Evening star., 1896-08-25
FORA NATIONAL CONVENTION
Wholesale Liquor Dealers to Effect General
Organization.
Certain Trade Troubles to BE Cured
by United Action ON
Broad Basis.


Washington have received copies of cir
cular sent out by the Liquor Dealers AS
ISOLATION of New York. requesting them
to select some of their number as dele
gates to a national convention Of liquor
dealers throughout the United States. to
be held in the chamber OF commerce at
Cleveland, Ohio beginning Monday Of next
week. Among the objects sought to be
obtained are the following: !. Protection
against the attacks of the enemies of the
trade. 2. To protest against the enact
ment of unjust, oppressive and fanatical
laws and to secure the repeal of such laws
now on the statute book of any state. 3.
To secure the reduction of the high license
fee wherever in the judgment of the eX-
ecutive committee Of the proposed national
organization that fee Is excessive; to pre-
vent an abnormal increase in the number
OF saloons and retail liquor stores and
to discredit the credit system, which has
been SO detrimental to the trade in the
past. 4. To prevent the granting of Ii
censes to dive keepers and other disrep-
utable persons. B. To obtain the greatest
personal liberty consistent with the laws
of the land for those engaged in the trade,
and thus secure that recognition in the
commercial world to which the liquor traf-
fic is rightly entitled, and to demand the
rights of the members as heavy taxpayers
and American citizens
ion throughout the country that the liquor
market Is overburdened, and one Of the
prime objects of the new organization will
be to relieve this state of affairs.
To Control the Traffic.
1t Is believed in many quarters that If
the plans of the promoters are carried into
effect the new national organization will
In comparatively short time control the
entire traffic in distilled liquors in this
country. wholesale man. who is well
posted as to affairs in the trade, but who
declined to permit the use Of his name,
said:
The wholesale trade is suffering greatly
at this time from a variety of causes,
chief OF which might be reckoned the over
production of whisky by American dis
tilleries.
The distress which this has caused to
the distillers themselves is already known
to the public, and 1t Is but few days
since all of the Kentucky dstillers shut
down entirely, under agreement to re-
main closed for long period. perhaps for
couple of years. 1t is not so well known
that the wholesalers have been affected
quite as seriously. but the dealer said such
was the fact This movement is not de-
signed to be hostile to the dstillers al
though 1t is proposed that for the present
at least no distiller shall be permitted to
become member of the association. Many
of the wholesalers are themselves heavy
SiOckHOIueTS III the ulStllleTleS, anu II Is eX-
pected tnat the association will work in
harmony with the distillers. But the trou-
BILE Is that the distilers cannot control
their own trade. Even In the present
emergency, when many Of the distillers
have agreed to shut down. and have shut
down, they have not been able to induce
other distillers to take corresponding ac-
ton. The trouble at this time has grown
out of wild and irresponsible speculation
In whisky. The manufacture of whisky IS
carried on under a system of contracts.
wholesaler makes a contract for a GER
tain amount of whisky, and the distiller
then makes the goods. If no contracts are
made. no whisky is made, but Of late years
the trade has been disturbed by an erup-
tion of outside SPECTATORS. who have no
connection with the trade, and the result
has been that a wholesale dealer who has
made legitimate contract often finds that
he has incurred a heavy loss through the
operations of these specuators.
The Remedy.
ut is now proposed. through iudicious
| regulations and by information obtained
from distillers, to secure the continuous
and permanent regulation Of the output of
whisky. SO that it shall conform to the
legitimate demand and wholly eliminate
the temptation to speculation on the part
of the outside public. 1t Is confidently ex-
pected that the great majority of The dis
tellers will act in harmony with the whole
| salers. and it is thought that ultimately
they may be affiliated with the association.
The extent Of the outside speculation is not
generally appreciated. The publication of
| a single newspaper article giving an ac-
count of certain large operations has re-
suited in an immediate speculative foray,
and the consequent decentralization of the
regular trade. incidentally it is expected
| that the association will devote its atten-
| ton to certain other ends. Among these is
| reckoned the increase in the internal rev.
enue tax, which, 1t Is claimed. has not ac-
complished its purpose. since it has not in
| creased the revenue. Another grievance is
| the compulsory payment of duty on the
contents of casks of liquor imported on
entry in bond, making no allowance for
loss through Leakage"