The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1885-03-11
OUTSIDE LIQUOR LICENSES.
What Prominent Business Men Have
TO Say on the Subject.

TO say on the SUBJECT
The announcement in yesterdays ADyKR-
User that the Privy Council, at Is meeting
on the 9Th instant, had authorized the issu-
ance Of outside spirit licenses, was the sub
| ject Of general comment in the city to-day.
A representative Of this paper was detailed
to interview leading spirit merchants, and
| ascertain their views of the subject. We ap-
| pend q synopsis Of these interviews.
HEssRs. FREETH & PEAcocE
| Were first visited. They were invited to
| express an opinion regarding the probable
effect of the new licenses upon the revenue.
| They replied that the granting of licenses
would not increase the revenue, because the
| fines now enforced for illegal selling in the
! centers proposed to be licensed were greater
| than the amounts that would be received
| from licenses. One man was fined $4,000 in
| eighteen months, besides other cases. The
sale Of spirits under license would not i'm
prove the quality of the liquor. The natives
demand fiery liquor.
Would i; not have tendency to check
the consumption of liquor by combining the
sale to licensed houses only
| consumption Of liquor on the other islands,
because under license liquor would be sold
cheaper, and the same amount of capital
would be invested in the trade. Section IS,
| Laws of 1892 will render void-any advantage
the license might give the ieensee.
licensed trade would increase the sale OF
liquor distilled by the natives from lei root
and prickly pear. If there were an efficient
police force the sale might be regulated
This firm did not think the license system
| would affect their business much. The loss
| of revenue through illicit distilIation equals
So per gallon, besides incidental losses to
dealers, as freight, commission, etc. "Okole-
| hau - was distilled at 81 per gallon. There
was an unlimited supply of raw material.
The Chinese firms importing g Sam Su -
| direct are Wing Wo Chan & Co., Wing Wo
Tai & Co., Quong Lee Yuen & Co., Hung
Lung Kee Co., and Quong Sam Kee & Co.
Freeth & Peacock pay $4,000 por annum
to the Government in duties.
MEssRs. BROWN & co.
Were next interviewed. Mr.. Frank Brown
said he thought the issue of licenses by the
Government on the other islands would di-
| minish the sale of liquor, because the
| licensees would see to it that illegal selling
was stopped. 1t was very easy to evade sec
| ton 10 of the liquor law. The revenue would
be increased, because licensed dealers would
| haul up illegal dealers under section 81 of
| the act. 1t would be to their interest to do
SO. Natives drink gin because it is cheaper
and smoother than other liquor. They do not
f,,. fFa HIo do
not drink now as much as before. The Chi
nese now sell liquor openly. In his opinion
the police were inefficient.
| In reply to another ques ton, Mr. Brown
said there would certainly be no loss to the
revenue, because the licensee was not going
| to put himself in the hands of illicit manu-
| facturers.
This firm has been in the liquor business
for 10 years, and Mr.. Frank Brown helped
to frame the present liquor law.
MEssRs. LovEJoY & CO.
Said that for their part they would prefer
not to have outside licenses granted. There
was danger of the licenses falling into i'm
proper hands. 1t would not stop the
illicit sale of liquor. They did not think it
would pay licensees to keep men in their en-
| ploy to look out for illicit manufacture or
to act as detectives for the sale of liquor
without license. There would probably
be loss to the revenue. The trade in Homo
lulu would be lessened, as liquor would be
imported direct to Kahului and Hilo.
MEssRs. MACFARLANE & CO.
Mr.. Henry Macfarlane was seen by the
ADVERTISER reporter and interviewed. He
thought the issuance of licenses would work
we'll as a whole. It would be very necessary,
however, that licenses should only be
granted to good men. He thought the eff
| feet would be, if any, to diminish the sale of
liquor, as the licensees would take care that
there was much less sold by unlicensed per-
sons than there was at present. He thought
the idea of auctioning off the licenses,
| which had been talked of, was a mistaken
one as a combination could easily be made,
by the employees on a plantation, for in
| stance, to outbid others who wished to pur-
chase the license in order to restrain the
sale of liquor. OF course the Government
could not lend itself to any scheme of rails
ing q revenue on fines imposed on illegal
| dealings i'll liquor IN preference to issuing
licenses. The whole matter was an expert
ment, and licenses should only be granted
| to men who would use without abusing the
privilege.
| MEssRs. E. HoFFsCHLAEGER & co.
| Mr.. Mehrtens of this firm said he had not
| given the question great deal of thought,
but was of the opinion that the issuance of
licenses would tend to regulate the sale of
liquor more than heretofore. As to wheth
it would increase or diminish the amount
sold, he was not prepared to express an
! opinion.
4 New Article of Commerce.
Ment ton was recently made in the ADvER-