The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1896-12-01
THE 'RAINES MISFI7.
New York's Vile Liquor Law
Shown to Be a Failure
in Every Way.

NEW YORK, Dec. /, 1896.-The Senate S
Special Excise Committee to inquire into
the working of the Raines liquor tax bill
resumed it's session today.
Chief of Police Conlin came on the scene
at 1915 o'clock and Immediately took the
witness chair There was some delay be-
fore his examination began as Senator
Raines and Senator Higgins held COM
ference.
The committee got down to work short
Conlin. He said in reply to Senator
Raines. that he was Chief of Police in
New York since December 6, 1885.
st is a part of your duties to super
wise the police duties in regard to the
liquor law?s
Yes, sir
You are familiar with the old excise
Yes, sir
What part of the new excise law felici.
tates the work Of the police as COM
pared with the old law?''
We'll, the exposure of the saloon dur
ing closed hours makes it lighter fol
the police. The high license also facili-
tates the work of the police.
Witness suggested that the boxes in sa-
looms be abolished, and there be but one
large room. He declared the boxes in sa-
looms contributed to aid prostitution. Wo-
men with baskets, as if going to market,
sip III 'tlt6 sue QOUT dIiu etllCT lIieSt
boxes to get liquor. Frequent complaints
had reached witness Of violations of the
law by socalled hotels under the new II
quor law. He had list of about. so or 75
of these alleged hotels. He gave a list OF
Rafnes' law hotels, some of which, he de-
clared, had not the number of rooms re-
quired by law Others, he said, made
temporary arrangements by which saloons
were transformed into hotels on Sundays
only.
He cited case where ar
rests were made for selling beer
with sandwiches and in which the prs
oners were discharged by Police Magis-
trate Kudlich and subsequently indicted
by the Grand Jury.
The Chief said that the law could be
strengthened by an eact definition of the
word "hotel' and the word guest. The
witness said that in some of the tene-
ment districts the liquor dealers in order
to have Raines law hotel hired the flat
above, which was sometimes used for
disreputable purposes. Witness thought
the whole building should be required LIN
der the law to be used for hotel purposes.
He thought there were less places where
drink can be obtained Sunday now than
under the old law. There were. about
2,300 places where drink can be obtained
day and night in this city About 100 of
these, he said, were fake hotels.
He declared the police were powerless
in regard to so-called social clubs under
the construction Of the law.
The Chief promised to supply the COM
mittee later with a full list Of the fake
hotels, the number of arrests made under
the law and other matters.
The Rev. Alexander p. Doyle of the
Paulist Church, was the next witness
He testified that drunkenness had very
largely increased on Sunday through thu
operation of these se-called clubs an6
hotels under the Raines law. Since the
operation of the act, he declared, the
clergy in his district had larger mum
Der of poor on the list. Witness believed
that under the law there were less
the poverty complained of was due
to so-called hotels and clubs Witness
said that the class of men who generally
get drunk were victims of what is callel
the treating habit
He told OF visiting a place on Sunday
last Where there were 4 hundred mer
drinking and no signs of sandwiches oi
any eatableS.
Witness thought the. law would b,
strengthened if it were possible to 81
define the word Ahotel'' so as to max.
it 1H;4asss impossible 1s to carry on fake ones.
good to have the number of rooms tha
constitute hotel increased and declared
that the increasing of the rooms woulC
be only putting premium on immortality
He said If the judiciary had given US
| common sense Interpretation Of the law
drunkenness and poverty, the result O
Sunday drinking, would be largely pre-
vented
Senator Raines at this juncture remark
ed:-"There is way and there will COM
| time when these places will be CLOSED
on Sunday
Chairman Raines asked Father Doyl
to furnish the committee in writing will
any recommendations he had concerning
Sunday drinking.
Recess was taken until two \