The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-12-17
THE BUTCHERS AND GR0CERS.
COUNCILS SUNDAY ORDINANCE NOT
ENTIRELY SATISFACTORY.

the sunday Irade-ln THIS way
the Business Might Become a Blind
for Sunday Liquor SeIling-Several
Green GrOcers Already Do Liquor
Business-COunciI May Be Asked to
Fix More Definite Regulations.
The ordinance adopted by Council at its
meeting last week permitting the sale and
delivery of meats, bread. milk and ice on
Sundays until 10 a. m. does not seem TO
have given satisfaction to the tradesmen
at whose request it was past. Council
at first proposed to pass an ordinance
limiting the Sunday hours of the green
grocers 10 6 a. m. to a. m, in
elusive. This step was taken
under the impression that the green
grocers desired such an ordinance. 1t de-
veloped later. however, that the petition.
ers for fthis change were mostly retail
grocers and market butchers who did not
have the opportunity of selling or deliv-
ering goods on Sunday. The green grocars
rallied and entered a strong protest against
such change in the ordinance They
succeeded in impressing upon Council that
the conditions of their business were such
nat they were compelled to open their
places on Sunday not only for their own
benefit, but for the convenience of their
customers. The grocers protested that
the green grocers already had too many
privileges, and as many of the green gro
GERS do grocery business as well that
the permission to open on Sunday gave
them an advantage over their competi-
tors in the grocery line. The green gro
GERS, however, pointed to the fact that
they paid 800 license, as compared with
$5o by the retail grocers. and that this en-
titled them to extra privileges. which ar
gument seems to have had weight with
Council.
The ordinance, as adopted by Council,
simply amended the existing ordinance by
cutting off one hour from the time pre-
vious allowed the dealers in the articles
mentioned to sell and deliver their goods.
liking the closing hour at 10 a. m. instead
of II a. m. The meat men were given the
right to sell, as well as to deliver, which
privilege they had not previously enjoyed.
As matter Of fact, however, the right to
keep open had been generally interpreted
TO mean the right to do business both
selling and delivering, and this custom
seems to have been generally approved of,
especially by the trade.
To-day is the first Sunday since the
passage of the new ordinance, and it is
of interest to observe the manner in which
1t is complied with 1t is evident that
Council was not successful in it's effort 10
please the tradesmen in the fresh meat
and grocery lines. There are a number of
grocerymen in the city who have declared
that they will avail themselves of the
privilege of Sunday opening by paying the
higher license and taking on the green
meat business as a side line. AS many of
these grocerymen also do a bar business
IL is easy to see that the meat business
would easily become a blind for the sale
of liquor on Sunday. There are already
about a dozen green grocers, who also
have liquor licenses, and work the two
businesses together. This is not APP
proved of by the regular green grocers,
who do a legitimate business, and who
realize that it will bring an odium upon
the business, which will sooner or later
lead to restrictive measures by Council.
"There is no doubt about it," said a wei
known green grocer, that the business
should be definitely regulated by Council.
Either everything should he closed down
tight or people doing a green grocery bus
mess only should be allowed to keep o~en
for certain hours If lcen es are issued
to the barroom people to do green gro
Gerry business there win be unpleasant con-
sequences for all of us, The grocerymen
are kicking because they say that we are
now handling regular grocery lines and
that our opening on Sunday gives us an
unfair advantage over them. AS we pay $50
year into the city treasury where a re-
tell grocer only pays $27, it is only right
that we should have extra privileges. If
the grocers will agree to turn the meat
business squarely over to us l think the
green groceIs will be willing to give up
tIn al f7c Il 49,.
sort 1t is true that our Sunday business
is not limited to delivering meats. If a
customer comes in who has run short of
some article which we have in stock we
are not likely to refuse him 1t may be
that he has ordered from some other
butcher the night before who failed to de-
liver the ord r or he was late at his work
on Saturday night and did not have a
chance to put in an order. Do you think
we are going 10 refuse him. If 1 sell him
a beef S eak or a leg OF mutton l do not
see why should refuse him a pound of
butter or a can of soup, box of Pepper or
a quart Of potatoes. 1t is S IMPLY a ma ter
of common serse. We are bet err D epar-
ed 60 keep these things overnight than our
customers, and if they find it n ore to their
convenience to get these things on Sunday
morning than they do on Saturday night,
there is no reason why anyone should OBJ
ject."
The market butchers are in quandary
in this case. They do not know whether to
side with their friends the green grocers
or with the retail grocers. Naturally their
sympathies would lie with their fellow
butchers, but as the market keeps no
Sunday hours they are SO situated that
they cannot take advantage of the o di-
nance perm ting opening on Sun 'ay NOM
ing SO that their customers who fail to
provide themse'1 es on Saturday nieh have
10 trade elsewhere on Sunday morn ng. II
is not uni kelly that Council will be a. l<ed
to do some further legisl ting on this ques-
ton in order to define the lires between
the grocery and the green grocery business
and 10 keep the green grocery and the
fquor business from getting 90 much mix
ed up together.
An Ode to the savannah Golf Club.
(By David c. Stewart)
Gao CadIfa hripp NV e,ovr~ff ot,,h-