Morning journal and courier., 1885-08-26
rHE L,oUoH LICENSE SYSTEM.

Its Workings As Known And Un-
 known-Licenses Issued In New Ha-
 ven County Amounts Received
 Therefor-WhyS So Few Beer Licenses
 Are Taken-Other Facts of Interest.
 While the general facts in relation to the liquor license law may be generally under stood by the class most interested, which are the liquor dealers themselves, yet there are some things in connection with the law and it's workings that are not so well known to this class, and the general public may be said to be in almost entire ignorance of them To throw some light upon the sub- iect, which is of more or less interest to all classes directly or indirectly, is the purpose of this article.
 Under the present law the "license year" | in New Haven commences on the first day Of the month succeeding the annual town meet | ing which occurs in December, making the | first day of January in each year the begin ming Of the license year. In all other towns | in the State the license year commences on | the first day of November, the town elections being held in October
 | To procure license application must be made to the county commissioners on printed form signed by five electors who are also taxpayers. This application may be ! made at any time after the annual town ! meeting but not before. The application must be filed with the town clerk and adVer- ! tised in towns where there are newspapers ! published; and where such is not thes case ! a notice of the application must be placed | upon the town signpost. After being ad- l yertised the application duly certified by the ! town clerk is forwarded to the county com l missioners where it must remain on file ! fourteen days subject to inspection, and | while there it may be objected to by any cit | izen on the ground of the person apply \ ing being unsuitable to receive a license, or the unsuitableness of the place where the saloon or store is to be located. In case of f such objection the commissioners are required | to give notice of hearing to all parties in \ interest at least five days before such hearing | is to be had. They can then hear the appli- ! cant and the obiectors and give their decision, | from winch there is no appeal. In good many ! cases objections are made on the ground that ! obiectors believe that the names of the tax | payers signed to the application are forgeries, ! which has proved to be true in many cases. | If a license is issued on forged papers and | the fact is ascertained by the commissioners l the license is promptly revoked.
 | In towns of three thousand inhabitants or | less the fee for liquor license cannot ex- ! ceed $100; but in towns of three thousand | Or over the fee cannot be less than S1OO or l over $500 An illustration of the results at | | is to be seen in the present license law. The original law pro ided that ''every person SIX ! cept licensed druggist shall pay not less | than $100 nor more than $500 for liquor license, and the sum of $50 for a beer license. ! In the legislature of 1882, while revision ot
 the law was on it's passage,-a county mem ! Der moved to insert an amendment between
 the price named for liquor and beer licenses 1 as follows: "And in towns of not over ! three thousand population the license fee | except to wholesale dealers and licensed druggists, shall be $100." This, although not I so intended, completely shut out the bee1 | license in all towns over three thousand ! inhabitants and made the fee not less thar | $fO0 for either liquor or beer license. Since ! that time the number of beer licenses have 1 decreased in New Haven county from 1884 1T | the year previous to the enactment of thii ! law to A during the present year, and a cor 1 responding increase ill liquor licenses anC ! consequently a corresponding increase in thu | revenue to the towns from licenses. Thi I was evidently not the intent of the mover O
 this amendment, but so it is and the resul ! has been as stated.
 During the year 1884 there were 969 liquor 23 beer and 69 druggist licenses issued, tn | gross amount received for which was SIG,
 038.O0. Of this number 472 liquor, 12 bee I and 37 druggist licenses were issued in tn | town of New Haven, for which the tow | treasury was enriched to the amount of $57, l 649.O0 less five per cent, which is paid int
 the county treasury. The total mum | Der of licenses of all classes issued 1 to New Haven parties to date this year i ! 516 and the amount received therefor $5S, 913, or S419 more than the entire amount re l ceived last year. The amount received dur 1 ing the remainder of this year will be small i as only the fraction of the year remaining a
 the time application is made has to be paie | for.
 Druggists formerly had to pay the sam'
 for licenses as liquor dealers, while now the. ] can take out $12 license, which practical, 1 covers legitimate druggist business, or the, ! can take $50 license, which permits then I to sell for medicinal purposes but not to b. drank on the premises. This decrease of sets in a measure the increase of receipts II ] other directions.
 | The amount received for licenses in New l Haven county is greater than that of Hart ford and Fairfield counties combined, al ! though the number of licenses issued in thos ! two counties is greater than those issued II 1 New Haven county. In 1881, being the frs year that an official report was made iron all counties, the amount paid for licenses il New Haven county was $SS, ,237. %, showing
 an increase of S27, ,801.00 since that time 1 which is owing to an increase in the price of Ii l censes and the change from beer to liquor a | previously noted.
 The five per cent deduction from license
 which goes into the county treasury nor
 than pays all the expenses of the count
 commissioners for issuing the licenses ant
 all other costs, including revocation hearings
 etc.
 The following towns in New Haven count.
 issue no licenses except to druggists for com
 pounding prescriptions: Guilford, Hamden
 Madison, Middlebury, North Branford, Nortl 1 Haven, Prospect, Wolcott and Woodbridge
 A vote against license or in favor of icens
 stands until rescinded by vote in annua I ,oA IaS-, rn l quired to issue call for vote on the ques
 ton unless petitioned so to do by twenty five electors and taxpayers of the town.
 It is safe to say that since 1874 when tn l license law went into effect over $2, 800 | 900 have been paid into the treasuries of th
 different towns. The total amount receive throughout the State for licenses last yea
 was $276, 714.09.
 | The county commissioners are required l report to the treasurers of the various town I in the county on the first of each month th
 licenses and kind of licenses issued and th ! amount received for the same. This wor l requires a good deal of bookkeeping, espt cially on account of cash received and the fiv | per cent deductions made. For eight sut ] cessive years this work has been done in thi | county by Commissioner Jacobs and in a
 this time not a mistake has occurred say l one This was when the commissioners ser fifty cents too much to the treasurer of tE
 spairing of making his cash balance he T. ceived a letter from the honest treasurer e1 l closing the missing fifty cents or it's equiv'
 lent in postage stamps.
 FOR 1885.
 American Social science Association
 The general meeting of this association fc 1885 will be held in the hall of the Hig
 school at Saratoga, N. Y, from the Eth