Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1894-06-07

alylZe q our license system and ~
the Scandinavian: First, as to our
system. in all of our states and terri
tories we have a strong prohibitory
law. In Maine, Iowa, Kansas, the
Dakotas, and New Hampshire, it is
ABSOLUTE; nobody can sell for bever-
age purposes. In South Carolina it is
now absolute, as the Supreme Court
has held the ..dispensary law uncon-
stitutional; before that decision only
the state agents could sell. In all
other states and territories prohibition
is also absolute, except where and as
far as the various municipalities re-
move the embargo as they may. for a
price called license. The result is,
that out of about 100000 people,
less than 250. 900 Tor one-two-hundred-
and-sixtieth of the people, are given
the privilege to sell. Prohibition is
enforced as to the rest. If the muni-
cipalities so desire they can have alb
solute prohibition or very small
number of saloons. / do not know of
single state where granting license
is obligatory on the municipality. 1t
may grant or refuse at Will, except in
'prohibitory states,n and it may de-
termine who shall have the privilege.
Not single state that / know of has
denied, by its highest courts, these
positions and the soundness of pro-
hibition. The same is true of the U.
5. Supreme Court. IN the noted
Christensen case, that went up
from San Francisco a few years ago,
the Supreme Court of the U. S. sus-
tanned the action of the city police
commission in refusing Christensen a
license, and enunciated the strong
truth that, no one has an inherent
right to sell intoxicating liquors. The
Wisconsin supreme court has repeat
edly sanctioned the same doctrines.
With the law as it now stands, each
municipality may, if it really desires
to, regulate or restrict the sale
of liquors by limiting the number of
dealers, have the business conducted
in respectable" manner, and license
only its honorable Temperance men,"
such, for instance, as have no faith in
absolute prohibition. To illustrates:
In the City of Lancaster the council
could, to prevent any jealousy, select
the leading steward of the Methodist
church and the most influential deacon
of the Congregational church. Other
churches might be similarly favored(D
If the alderman feared they might
lose Baptist, Presbyterian, ETC., politi-
cal support; but the licenses need be
granted only to good men. The
men might voluntarily, .'in the inter-
est of temperance and morality or
the council could require them to, fit
up their places without chairs, tables,
screens, or gaming apparatus. keep
them sweet and clean. and prohibit
drunkards or minors entering. If
these "good saloon keepers had the
spirit that men must have to organize
true Gothenburg corporations land the
council need not license any who
haven't, )they could hire some honestly
young man, at a low salary, to act as
salesman, bind him down by as strict
rules and regulations as any Gothen-
burg company could, and, after pay
ing the license fee and all expenses,
they could pocket a little interest
money and spend the. balance Of the
profits ON free reading rooms, hospi-
tails, industrial schools, etc, as pro-
posed by the Gothenburg system. In
fact, they might divide it according
to membership or otherwise, among
the various church treasures. In his
articles our friend argued all of the
SIN out of such saloon keeping. and of
course, he would not object to having
the gospel of peace and salvation"
extended by this ''price of debauch-
cry; and he would, could he know
that Lancaster licenses were granted
to his christian brethren and young
christian men were to act as statesmen,
feel like singing, .'Praise God from
whom all blessings flow.
Do not mistake me. | am talking
seriously and legally. / am pointing
out perfectly legal, feasible and, ac-
cording to our friend, righteous
method of eliminating She greed ele-
ment'' from the saloon business. under
our present system, and without the
long and questionable fight, that an
effort 10 adopt the Gothenberg system
would entail The greed element,
under this scheme would be eliminat-
ed to the same exten mo more. no less
that it would under the Gothenberg
system, and the revenue to the muni
cipality would remain unreduced, if
desired for a dozen or one hundred Of
such good men cUald be hoenscd). II
thought best, the council could, by
ordinance or resolution, adopt the
same strict regulations that the Scan
dinavian cities do. In fact. aside from
the price and term of license, our
councils and boards are practically
supreme in all saloon or liquor selling
matters. This plan does away with
the constitutional objection, which |
shall discuss later.
That the saloon business is not con-
Quoted in the above or some similar,
s.respectable'f manner. is due, not to