The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1892-11-03
TEMPERANCE NOTES.
LIQUOR IN GREAT BRITAIN.
The Trafic In Alcoholic StimuIants In
creases Yearly.


The Trafnc In Alcoholic stimuIants In
creases Yearly.
The situation in Great Britain as re-
CARDS the temperance question much
resembles that in the United States.
The masses of the people are either in
favor of the liquor traffic, because they
are themselves drinkers, or they are in
different on the subject. Public opinion
has not yet been educated up to the
point of recognizing its evils. But
there, as here, there is class of tenn
perance people who are over-zealous in
their methods which are impracticable
In the present state of British opinion;
they bitterly oppose any remodeling of
the liquor laws, and demand the utter
extinction of the traffic-which is en-
tirely impossible of realization at pres
ent in that country, as, with a popula-
ton much smaller than ours, it spends
over 500, 600, 900 year for intoxicants.
Meanwhile, the traffic increases in vol
ume yearly, and its opponents are pre-
pairing to discuss methods of dealing
with it at the approaching session of
parliament, instead of bending their
energies upon the education of the peo-
pie.
The problem is even a more difficult
one with our English cousins than with
us, for Tire government derives reve-
nue. from this traffic of over $3.50, 000,-
900 year. No plan has any chance of
adoption which interferes with this rev.
enue, for there is absolutely no means
whereby this sum can be otherwise
raised, except by direct taxation, and
no English statesman dares propose
an increase of this. There are at pres
ent in England and Wales 126, 900
places where Intoxicating drinks are
sold, or one to every 200 of the pcpula-
ton. With us the matter is one for
the states to deal with individually
the supreme court of the United States
having SO ruled, it will be remembered,
in the California cases; ard it would be
comparatively easy for any state to
provide means for raising any revenue
now derived from liquor in some other
way.
The liquor question entered largely
into the late parliamentary elections in
this wise: The United Kingdom ALI
ance, temperance organization, has
for several years been actively waging
the adoption of what is there called the
direct veto SYSTEM" which is prac-
tically what we know as local option.
All public houses and other drinking
places would be closed if majority of
the voters demanded it, and no pro-
vision for compensation to their keep
ers was another feature of the ALI
ance's programme. This reused the
vested interests of the liquor traffic
and in the recent parliamentary strug-
gle quite a number of liberal candi-
dates were defeated through the saloon
influence. So strongly did the rum
power make itself felt that the liberal
leaders are seeking some less radical
plan of action.
The following scheme has been made
public through one of the liberal semi
official organs and it is being actively
discussed by the English press at the
present time:
Existing saloon licenses to be confirmed for
three years but in order TO lessen the number
within that period provision to be made for the
surrender Of licenses on a payment equivalent
to one years profit Loans might be author.
years all licenses should expire The local au-
thorities the town, village, or county council
should then fix the number OF licenses TO be
issued-in no case to exceed the proportion Of
one license for each 900 inhabitants: Those
licenses which are to run FIVE years should be
offered at public auction to the highest respon-
sible and reputable bidder. Any profits to be
derived from this plan should be applied for the
compensation OF those who surrendered their
licenses during the three-years period. All
licensed houses 10 bs subject to the closest po-
lice supervision and subject TO the regulation Of
the local authorities. A conviction OF a license
holder TO be followed, according to the gravity
of the onense, by forfeiture or by the indorse-
ment Of the offense on the back OF the license,
TO be followed by forfeiture in the event OF rep
etition.
Whatever be the plan adopted, it will
fail to check the evils of the drink
habit There is but one final mode of
dealing with the traffic and that is its
extinction. All that stringent license
or regulatory laws can do is to curb it
somewhat. But prohibitory law
would not and could not be enforced in
England, in the state of public opinion.
The work to be done. then. is to bring
TO the attention of the masses the truth
about rum, and the unnumbered woes,
physical, moral and political, which
result from the drink habit. Until a
large ajority of the people waken to
a realization of these, and are deter
mined that they shall be cured, it is idle
to attempt to enforce prohibition. or
to pulverize the rum power. -Toledo
Blade.