The Portland daily press., 1889-09-30
WHAT sTE1soN WAS GOING TO SAY.
.,,.,,,n,s superintendent OF Schools
gnIlvens Temperance Meeting
Nv saving Maine Liquor Dealers are
Licensed by the Police.
The speech Creates Sensation and
Lively Discussion.
Especial to the Press.l

AunuRN. Me-, September 29-Auburn
had this afternoon, an interesting
temperance meeting. W. W. Stetson. the
superintendent of schools here was bulle-
tined as the principal speaker. License in
Lewiston" was the subject announced.
"The License System OF Maine," was the
subject on which he spoke, and his COM
ments on the license system of this State.
eyinently intended as an untevorable COM
parison with the legalized license system in
other States, stirred up quite breeze among
the Prohibitonists by whom the assembly
was controlled. The meeting ended in a
sort of wordy Donnybrook Fair.
Every one who came into the hall was
wondering what "Stetson was going to saw"
They soon found out when the speaker was
introduced by the chairman, and clearly and
accurately defined his position and subject.
A license SYSTEM, as it existed In the States
in which he had lived, was system under
which man, by paying certain amount
fixed by law, into the treasury OF the CON-
munity, is allowed to sell liquor. and does
sell openly, and under certain restrictions,
and makes money by selling 1t.
In Lewiston-and in other cities and towns
of Maine, for Lewiston is not the only mol
the greatest sinner in Maine-liquor is sold
business of selling is a paying business
There the resemblance between the license
system of Maine and the license system In
States where license is legalized, ceases. Un-
der legalized license system, the money
paid for license goes into the State or coun-
ty treasury. Under the license system OF
Maine the money paid for license goes into
the pockets of the police officers. Under the
legalized license system the money paid for a
license Is expended for public purposes. I'm
der the license system of Maine the money
paid for license Is expended personally by
those who receive 1t in payment of their pri
vate debts.
Mr.. Stetson here spoke of certain indi.
vdual with whom he was personally ac-
quainted, who was head-over-heels in debt
until he was appointed member of the po.
lice force two or three years ago. To-day
that man is living in fine residence, he
sports team, his wife and daughters are
finely dressed. his parlor is furnished with a
piano, his debts are paid-and all on salary
of 81 day."
The great furor over the sentence of a GER
tain woman in Lewiston. who is most no
torious rumseller, (Ann Haley, who was sent
into the cooler for six months Saturday by
Judge FOSTER, was next discussed, and
something was said about the number of sa-
looms in Lewiston Statements of careful,
conservative men were quoted, in which
they estimated the saloons in Lewiston to
number some 230 or 300, and he also estima-
ted the amount of license these would have
to pay. In a State under legalized license
system a man must pay about $1,000 per
year. Under the Maine license system a
man must pay three fines per year of S100
each, and the amount of ''tips" which must
be given to the police-considerabl less
than than the license fee under license
law.
Other facts were quoted and commented
upon, notably the fact that in three OF the
Maine cities there were wholesale liquor
dealers who sold liquors to retail dealers un-
der a guarantee that so long as these retail
dealers sold only their liquors, they would be
protected from arrest, search and seizure
and vinoronsy commented ,,non his
The speaker did not at all, as he explained
later, however, intend to advocate a license
system as measure Of abstract policy, but
simply to show that anything was preferable
to the present situation.