The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1881-09-24
SEPTEMBER "a, 1881.
SATURDAY ....-.
Gin.

The most disgusting sight the world can pro-
duce is a London gin drinking woman standing
at a bar waiting feyerishly for her " DRAIN" with
unkempt hair, a mall but intensely dirty shawl,
with stockingless feet, and shoes down at the
heel, with eyes rheumy and wstery, that twinkle
with gin light out from the o~bscurity of gin
swelled flesh, with q face on which the s~corching
fingers of a depraved appetite have set red lines,
as inefaceable as though they had been placed
there bv red hot iron, every one OF which is the
unavailing protest Of q long-outraged stomach.
There she stands, a blotch upon the face of nature
and a satire uuon womanhood. 1t is difficult to
realize that this bloated mass was once 8 fair
Young girl, and had a mother who loved her. aud
il is equally difficult TO comprehend how any
power, even that of nature, could ever make use
ef il. But the elements are kindly to man.
When they have done their work, sweet flowers
may grow out of this putridity.
Persons are not licensed to sell liquor in Eng
land. Ii is the premises that are licensed. The
Board having it in charge license one public
house in a district, basing it upon the supposed
necessity, and these premises hold this license,
till deprived of it by a violation of the law. If
you desire to sell liquor you cannot go and rent
a room and open your bar, you are compelled to
buy the lease of the place which carries the
license with it. Consequently q licensed place is
q valuable piece Of property. One at the corner
of St. Martins street and Orange, a dingy build
ing in q dingy neighborhood, was bought by an
amer iuan - he used G= an American bar, and he
paid S25, 900 bonus for the lease. The annual
rental of the place is 81 500, and the lease for
which he paid the bonus has i~orty-fve years to
run. For any other business the bonus would
have been next to nothing in that neighborhood.
Sunday is an especially drouthy day in Lon
don. All the bars are closed till one o'clock,
PM, and ere then open but an hour. They are
closed till six and are permitted to keep open till
eleven. And let it be remembered that law in
England is law. You can't laugh at it as you do
in America. There is no evasion OF this Law
attempted. The publics are required to be
, closed and they are closed. There are no side
, doors as in New York-there is no selling on thu
sIy-they are closed. The only exception is a
the railroad station. The refreshment bars there
are permitted to be kept open as long as train
arrive or depart, for the British Government
recognises the necessity of an Englishman'
having his grog till the prescribed hour for hi
getting into bed. The thirsty soul who pant
for beer after twelve, goes to Charing Station
and buys a ticket to the first station out which
=. Tuppence ha penny or FIVE cents. Then b
walks into the bar and being a "traveler," ca
buy. drink and pay for all the stimulants h
desires, till the last train has arrived or departe
for the night. His ticket he puts in his poke
to be used when he desires.
The night trade in liquor is somethIn
enormous. A landlord in the Haymarket, who's
lease is about expiring, is now paying $1,000
year rent, and his proprietors have Notified hil
that his renewal will cost him five times that SUI
He told me that he should not renew, but that
would gladly if be were allowed to keep ope
till halfpast twelve, a half hour after the regul
time. That half-hour each day would more tbs
make the difference in rent.