The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1895-03-11
NOT ADAPTED TO OUR CONDITIONS.
The GOthenburg System Cannot Well
BE Put i'm Force Here.
Washington Post.


The Gothenburg systematic farming out
of the liquor business TO limited number
of dealers and devoting the bulk of the
profits to public uses-has been extensively
discussed for some years. and is regarded
in various quarters as the best plan known
for handling the traffic in intoxicants. Most
of the voluminous discussion of this system
in the American press appears to have been
based on the erroneous supposition that the
cluded in the so-caled system. Such is not
the case, however, as is clearly shown by
the London Times, which has made care
full Investigation of the subject.
The city of Gothenburg. Sweden, with its
environments has population .its. Of 100 COO
800 drinking places, or 3 to every 1,5O0. In
comparison with this showing New York
city has 8 saloons to every 1000 people But
10000 inhabitants of Gothenburg for con-
sumption on or off the premises are under
remaining Sa1 or thereabouts. for the number
is always changing, are entirely outside It..
These outsiders sell beer and wine, some 200
of them being public houses licensed to sell
only for consumption on the premises and
the rest merely shops or stores where bot
out the formality of license. Any shop in
Gothenburg may sell bottled beer, with
about $50 beer-selling places and 200 places
where both beer and wine may be had ii is
not difficult to lay tnot solid, but f1uid)
foundation for a drunk without going into
any of the houses operated under the ia
The sixty-nire establishments belonging to
the system sell SpiritS-IiQuor containing
over q per cent. of alcohol, as we'll az wine
and beer. In view of these facts II can
scarcely be claimed that Gothenburg has
given to the civilized world valuable OBJ
ject lesson on the troublesome question of
regulating the saloon business. Ii being
lawful to sell anywhere in that city bever-
ages containing not more than q per cent
Of alcohol one has only to absorb a quart
of such beverage to get half pint of al
cohol, the equivalent OF three or four drinks
of whisky. The Boston Transcript has been
making some inquiries on this subject and
is convinced that Gothenburg has not
achieved great success in its efforts to solve
the saloon problem. 1t says:
THE Scandinavians settled in Boston are
by no means unit on the Gothenburg sys-
tenn of liquor-selling. Judging from the pro-
test uttered by the Scandinavian churches
of Boston their members think American
ideas good enough for them, and prefer local
option to the Gothenburg way A good
many foreigners come to this country sim
ply to get away from those European gov
ernmental and social methods which a GER
tain element OF Americans are so eager to
have copied here.
A radical difference between This country
and Scandinavia Is seen in the fact that We
treat wine, beer and spirits as all belonging
under the designation OF Intoxicating bev-
erages. while the Scandinavians regard wine
and beer as harmless. Ne treat wife and
1t may be that those drinks exert a less DOW
erful influence In Sweden and Norway At
>all events, our social philosophers will have
to admit that the Gothenburg plan is not
adapted to the conditions prevalent in the
United States