Arizona republican., 1899-02-20
Decrease in Saloons in Eastern
 States.
REVENUE REPORTS SHOWING
Two Thousand Less Saloons in Ohio Last Year Than in I502-Num- Der in New York Reduced Nine Thousand by RaineS LaW-One Saloon for Every 100 PopUIa- fion In Arizona.

orally stated and perhaps very gener- ally believed that much of the agita- tion for constitutional provision, for higher license and for liquor tax laws to regulate the retail selling of intoxi- cants are without practical results, but official returns, both state and federal, tend to show that this is not the case. There are fewer arrests relatively to the whole population for drunkenness than was the case twenty, or even ten years ago; the consumption of spirits has declined perceptibly, and while there has been an increase in the con- sumption per capita of all liquors, it has not been large enough to offset the decreased per capita in distilled bev- erages.
 There are no persons doing business to any appreciable amount in liquor dealing at retail in the United States from whom the federal government gets no return. It's methods of inquiry and discovery have been perfected dur ing many years trial. Consequently, the internal revenue figures constitute a thoroughly reliable basis of compari-
 
 showed the number of drinking places to be actually less than they were three years ago-taking 1895 fer the com parison-notwithsta the increase in population during that time. The reduction in the number of saloons is not due to any action of the United States government, but to the opera tion of state and local laws, to prohi- hition in some states and to the substi- tutiCn of 9 tax" or an excise" sys- tem in others, notably New York, Pennsylvania and Ohio.
 When Levi P. Morton became gover- nor of New York he called attention to the fact that that sta 2 had the dubious distinction Of having more saloons in proportion to it's population than any other state in the country. Under the enumeration ot 1892, the first year fol- lowing the promulgation of the last federal census, there were 40,259 sa- Icons in New York Csaloons, hotels, tavernS, restaurants, beer gardens and picnic resorts) 12,700 in Pennsylvania, 18,400 in Illinois, 16, 200 in Ohio, S5t0 in Michigan and 5,10O in Massachu- setts. At that period the average number of saloons in the United tSates was enc to each PTS of the population. In Illinois the ratio is 1 to 205, in Ohio it was 1 to 226, in Michigan it was 1 to PAS, in Pennsylvania it was 1 to 436, and in New York it was 1 to 150.
 Ohio was the first of the states to 2d- dress itself practically to the question under the operation of the Dew law, upon which the Raines law in New York is based. By 1895, despite the steady increase of population mean while, the number of saloons in Ohio had been reduced from 16,000 to 15,O00 but in Pennsylvania the number had been increased from 12,O00 to 14,00O and in New York from 40, 900 to Al 900. At that time the total number of re- tail licensed saloons in the whole United States was 208,3S8. The pres ent number of licensed saloons as re- ported on the 1st of July last was only 195,96 a reduction of 13,000 in six years. By the official treasury report the number in New York is 32,73S, a reduction of nearly 5000 from what it was year ago. In Pennsylvania the tCtal number of saloons $ 14,9O6, small increase. In Illinois there were 1000 saloons fewer on July l. 1898, than six years before. In Ohio the number was down to 14,736, or nearly 2,000 less than six years ago, while in Massachusetts the number had de creased from 5,1OO to 4.200, in Michigan from Q AOO to e O0O and in Indiana from 1900 to 7,2OO.
 In speaking of "liquor saloons" the United States makes no distinction based on the size or importance of the liqour is liquor saIoon.' To some extent the number of liquor saloons" shown in the treasury reports is in ex- cess of the actual number for the req son that for the sale of liquors for however brief a period in a year one government tax receipt is issued and when for any reason, it is surrcndceed or returned or revoked or lost or can celled or made imperative, the issyl- ance of a new one either to the same place or to the same party counts as an additional saloon for that year. 1t would therefore be untrue to say that there are now 195 ,0G0 liquo- saloons in the United States for the actual num- Der is nearer 175, ,O00, but for the pur- poses of comparison the treasury fig ures are perfectly correct for the laws regulating the granting of licenses were the same six years ago as they are now. Consequently 3 comparison