The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-07-18

Tipping ia Russia.
For the novelty Of its regulations and
| the peculiar method Of the conduct of the
| business, RUssia's liquor monopoly has not
! perhaps, an equal In government enter
! prises anywhere. The cars paternal care
over his subjects reaches even to prescrib-
ing what they shall eat and drink and how
and when and where they shall do it. Rus
STA is just now completing It's embarkation
into the giant enterprise OF controlling all
| the alcoholic liquors that are sold in the
empire. and no more can the Russian
'moujik" stand at the bar and sip OF
gulp his "vodki" until he is eager to let
mis- hat and trousers, and perhaps his
wife too. go for Just one more drink. So
susceptible to the influence of drink had a
great portion of the Russian lower classes
become that the liquor dealers had them in
their clutches even to a greater degree than
does the alley broker who lends the impe-
cunious negro fifteen cents on so worth of
furniture and collects a couple of dollars
at the end Of the week.
Nov all this is changed. In most of the
districts Of Russia liquors can be procured
only at the government liquor shops"
and by Jan. /, 1885, the government control
will nave been extended throughout the
empire. The main provisions of the law
under which the sale is TO take place are
not entirely unfamiliar. There is the seal
ed bottle with government stamp and
price mark, but in any size SO that pow
erty is no preventive to the peasant who
wants to indulge in a half pint. But Rus
STA goes further than this. The patronage
Of the monopoly is encouraged by a pro-
vision for the return of the official bottles
at a regular scale of prices in trade, so
that eventually even a pint agitation is
not an over costly affair. Regular hours
are prescribed during which the govern
ment liquor shops are permitted to remain
open. the cities being given an advantage
OF two hours over the country districts.
There are two holidays, the first day Of
the Easter and Christmas holidays, upon
which there shall be no sale. But the
government had remarkable and generous
foresight in making provisions for the
churches and actually prohibits the open
ing Of the liquor shops on Sundays until
II o'clock noon. at which hour, 1t is pre-
sumed, church Is about over In Russia.
The Russian government is nothing If
not neat, and incidentally plous as one of
the principal regulations shows All pic
lures and publica tons are excluded from
the walls Of these shops with the exception
Of the government regulations governing
them and an image of some saint" The
government has been liberal In not specify
ing any particular saint so the liquor seller
may take his choice What an error on
the part of Boston in not sending over the
statue of Bacchante to ST. Petersburg
Considering the appropriateness she might
have passed for amy old saint"
There must be no drinking In the shop,
nor must the bottles even be opened there.
The government has also put itself up as
a censor of social courtesies between the
official seller and purchaser of a small
bottle The seller must be polite and
give the liquors asked for together with
the exact change, while the purchaser
must take off his hat upon entering the
sacred portals of the official GROCERY, and
leave his cigar or pipe on the outside, while
he asks in his gentlest tone for his favor
lite brand, pays the cash and gets out with
all possible dispatch.
Such are some of the peculiar regula-
tons, according to the consular reports for
June, under which Russia furnishes "the
ardent 20 her subjects, and it is said so
far as the experiment has gone less liquor
has been consumed. The trouble is, no
doubt, the people have not been fully in
itlated into the workings of the new
scheme, and the liquor shops are few and
far between compared to what they used
to be. The unfortunate thing for the
Russian tippler is that his Is government
whose laws cannot be ercumvented, al
least not on this side Of Siberia. and a
"Raines law hotel" and an "original pack
age" would stand about as much chance
as free sugar in the republican Senate.