
matter, believing that our structures
r will be seconded by every taxpayer
in the community.
In our article yesterday on " One
of the Results" we did not intend te
wage war upon the vendors of spirit,
ious liquors, rs class, but upon the
traffic itself. There are good and
bad men in every business, and this
is no exception to the rule. That
those who engage in the business are
of necessity, totally deprayed, is one
of the conclusions that results from
u partial or imperfect view of the
subject. Some of the most humane
and charitable men in this communi-
ty have sold liquor; but this does