Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1885-11-23

LICENsE OR PROHIBITION.


license, instead of prohibition as the
best temperance means. Down IN
Massachusetts many of the leading
papers fight prohibition, among
which we quote the Springfield Re
publican. The Republican, however,
is getting about enough of license,
and is waging war on the aldermen
for issuing SO many licenses. The
following from that paper will show
the condition. Of affairs under the Ii
cehse system, and will be of use TO
those so called temperance people
who think they would prefer license
to the prohibitory plan. The Re
publican prints a map of the city and
shows by black dots where licenses
are held and liquors poured out:
sit is little more than six months
since the city government voted on
applications for licenses to sell Ii
quor and inaugurated q reign of free
rum. The people of Springfield
know IN general only too we'll how
that action has resulted. The streets
of the city have since borne eloquent
of evidences the industry of the album
dant open bars which are forbidden
by statute. More than one woman
has said, cit seems as if | never 90
out on the street without seeing
drunken men," and employers COM
plain that good workmen are con-
stantly tempted to excess. TO meas
ure the evil that the saloons do, to
estimate the opportunities of which
they are enabled TO make use for
reaching their ends, it requires but
glance over the map of this city,
thickly sprinkled from one end to
the other with the black spots that
are an active menance to this "city
of homes" The sections of our city
shown. by our map indicate the posi-
ton of 1873 of the places licensed to
sell liquor, while 13 others stretch
off on the distant parts of Main
street, and include groceries" on
Mill, Hancock, Walnut and Central
streets. They stretch from end to
end of the town. They crowd into
the heart of the city, elbowing re-
spectacle merchants on either side,
and they are close by where the
wage-earners live and work. They
bring to their aid billiard-tables and
lunch counters, while the restaurants
have their wine or malt liquor list.
The number of low groggeries that
flourish IN the alleys and ward l
streets, as we'll as along Water and
Worthington, reveal scenes that are
not pleasant to people near by. 1t is
not necessary to point that the deluge
of rum is tremendous affection to
certain localities.
This board of aldermen took the
extraordinary step of agreeing upon
its course in secret, and then issuing
1913 licenses to sell liquor in this
city, or one for every 220 inhabitants
and one for every 40 or so families,
being far in excess of the number
of the grocers OF of meat markets
or of both together. The amazing
thing about this extreme of libertin
ism was the fact that the men who
had been elected aldermen as tenn
pe1ance men weakly consented tc
share the responsibility with thei
associates, instead of proclaimins
their own convictions. if they ha(
them, in favor of smaller number
and against this free rum policy.
Many people who want TO see th
evils Of intemperance repressed hav
had a theory that ''just as much run
will he drunk any way,no matter hoy
many OF few sellers are licensed.
The experience of Springfield in thi
year 1885 has wholly disproved thi
theory. Our streets have never bee
so polluted with the parade of drunk
EN- men. Where it used to be rar
to see them, they are now common
and when the saloons close at
o'clock at night, the abomination
everywhere making the best of it
way to its wretched home, sometime
in charge of the wife or younge
member of the family. 1t has bee
a fearful curse TO the class most ex
posed to its alluremants, lumilia
ton and reproach to every one VIII
has pride i'll our city, and a pos
tive damage to the industrial inter
est of the city. 1t must be reforme
at the next city election, SO far as
is possible TO effect reform at til
polls and by the character of the Gil
government"