Smyrna times., 1885-02-11
TOT ne HWyIUu II6Ns.
= a Wise and JudiciOus Ejconso
system

~ SGCAAAe
In prominant town in the state Of
Delaware, on late holiday occasion
at Il late hour of the night. the writer
had some business with the clerk of
one OF the hotels, entered the office. en-
CURED 1or the clerk, was told he was
IN the bar room, passed on through
the open door into the bar-room and
took note Of his surroundings. The
door being open both rooms wcrcaIil,e
thick and rank with tobacco smoke :;
IN the oiiice were about a dozen men
sitting, lounging and SMOKING. the
pool tables in the bar-room were sur
rounded by men and youths eagerly
interested in the play; at the bar there
was some intensely interesting game
III progress, the participants and look
era on standing about four deep the
entire length Of the bar, the clerk or
chlet tender keeping count for them.
and the assistant or bar tender propar
dealing out drinks to the frequeRt Gus
toners. At that late hour many of
the visitors had become somewhat
loud IN their utterauces, SO the noise
and confusion about comported with
the Vlleness Of the atmosphere. and
made it difficult to get the attention of
Jue clerk. While waiting, an old s0t.
poor fellow, came, shook hands with
me and asked for ten cents with
which to buy another drink: wor-
thy man, no doubt, in his Younger
days, good mechanic. for auoht I
know a respected citizen; but alas
drink under 81 lCiSe aad judici0us
license system" has wrought his ruin
and " degradation, and now he beps
for dime with which to get another.
that ne may haste on down to
drunkard's grave.
Mechanics, tradcsmen and loafers.
some with families dependent on them
for support, We're drinking and talk
ing part in the games, some of them
sadly under the influence of drink. had
been for several days previous. and
continued to be for some time after.
many of them no doubt bound in the
demons chains so fast that there is no
help under the present rise and jvdi-
ct0HS license system - to save their fam
Ines from distress and misery" and
themselves from personal degrade
ton"
The class, however, which most
interested me was that composed of the |
younger men and youths, among whom
thought / recognized the only son of !
widowed mother. How that Door
mothers heart would yearn for him if |
she but knew that he was there, and |
IN her anxiety she would cry "OII
where IS my poor boy tonight - Has |
he started on the downward road to |
ruin? Under 50 rise dRd jRdicj0us |
Incense system no one can tell where |
he will end.
y safe estimate of the crowd i'm this
bar-room would be seventy-fve or
eighty, at least half Of them under
thIrly years of age, and probably a
dozen under tWenty.one. | did not
see anything done, what little time |
was present, not over five minutes. that
could be charged as a violation of the
law under " Il rise dHd jHdiciOus license
syStem,' now in operation the very
drunken man did not get u drink. he
hadn't the dime - the one who had
been drinking for days, drank, but
could not say whether he was in n
to place him under the ban
Of the law or not.
But the young men are STARTING on =
dangerous road, some of the older
gong down to ruin, and some of them
hopelessly gone. The proprietor has
the sanction Of the law | suppose. has
business and social standing, and on
that night and at that very hour was
in u sumptu0ns stvle. a
club OF high-sounding name, and hay
ing complimentary speeches showered
lpon him by leading members. Did
hose men know that in thus giving
character to his business they were
1ugmenting his power to drag men
Town to poverty, Wretchedness and
,ume," and bring their families TO
distress and misery -?
There were two other lincensed bars
n operation that night in that town.
ma allowing them an equal share of
II the trade there must have been NOT
ess than two hundred men patronizino
he bars of that little town two bun7
ired or more men continuing TO add IN
the record of poverty, wretchedness
md crime, the distress Of families. and
PERSONAL degradation, as ain too MANY
Instances recognized as the bitter fruits
4 lntemperance. Where is the rem
dy p Is it in ~ wise and iudicious
lcense system ?'
No TTCENrGr7