Daily Republican. [volume] ([Wilmington, Del.]) 1874-1890, 1883-07-25
The Scott Law,


As the Ohio campaign outside of the
tariff question has turned entirely upon
what is called the Scott Liquor Law, it
may not be amiss to state in a brief
summary what that law is. Let it be
understood however, from the start
that the K pubican party of that State
has placed itself squarely upon record
as being in favor of the law, and the
Democratic party has as emphatic ally
placed itself on the 9th side. The
Scott law requires the payment of an
annual tax of 5000 by the seller of all
kinds Of liquor, and of 500 by the sell
er of yinou> Ii luor only. This differs
from the Delaware license law in these
two points :: a tax of 500 or more is col
lected from dealers in spirituous liquor
while the tax for vinous liquors is the
saue. The other point is, that in
Ohio, the dealer has no trouble and
expense in publishing his application
for license and the additional trouble
and expense of attending court to see
that his application is granted. In this
respect the Scott law is a free liquor law
because everybody who wants to en-
gage in the sale Of liquor can do so by
paying the tax required.
This places the traffic upon an anti
monopoly platform, the same as the
sale Of dry goods, groceries and hard
ware If this tax is not paid when due
peralty of2O per cent. is collected. This
would make $500 tax $40, and 800
tax Sl2D In Del sware, dealers are re
quired to pay their licer Sc in advance,
month b, fore the Court meets that
acts upon them, but returning the
al cunt advanced if the license is re-
fused. To liquor dealers the Scott law
should be preferable because it does
not exact the tax until the business is
started for the year. and it is just as
easy to pay the tax on sight with Ger
tainty of being permitted to carry on
the business without molestaticn as it is
to pay license fee on sight month
before it is granted with an uncertainty
of it being granted at all. Every dealer
must have the written consent of the
owner of the property to carry on the
business under penalty of fine of S25
not exceeding $780, or ten days i'm
prisonment, or both in the discretion of
the Cour'. The exceptions to the tax
law are Druggists who sell on physi-
claus prescriptions and for mechanical
and sacramental purposes, and manu-
facturers who manufacture and sell in
quantities Of one gallon and over at u
time.
Of the money received f.om this taxa
ton in each county, one-fourth is TO 60
to the county poor fund and three
fOurths TO this treasury of the village or
city in which the business is car lied on.
OF the latter one-half is to 90 to the
police fund and the other to the general
revenue fund This plan differs widely
from the Delaware In the latter, the
whole amount Of license collected goes
into the Safe Treasury, and though
New Castle County pays four-ffths Of
the licenses two-thirls of it goes to the
support Of Kent and Sussex Counties.
BY he Ohio plan each city, town or
village gets three-fOurtils of the lax on
Liquors sold in it, in some shape and
the poor treasury Of the county gets the
other fourth. If there is no police
fun the whole thren-fourthS are to 20
into the general revenue fund, Liquor
selling Of all kinds is forbidden on Sun
day and all places for such business
must be closed, back as well as front
doors. The penalty for either opening
or selling on Sunday is "A fine of 500
with imprisonment not exceeding 80
days. This is more severe than the
Delaware law. Any city or village
has the further privilege Of regulating
or restricting, or even prohibiting the
traffic if it sees fit to do so. This par
takes Of the nature Of local option
which j. not popular III Delaware,
principal y because Senator Bayard
opposed IT,
II is estimated that the tax will
bring into the county treasures Of the
State Of Ohio no less than S2.OO0,OOO
annually, and hat its immediate effect
will be to close permanently IA large
number of low grOggerics which will
not be able 10 pay the tax.
TUE lItliIIlt flr II tbl