The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1896-11-13
MORE LIBERAL LAWS
Saloonkeepers of Hudson
County Petition for
Sunday Selling.
SCOPE OF THE PROPOSED ACT
Saloons May Be Opened After
Church Hours = other
Schemes Suggested.

The saloon-keepers Of Hudson county
who say they have been worried of late
by the "unco guid" and rigidly righteous
in the matter of Sunday obseryance,shave
devised plan TO do business on Sunday
and at the same time keep within the
law. It is this
They are drafting petition which
they propose to submit first to the state
League of Liquor Dealers, asking for a
law to permit saloon-keepsrs to open
their side doors after church hours on
Sunday.
The draft of the measure to be pre-
sented reads that all saloons or licensed
houses where liquors may be sold, shall
close on Saturday night at twelve o'clock
and remain closed until one o'clock on
the afternoon of Sunday when liquor may
be sold until three O'Clock, at which time
they must close until eight O'Clock when
they may reopen and remain open until
ten O. clock.
Such an act it is contended will satisfy
the thirsty man, please the saloon keeper
who can supply his customers and not
run the risk of being pulled" What
the church people and members of the
Sabbath Observance Society VIII say to
this proposition is very different matter.
If the State Liquor Dealers League
agrees to the plan it will be circulated
throughout every county in the State
Tor signatures. It is estimated that in
Hudson county alone nearly forty thou
sand names cottld be procured for the pas
sage of the law
one OF the most representative men in the
ilquor trade in this city, a man held in
high esteem, and he said that while he
did not believe in Sabbath desecration by
tion should exist.
The saloonkeeper has rights and he
Who wishes to drink on Sunday. too.
we can't cant an afford to belong to clubs
who wants his beer on Sunday should
pc able to purchase It. I personally be-
ieye. too. that there would ;pe less drunk
enness; When once you try to prevent
anybody doing anything, that IS pre-
cisely the very thing he Is going to do
I see that Assenblymam Elink lis re-
ported .sra an enemy 70 your proposition?' p
MY dear sir, that fs extremely ludic-
rous. was the reply. In the first place
hundreds Of liquor dealers voted the Re-
was carried in. 1t would have been the
same if Tom. Dick or Harry had been
on that ticket. Now, if that budding
statesman - ima1gines he will defeat the
= Y.
reasonable and rational BILL, he is living
in FOOLS paradise and fitting at wind
mills He will simply be annihilafed."
In addition to the above project there is
movement IN Hudson county to license
the houses and not the man That is,
give a liquor license to No 1 Onety-ortl h
street, and not to Tom and Jerry. Then
50 frame the law that if the proprietor
is caught selling liquors within prohibited
hours, permitting dssorderly characters to
frequent or in general way making a
nuisance of himself, revoke the license,
and never permit another license to be
granted to that house
Then, again, another set of rigidlv right
eous on this subject want a law here
similar to that in some Western States
where the house is licensed Should any
infringement Of that license take place
the house itself become the property of
the municipality and the owner has to
go through nice maze of legal fashion
TO recover his house.
All these schemes are being crystallized
and within few months the Legislature
viii be wrestling with bills either one
way or another.
The Hudson County Liquor Dealers As
sociation has elected these officers for the
ensuing year:-Prasident, John L. Kelly;
yiee-president, Jacob Christman; financial
secretary, John McEntee; corresponding
secretary. w. Holmes; treasurer, Alder
man James Burns; sergeant-at-arms,
John A. McGrath.