Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1882-02-22
Governor st. Johns Testimony.

Governor John p, ST. John, Of Kansas,
who has undertaken the heroulean task of
enforcing the prohibitory law of that state,
gives history of his experience, and the
effects of prohibition, in a letter to the New
York Witness from which we CLEAN as fol-
lows II Governor Robinson, be-
fore stating that drinking is more common
now in Kansas than ever BEFORE" had exam
ined the records Of the police court in the
city OF Lawrence, near which he resides, he
would have found that the last five months
under the old license system furnished 214
cases to that tribunal, against only 100 the
first five months under prohibition. The
city of Newton, in Harvey county, contain
ing about 5000 population, had not single
case of drunkenness in the police court since
May-being the date that the prohibitory
law took effect-until the first day of Octo-
Der; and the district court that convened
there about that time, for the first time in
the history of the county, found not single
criminal case upon the docket Emporia,
situate in Lyon county, and containing
about 5000 population, had, during the last
year, under the license system, 900 cases in
the police court, against only forty-three
cases the first seven months of prohibition
and ! am informed that the tax levy in that
city this year is less than it was during the
period of licensed dram shops. Winfield
in Cowley county, with at least 5000 popu-
lation, had twenty-one convictions in the po-
lice court for drunkenness during the last
five months of license, against only three the
first five months of prohibition. Independ-
ence, in Montgomery county, with about the
same population, had eighteen cases In the
police court the last five months of license,
against five cases the first five months of
prohibition. Parsons, in Labette county,
with population of about 5000, had forty
seven cases the last five months of license
against only ten the first five months of pro-
hibition. Mcpherson, containing about
1000 population, had forty-eight cases in the
police court the last ten months of license
(tbe only period of licensed dram shops they
have ever had in the county, notwithstaud.
ing it has been organized over ten years.,
against only four cases the first seven months
and prohibition. Under the old license sys-
tenn, the city script of Olathe was worth
only from sixty to eighty cents on the dol
lar; now it is at par, and money is in the
treasury to promptly meet every obligation.
In the days OF dram shops there was paid
as revenue into the city treasury of Olathe
$4,000 per year 81 1900 of that sum was re-
quired to build calaboose, in which to i'm
prison and furnish room for a police court
in which to try drunkards. The last four
months under license shows 102 cases for
drunkenness in the Leavenworth city police
court against only seventy-eight cases the
first four months under prohibition. During
the same period in Topeka, license furnished
159 cases for drunkenness, against only
seventy-two under prohibition. We are re-
ceiving an excellent immigration, and Kan
sas was never more prosperous than she is
to-day. The assessed valuation for 1881 of
personal property in the state was $40, 243,000
greater than it was for 1880, under license,
and little over 100000 greater increase
than for any previous year. The earnings
of the Atchson, Topeka and Santa Fe Rail-
way Company for the month of June, 1881,
were S43S000 greater than for the CORES
ponding month in 1880. The first ten
months of 1880, under free whiskey rule, sent
to our state penitentiary 254 convicts, against
| only 148 the first ten months of 1881, after
we had adopted our prohibitory amendment.
For every saloon.keeper that has left Kansas
on account of prohibition, we have received
sufficient number of sober, industrious,
law-abiding citizens TO build schoolhouse,
and Kansas can afford to exchange saloons
for schoolhouses. Kansas may have made
"a mistake" but if so, it is certainly in the
right direction, and our people are so well
pleased with it that if the question of re-
turning to the old system of licensing dram
shops was submitted to them, it would be
defeated by an overwhelming majority.