The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1895-07-10
Tom Dixon on the Dispensary.
new YORK, July {, 1895.

New YORK, July {, 1895.
Editor Daily Item:
attended the Peoples Church. Rev. Thos
Dixon, pastor} this morning, and 7s 1t may
ne Of interest to your readers 10 kno" MS
opinion of the Dispensary Law. give you
report of what be had to say 90 the sunJect
lie spoke az follows:
sI regret that catnot give full account
of the working Of the Saloon System, IN
South Carolins, as / announced on last Sun
aay shat would do to-day. could speak
for one hour on the subject. II is the most
Difficult, Of all problems to solve. looked
forward with pleasure to investigating the
operation Of the Dspensary System IN South
Carolina. The situation is this
The State closed up all barrooms aud open
ed instead places where all forms OF liquors
could be bought, from the finest to the poor
est. bu; none of ii could be consumed IN The
place. Tae officer in charge has no interest
in the profits or success Of the business, as ne
receives salary. II was inaugurated and
put into effect by the cyclone Tillman, then
Governor and now Q. S. Senator. 1t met
with grea, opposition and the everest critl-
cism: but anything from him would have
been The same honestly believe that II an
angel had stood on ST. MicbaeFs IN Charles
ton aud said that it was a divine order that
he Dispensary be established, that 1t would
have been the means Of keeping the people
from the church, such was the teellcg AGAINST
il hen established. Now, say, without
fear of contradiction, that j: is working with
marvellous benefit 10 the vast majority OF
people.
spent ,wenty-four hours in Charleston,
and wen. through the roughest portions OF
the city until one clock 10 the morning, and
never saw any city so quiet, except Portland,
Me-. and there the same conditions exist. ex-
cept the South Carolina law is poor edition
of the Maine law, here liquor is only sold
by prescription In South Caroliaa it is sold
10 any one. The revenue feature Of the Dis
pensary Law is its worst feature. never
saw man or woman ;n the city under the
influence of liquor.
spent the 4th of July in city of 5000
in South Carolina, where half the population
is colored, and not sn arrest was made tor
drunkenness or disorderly conduct DID
not see one person in the slightest under the
influence of liquor.
They drink, yet, in South Carolina, of
course; but as you lessen the temptation you
lessen drunkenness (Cheers.) They have
eight dispensares in Charleston now iostead
of 300 barrooms, and instead Of all the at,rac-
lions of a 6rst-class bar-roon they present
nothing more attractive to the passer-oy than
the plainest hardware store where you buy
lo-penny nails and monkey wrenches
1Cbeers.) Oh no no one ever thinks of
going to Dispensary on account OF ''s At
tractiveness. You see only the shelves with
the goods stacked away 90 them and plain
bulletin board against the wall giving 10 de-
,ail the latest price on the goods.
The blind tigers are running, and just as II
always was, any fool that wants to get
drunk can get drunk without going to the
Dispensary- get drunk at any time.
(Cheers.)
;,nnlsiyeness and her disposition to lead,
hss given 10 the world, the solution of the
liooos m problem, and tha. it could be extended
20 the other thirty odd States with advantage
10 civilization. u "