The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1893-04-17

They Will BE Operated by Government
Drinks Will BE Sold In Bottles Only.

They VIII BE Operated BY Government
Drinks Will Be Sold In Bottles Only.
Pittsburg Post.
Gov. b. II. Tillman. of South Carolina. is
IN the city, and his trip here is due to the
States peculiar liquor law. The States
ID. ii. Trexter. Iney are both here TO meet
some brewers and distliiers and also some
glass bottle manufacturers.
South Carolina has just taken unto itself
. liquor law that is an imported article. IL
is q gem. Ii halls from Norway. and In that
faraway land Is considered all rigbt- BY
this new law the State goes into the liquor
selling business itself and establishes
agencies, through which every man who
wants q drink must get 1t, and he can Oh.
tain It at no other place. The law goes into
effect July l. and after that date there will
not be a saloon In the State OF South Caro-.
lima, but there will be- plenty OF liquor.
Mr. IrRxter's position Is explained 10y the
new law. Ii requires that the state shall
purchase. through q liquor commissioner,
all the liquors of q frst-clnss saloon and
furnish the Thirsty population with them
at so much per drink. No liquor can be
III anufactured in the State. Nor can il be
shipped into the State In bulk. 1t must be
made expressly for the State, ua-
dergO q special chemical examination,
put In bottles and then. having been
furnished with q proper certificate of
inspection by the liquor commissioner. 1t
can be sent to the State. 1t is first Celiv-
cred in sealed packages to what Is really q
big liquor warehouse. IL is called the State
dispensRry. From there 1t Is distributed to
MINOR dispensarics. The number of the
latter varies. There can be one in every
town where q majority of freeholders petit
ton for it. In cities there can be more. In
Charleston. tor instance, there will be- ten.
They have $50 saloons there now. In Co.
luinbia, where they have over one hundred
saloons, there will be four dispeusarIss.
These dispensaries Will be IN charge OF
one government official and situated In q
central part of the city. They will be we'll
stocked with everything in the drink line
at all times from 9 4. NJ. to q p. NJ. They
will seem like big saloons. but here's the diff
ference. When o man wants To indulge In o
drink he goes into the dispensary and is
request Tor liquor. IN which he inserts the
amount and kind he wants. and then
signs his name to 1T. The official
files the request, and after receiving the
pay gives out the liquor in u sealed bottle.
which must not be opened on the dis
pensary premises. Any man not known TO
be an babitual drinKer can get all the
liquor lie wants by simply writing the
order for IL and paying cash down..
Governor Tiilman does not seem to be
absolutely certain that the law will work.
lie knows this much, that it 10 putting q
heap of responsibility on the Governor and
tastes of a State full of drinkers. He il
real anxious to know how 1t really will
work. In speaking of 1t last night he
said: "By this law il 10 claimed the con-
sumption of liquor will be diminished IS
per cent. It is said there are one million
gallons of liquor consumed in the State
annually. Besides reducing the amount
used. the new law Will furnish = purer
article for less money. Every ounce Of
liquor must DO tested, bottled and Ia
beled. The State expects to make 80 per
cent. on the liquor. and thus will make .
big revenue. The maximum profit is SO
per cent.
'Commissioner Traxter and myself are
now consulting with the bottle manufac-
turers and liquor distIllers and brewers
with q view to ascertainlng what can be
done IN securing the liquor and bottlfs to
put it in. We will see several bottle man.
nfactnrers here. We have beeh In Louis
Vile and Cincinnati.
Il can't tell vet how the law will work,
but | think it will be q very good thing.
The people of the State want IL. and every
body is satisfied with IL except those now
engaged in making and selling liquor.
They are, of course. against it."