New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1896-03-16
Iightstep; Miss B. 4. Whiting. on Blue Bonnet
and II. Hoyden Sands. on Edith.
NOT so BLACK AS PAINTED
A CAMDEN OFFICIAL SAYS THE CITY HAS
q BEEN MISREPRESENTED.
1T HAS NOT AN INORDINATE NUMBER or
sALooNs-THE HIGH LICENSE RATE RE-
DuCEs TAXATION AND CRIMES RE-
sULrING FROM DRINK
ARE RARE.


Camden ~ j. March Is (SpeciaD.-"Camden was
grossly mlsrepresented by the committees who went
to Trenton TO urge the passage Of the Rogers Ill
cense- Signing BILL" said member OF the CITY E~-
else Commission yesterday. The statement thH'
Camden Is completely over-rdden with saloons Is not
so formidable when the facts are considered WINE
Camden is the fourth largest city in the State II Is
far below the other centres of population In the ra
ito Of drinking resorts the number Of inhabitants
and it's $500 license fee Is the largest in the state
Ii seems to be the natural trend for New-Jersey
towns lying between the two great centres OF popu
lation-New-York and Phladelphia-to get much OF
the vice which reform waves have crowded out OF
these huge hives. Thus the working or the hlsh
License law of Pennsylvania and the strict ENFORCE
men of the Sunday laws drove great masses OF peo-
pie TO seek recreation New-Jersey soil
Parks sprang up in the suburbs of Camden
Gloucester City opened wide Its doors In warm well
come and the rabb,e came In droves across the Della
ware to find the auring glass. While other places
amenable the same rigorous laws as Camden
winked at the invasion and permitted the inflow
Camden shut down upon and kept back the tide IL
is fact that while other cities OF the state grew
lax in the enforcement of the laws. Camden drew
the line tighter and tighter and II Is to-day subject
to less of the annoyances and crimnality from the
drink habit than perhaps any city Of It's size IN the
country
STATISTICS or SALOONS AND REVENUES
understand will to show how much better or
Camden Is than her sister cities OF the State New
ark has a population OF 215, 800 the largest In New
Jersey OF course. It is expected that 1t might have
the largest number OF drinking saloons. and II has
With 1900 licensed resorts. 1t gives one to every
l61 OF population The license fee Is $3.50 the lowest
allowed by the law. and II collects S32oo" from IL
censes each year. 81 50 per capita The next
largest city is Jersey CITY with lH.'l3 INHABITANTS
which supports 9s saloons. or on" TO every 10 OF
population 1t collects s2I6O 900 from these. or IS per
capita. Paterson. with population OF ",Sfi mas
40 licensed drinking places. or one TO every 2o' IN
habitants With $3.50 fee IL collects Sll'.JW only
81 Is per capita Trenton. with 6257s inhabitants. IL
censes 800 saloons to every 1888 residents. and
collects $500. or 81 IS per capita.
Compare these cities with Camden and see how
much better of the latter is In this respect Cam
den has a population Of 63.4S1 yet 1t licenses only
Us saloons or one to S5' OF population at fee OF
$500 double that OF OF the others. From these
it collected last year $4,000. OF 60 per capita the
highest proportion OF any Of the cities.
Even the smaller cities show even more favorable
results for Camden by COMPARISON The city OF
Elizabeth has populat OF 1884. yet 1t licenses
1879 saloons or 10 every go population IL gets
a fee Of $3.50 and collects 1915? which is only 81 Il
per capita. The city OF Hoboken has population or
"A os3 vet II supports go licensed drinking houses or
one TO every Ia Of population. on fee OF 40 II re-
ceves $50 which Is equivalent 10 the payment by
4 H.
annum for liquor. Take the smaller city OF Passaic
in Passatc County with population Of only lI.s?a
licensing 80 saloons 2'l Of popula ton:
and collecting only - cents per capita. total OF
$500
BENEFITS OF THE HIGH LICENSE SYSTEM
so is seen that Camden has not only the largest
license fee but the smallest number OF saloons
I'm proportion its population That the ia" - more
strictly enforced here than In any OF the other
nlaces is known from end OF the State TO the
other and can be easily proven By statistics from
the police annals The experience OF the smaller
cities OF Bridgeton. MilIville and the borough OF
Vnelan is that the absolute prohibition OF licensed
drinking places is costly 10 the municipal govern
ment All three OF these towns are cursed with a.
Vulnerable 'speak-easie and so-caed clubs. where
linuor is sold and from which not dollar - derived
for the support OF the city. Every dollar collected
from the saloons Camden 10 the city treasury
and merged with the receipts from other sources
to h. calculated In the annual budget for improve
ments and IL serves largely 10 Keep the tax rate
down Shut all the saloons In the city. issue no IL
censes at all and the rate would have 10 be In
creased 10 meet the deficiency OF nearly 80. Nor
would the sale OF liquor be thus stopped, Ihere
would spring up, just as there arose In fhladephlh
and flourish In Mlllvle and Bridgeton nest or un-
licensed resorts, which pay nothing and winch deiy
/ ~ notice"