Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1893-01-27
CLUBS AND BAR ROOMS.
A Saloon Keeper Who Wants All to Come
Under the Same Regulations.

CLUBS AND BAR ROOMS.
A Saloon Keeper Who Wants All to Come
Under the Same Regulations.
Mr.. NJ. B. Scanlon, in a conversation with q
STAR reporter today. gave the following his
idea Of what liquor laws should be and how
they should be regulated:
Il have recently conversed with several Of
the police officers and lieutenants on the sub
ject of liquor licenses" said be- land their ideas
coincide with mine exactly, particularly as re-
CARDS so-cailed chartered clubs. Fair play
should require that every place where liquor
is dispensed with, whether il is club room
high or low toned club, drug stores included
should come under the liquor regulations and
take out a license the same as other dealers.
The club rooms through system Of fsvoriteism
give their members privilege which no other
persons enjoy. Their members 60 there
Sundays, gamble. drink play billiards, come on
the streets under the influence Of liquor and
chnrch-going people say, Well he came out of
some licensed saloon. Some clubs to my
knowledge sell as high as from fifty to seventy
five boxes Of beer on Sunday. while il a respect
able saloon man is seen going into his place
with friend for q sociable drink, without
charge for il. he is according to the direction of
the powers that be liable to be arrested and
fined But the club man can drink with i'm
punity. 1t don't make any difference about his
drinks. If he gets them In club it is all right.
And still these so-called clubs, which in the first
precinct number twenty-five, do n business and
do not pay dollar to the support OF the local
government in the shape of license, but they
are mighty careful to take out an internal
revenue license. becau>e the United States
authorities would not stand any nonsense about
club charters. They would go right in and
arrest them. fine them $500 and imprison them
The regulation of the sale of liquor should be
taken away from the Commissioners. They are
not the proper people to judge who should get
yh mt
There should be board of liquor
licenses with the major of police as
president ex-oficio and two responsible
citizens who are thoroughly acquainted with
the city. or In place OF the two citizens have
two lieutenants; but no lieutenant whose pre-
cinct they were examining should sit on the
board. IL the club room business continues it
will be nothing but a city of club rooms and
speak-easies. and the responsible liquor dealer
will be thing of the past. This agitation of
licenses year after year is only a blind, it seems
to me. Why not pass bill and make the Ii
cense $3.50, and when man gets signers for
one year let him continue to do business until
the majority OF the property holders and resi-
dents OF the square IN which he Is doing bust
ness object: then let one of the citizens in the
square go before the license board. make COM
plant and see whether he is justified in making
the complaint or not. Make Sunday regula-
lions as strict as You possibly can and bring
the ub rooms and all under the same re-
strictions. / think gentleman staying at
hotel who wants to get drink on Sunday in
his room, or in the dining room. ought to be
allowed that privilege. IL the liqnor license
bill should pass and they do not bring drug
stores. club rooms and speak easies under the
same restrictions the other places. then there
will be nothing in Washington after year or
two but chartered clubs. Every place where
liquor is sold will be IA ''club," because business
can be done under the protection guaranteed
them. am strongly opposed to any person in
the liquor. billiard or eating house business
doing business on SUNDAY or after IL o'clock at
night. The cluD room was strongly opposed
by the police authorities of Philadelphia and
they carried it into the court. The court sus-
tanned the authorities. the club room people
appealed to the higher court Of the state
and Judge Pennybaker in his decision stated
that where liquor WAS dispensed. whether
1t was club room or bar room, !
all should take out license and comply with |
the law. great deal Of the trouble of which |
complaint ia made. as the police authorities
know, is caused in the club rooms. but the law
protects them and they cannot interfere. Per- /
sons seen coming out of the club rooms !
Sunday and Monday at ]. 2, O'Clock in the |
but of course are not liable to arrest |
as the law is Mt present construed. The Com |
as / said before. are not the proper
people to judge who should get license: the |
major and lieutenants are the proper persons to !
judge; they know every nook and hole in |
" ashington, they know every man tina. is in !
the liquor business and the full power and |
authority should be invested in their hands |
have been in the liquor business for twenty |
six years and am talking from experience.
have never been fined in all that time for
any violation of the law. l comply with the law
and l would like to see everybody else that
does not comply with it punished. hope that
if Congress takes action this session they will
pass such a bill as will do everybody Justice, !
and not have one law for the rich and another
for the poor man. Bring them all under the
same restrictions: do not let the rich man have |
the right to go to the club room on Sunday and
after hours and enjoy privilege the poor man |
cannot have. 1t is u democratic Congress, and !
their teachings are that they always enact laws |
for the poor man as well as the rich. Let them !
bear in mind the fact that if license bill is
passed and they do not include the club rooms |
they will be drifting from the principles they |
preach. The sale of liquor in a legitimate way
is lawful. and if there is a just liquor license
bill passed, which viii give the police authori- |
ties power. l am satisfied that they will exer- |
else that authority and make everybody comply |
with it, This is a law-abiding city. There |
is less drunkenness in Washington than in any
city in the country; there less saloons open
on Sunday mean legitimate saloons who pay
a license-thsn any city in America. OF course
under the present law the drug stores can dis
pense whisky as medicine; so can the club
rooms and speak easies. These are nv ideas
in the matter. the ideas of all honest liquor men,
and the police in particular. One more thing /
want to call attention to in the liquor BILL that
is. that place which has a wholesale liqnor
license should he allowed a retail liquor license
be bpil