Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1893-01-02
THE LIQUOR AND THE LAW.
Talks With Men Familiar with the Sub
ject.

JUDGE kIMBALL FAvoRs MEASURES TO nrPREss
TEE BACK ROOM sRoasERr RUN WITH WHOLE
SALE LlCENsE-NR. DUPONT ADVOCATES An
EXTREAELf HIGH RETAIL LICENSE AND A
BIsHER LIMIT ON THE WHOLESALE BUSINESS
MAJ. MOORE VIEWS
Iudge Kimball of the Police Conrt before
whom many Of the liquor cases are tried. is
very much interested in the LIQUOR license bills
pending before Congress, the provisions Of
which we're published in Saturdays STAR he
judge IL thorough prohibitionist, but just
nov be iavors the Passage Of high license
bill. No one is more familiar with the liquor
problem than Judge Kimball, who is constantly
hearing the ''ins" and ''outs" concerning the
trahc. WINE me Judge favors high license
he is extremely anxious that there should be
some provision in the law enacted which will
better regulate the sale of liquor bv the whole
sale. The great bulk Of the wholesale licenses.
the Judge thinks, are obtained as mere covers
to sell liquor by the small. Especially does
this apply the Judge says, to small grocery
stores and bottling establishments where beer
ia sold by the bottle At wholesale rates and per-
mitted to be drunk upon the premises. Where
such business Is carried on the Judge thinks it
is nothing more nor less than selling in viola
ton of the retail law.
To q STAR reporter the Judge said that there
were psces where the terms of the law were
compiied with, and he mentioned such places
"a large stores on Pennsylvania avenue and
also in ot er parts Of the city.
80 far as such places are concerned" said
the Judge. lit would be well IL the law could be
30 arranged that they would not have to pay the
came amount as the retail dealer. The hearing
Of cases in the court has fully demonstrated
the fact that in many OF the places where whole
sale licenses are operative there are great
GATHERINGS Saturday nights and Sundays. Men
60 to such places and get their beer by the
bottle and drink it upon the premises. There
sbould be no distinction between such places
and places where heavy tax is paid 10 sell
beer and whisky by the glass, for many of the
Wholesale places sell liquor by the small as we'll
as sell beer BY the bottle
IF the legislators will make the smallest
quantity Of liquor under a wholesale license at
one gallon or more and distinctly state that the
make the sale OF beer not less than a case, then
think one defect will be remedied and the law
will be much more effective"
Mr.. DUMoST's VIEWS
'.If We get anything from Congress in the
nature Of local liquor legislation said Mr..
Neil Dumont, ex-assistant attorney for the
District. to STAR reporter, ''it will be in the
form offs higher license. There is urgent
need for some legislation regarding the LIQUOR
traff1C. lndt Hctu Is not inc result OF de-
cision in the Nau case. Mr.. Hazelton made
statement in effect that the decision in tine Nau
case had left the District without any liquor
law. And that statement WAS imposed upon
the President who stated it in his annual mes
sage"
Mr.. Dumont then referred to the Sullivan
case in which, he said the court decided that
the District had more powers under section
of the act of the legislative assembly Of 1871
than il ever had before. In that case, after
the court had rendered its decision, he said
Mr. Thomas asked the court for the remedy,
aud the court responded that their remedy was
under the section stated.
The District of Columbia is not without
law" continued Mr.. Dumont, but it is with
out power to enforce it by virtue of the fact
that hitherto there has been none OF this line
Of cases settled BY the Supreme Court 1t was
not until the recent act recognizing the Police
Court that the matter could be taken to the
General Term. Before that time the Criminal
Court was the court of last resort, and no
records were ever kept of the decisions. The
Judge sitting on the bench had always upheld
the license act Of 1871 in every particular until
for the first time in the Jurisprudence of the
court, the question arose whether the
penalty was for not having q license or
for carrying on the business without having
paid the license tax. and all that the court de-
termined in that case was that which to the lay
man seems 20 be distinction without differ
ence, namely. that a dealer could not be fined
for not having license. but could be fined for
engaging in the business without having paid
the license tax
HE TIMES THERE Is STILL SOME LAW.
"A great deal has been said as emanating
from the prosecuting attorneys and the District
Commissioners offices which can hardly be true
in either case III effect that all person desiring
to engage in the business has to do is to tender
the license fee at the time he applies for the
license. This Is no. question of payment in
which the question of legal tender enters. The
money is to be paid under the law. At the time
the application is made the money is deposited
only for the purpose Of establishing good faith.
Inc act of June 20. 1872. which provides the
return OF proportionate. amount does not
charge the face of the matter because the
Commissioners must first decide whether the
application ia legal petition as contemplated
in the act. They can refuse to accept it until
they have decided upon the legality OF the petit
tiOn. and the tact that the tender of the money
l. refused will not protect the dealer who con-
ducts business without having properly made
the tender II he lad made the tender in a
way other than the law contemplates he would
receive no immunity because of the fact that he
had rendered The money improperly.
according 20 nv way of thinking l believe
it would be the test thing for the community
TO let the LIQUOR question stand as the common
Law has II. Issue no licenses whatever and let
the whole traffic be considered a nuisance.
his il the line IS land down in the Christensen
care. reported IN Hist United States. IL we
must have license law aud cannot engraft the
Danish or swedish system upon our law, then
the next best thing lie high license. even though
II places a monopoly in the hands of few. That
would be wiser and more beneficial results
would follow than By leaving the business as it
now stands
THE PTypISG BILLS.
Concerning the pending bills Mr.. Dumont
said ;hat the Mcmillan bill was based on tho
MINNEAPOLIS law. and" he said, those who
were IN MINNEAPOLIS al the last convention I'M
derstand how admirably that law worked"
The Meredith bill. Mr.. Dumond thinks, 10
defective in that 1t does not put the liouor
traffic III the hands Of the saloon men, pure and
simple. and the same criticism. he thought,
would apply to the Mcmillan bill
Under the wholesale provision of the Mere
dith bill, he said. any filthy old woman or
deyiiish old man or yoang one either for that
matter. who can raise $50 can get q license to
hold a hells carnival in a back room, lust as il
done on the commons and other places
at present. They make an infinitely
greater contributor to misery than high
licensed saloons Inc Campbell bill is wholly
worthless. II no one could get a license to sell
less thsn Two gallons Of liquor at Wholesale then
this vice might be removed ard the difference
In the license fees permitted"
When asked By The re5or,er what amount of
incense TAX ne thought the saloons should pay
ME- Dumont said; II that question was left
to me would hx the retail at $4,000 and the
wholesale at sSo and provide that the whole
M