The Newberry herald and news. (Newberry, S.C.) 1884-1903, 1893-01-11
lle gesald and Yeus.
TIE ATHENS LlogoR Law.
Int.reating Analysis of the Unique System
No Decrease In Orunkenness-Bind
Tigers Continue TO Do Thriving
Basiness-Facts as Applied
to South Carolina.
Igrom the Greenville News.l !

and Athens are as near duplicates as
cities can well be. The only points of
difference are that everything IN
Athens is on a scale shade larger
than in Greenville and that Greenville
! is shade more aggressive aud pro-
gressiye.
Down in the details of municipal
management the resemblance con-
tinues. Athens mayor receives sal
ary of 1900 year; the city has a
police force of ten men paid on a basis
Of $50 month to privates. The fire
department consists of one steamer,
hose reels and hook and ladder truck.
All the municipal expenses are little
more than ours. The city tax rate IS
ten mills on an assessment of nearly
se=en millions of dollars, which covers
everything, including running ex-
sterest on few railroad bonds
the cost of the public schools.
can see no reason why dispensary
: ii Greenville could hope to do as
much business or to make as much
profit as this one in Athens, but the
institution here gives us basis OF CAL
culation and estimation.
The Athens dispensary began busi-
ness in October, 1891. It is now thir-
teen months old. It is conducted in
g 8 storeroom on Broad street and is
equipped with a long counter, shelv-
ing a. e one wall and rallied in
space at the front inclosing desk for
the manager. The shelves are filed
With bottles of all sizes, each labeled
With its contents-"Fine old Gibson
whiskeyn;; Pure North Carolina corn
whiskey";; Gegnae brandy" etc. On
ttssa. top of each cork is round red
label with Athens dispensary" print
ed on it. On one side of the room
there are piles of boxes of bottles.
The dispensary does its own bot
& ting, buying the liquor in quantities
It sellS nothing less than a pint
and no more than five gallons at q
time to any one person. The manager
says he keeps everything that can be
called for in his line from champagne
-1Ithe rare cordials to plain, every,
day, United States corn liquor in white
glass bottles at twenty-five cents a
pint.
The business amounts, so far, &c
$4,000 year. The net profits have
been from $500 and $1,000 year
s thousand dollars month it is called,
but it does not reach that. Mr.. John
ston, who is in charge, says the net
profit may be approximately stated at
twenty-five per cent, although the
gross profit is fifty per cent. In other
Words, actual experience proves that II
costs twenty-five per cent of the total
business to run it. These expenses in-
clude salaries, cost Of bottles and bot
ting, analyses. freight, rent, insurance
and incidentals. The manager mas
two assistants and the expenses OF op-
81 ..ation are $500 a month.
The biggest business the dispensary
@ has ever done was in October, 1891, the
month twas opened. That month is
included in the figures Of the first year
. From all / can gather the regular re-
ceipts will be less hereafter. $4,000 OF
5000 viii probably be the sum OF the
profits hereafter, supposing the dispen.
sary is continued.
Athens is fairly well satisfied with
the dispensary. She should be better
pleased than she is, for liquor licenses
have never been an important part OF
s her revenue. When the city issued
licenses she had six bar rooms licensed
at $3.50 eaeh-sl, $50 a year. Then she
g was dry i've or six years and bllnd
& tigers fonrished everywhere, liquor
was sold right and left by scores OF
people and no licenses were paid. II
naneislly, therefore, Athens is away
ahead on the dispensary even at $4,000
a year, and that is all she will get out
of even the first years business, for the
Z law requires that the county shall re-
ceiye proportion of the profits to be
& agreed on, and that proportion will
probably be one-ffth.
.As a money making machine"
however, said Editor Reed, of the
Athens Banner, who helped to draw
the dispensary bill and who seems to
be strong friend Of Athens peculiar
institution, ''the dispensary is fail
ure. It was intended to be. Our pur-
pose was not to make money but sim
ply to secure the city against possible
loss,''
Then, in response to questions as to
2 the moral result, he said there had
been rather more drunkenness under
the dispensary system than there
was when the city was dry and rather
less than there was when It was wet.
The police tell me there is hardly an
appreciable difference between the
drunkenness and crime now and what
it was when licenses were issued.
Blind tigers continue to work. Some
of them buy their liquors from the dis
pensary, others from outside. The dis
pensary opens at sunrise and closes at
sunset and is closed on all legal holi-
Gays and election days. It is. at night
that the. tigers prowl and do their
work ard from them the initiated can
y freely.
fSo far as ] can learn, no class Of
linking men is protected by the dis
nsary law. The manager is forbid
k1.by law and under penalty of for