, 1881-09-11

| 4He council committee OIL Licenses hayt
recommended the passage Of the ordinance
which has been Introduced limiting the
number Of saloons 10 1000 anu increasing the
yearly license from So to $500. Though the
proposed ordinance is not exactly what /,
/ o1sllt to bc, 1t is step i'll tie right Circc-
| t1oI1, and VIC hope the committees reconl-
mertl:ltlon has been made III G00tl faith. and
that tho Aldermen composing the License
Committee will make an honest and deter
mined effort to secure the passage Of the Or
diliancc either as it stands or i'll I'LL inl-
proved form.
Tic limitation put upon the number of the
| saloons in the PROPOSED ordinance might bc
dropped out without any dctrimcnt to the
object iii view. The purpose, as We corr
ceivc it, is twofold-yiz.: ~ 10 increase
the city revenues FROM tr;tlIic which can
we'll afford to sustain a larger share of tie
cost OF maintaining the City Government; ami
(!) to concentrate the cs,ltroi and manage
ncnt Of the saloon business into the hands
Of more responsible parties. Both these
ends can be reached, We believe, by Il proper
Increase III the charge for Il license, and
Without undertaking to put arbitrary limit
upon the number OF saloons. II the license
fee be increased from $52 to 500 year, or
nearly six times "a mich as the saloons have
been paying heretofore, there is no doubt
that the humber of saloons will be sensibly
diminished; but so long as Il revenue from
saloons Is tile policy of the city, it would be
unbnsinessllkc to shut Off revenue BY arbi-
trarily reducing the number thereof to any.
fixed figures. If it be estimated that tile
number nf saloons under i $50 license is
about 5000, and that I'LL Increase OF the license
tn 500 will reduce them to about l,C00,
then the city will derive twice rs much
revenue from one~tllird the number uf
Saloons Tltis will ba Il benefit in two ways:
first by Il reduction in general taxation equal
to the increase Of $50 600 Of liccnse-reyel1nr,
and, secondly, ,bya reduction in The lllmber and
improvement III the character OF the saiooils
The model Iicensc-system for saoollsis is the
graded system, whereby the saloon selling
nothing but beer ard light wines should pay,
say, Sl{t0 Year, and the saloon authorizedto
sell whisky and all kinds Of heavy, intoxi-
eating liGuors should puy, SHY, $500. This
would be temperance It's well lis Il revenue
measure. 1t would rcsultin closing out the
tliS+tts 1IttSA5s ttAhA Astf-N4buo Eill-l1lilS
would eliminate whisky and ''>clnapps'' '' -
FROM the great minority Of German beer
saloons, and would coriile the general
saloon business to the larger and more Or
derby barrooms IN hotels and Leading
localities The concert saloons, yaTiety-haiIs,
and various resorts for the indiscriminate
association Of the sexes where liquor is sold
oug!t to be taxed, under such Il system, not !
less than $1,000 year, and, il The effect uf
sIc 4 charge shonld be to wipe them out |
altogether the community would be the
gamer; 1t would certainly reduce their num-
ber to the minimum. The distinction be- |
tween the sale Of beer and liquors could be
by a heavy penalty for every in
'raction Of the ordinance-a revocation of tho |
iecnsc after the sccon.l or third otlense, and
strict enforcement Ut the law BY the pulce.
1t would be Of great benefit to Chicago,
10Th financially and morally, II the Council
we're to atlopt all Intelligent license system.
There would need be nothing pro!ibitory or
oppressive about such It system, but it would
operate 10 weed out tho more dangerous ard
resorts, promote beer-t'rinkins
It the expense Of whisky-tlrjnl.ing. and con-
ribule 1T once to the revenues aud good
)rler Of the city.