The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1899-08-24
AN INSTITUTION WHICH HAS PROVEN TO
And Which Has Won the Appreciation Of the
Community.

OUiUUulHtYs
(Taken from the Outlook of April s, $50
To the Editors of the Outlook:
/ nave nad an opportunity TO closely
watch the effects Of the dispenSary sys-
TEN for nearly two years, and | give
here IL few of the results as J. have seen
them. My observation has been of a dis
trict embracing township in which is
located small town of not quite two
thousand inhabitants. Before the sys-
tenn was adopted there were six saloons,
all doing profitable business. The
present system is by virtue of a special
act Of the State Legislature. and the
management is entirely non-partisan.
The business is under the direction of
a board Of control consisting of three
members. who have entire charge and
supervision of everything pertaining to
it. and the township is pecuniarily re-
sponsible for the debts incurred.
The law requires that liquor, before
being offered for sale, shall he analysed
and found to be pure; that it shall be
sold in sealed packages i'll quantities not
less than a half-pint; that the sales shall
not begin before sunrise nor be contln-
ued after sunset; that no sales shall be
made except for cash, and that no pack
age shall be opened on the premises
Under these restrictions practically any
purchaser may buy without any formall-
Ties and without any limitation further
than the payment of the price. No sales,
however. are allowed to minors, nor to
any one on election days or days on
which there are publicly advertised po-
Iitical meetings in the town. 1T can be
seen from a casual glance over the
regulations prescribed that nothing can
he found in them which could prevent
any one from buying as much liquor as
was wanted.
During the nearly two years of use,
What has this system shown, what sue
cess has IL met, and how is it liked by
the people?
First, while it was not intended as i
money-making scheme the profits have
been largely more than was formerly
received as licenses from'the saloons.
This profit is turned into the public
fund, and is a source Of benefit even to
yhcsc Nho have rad 1t.
Second, it has eliminated the grog shop
ard the grog-sbOp influences trem poh-
ties 1t is only necessary To mention
this to call to the mind of every thought
ful reader the baneful influence of the
saloon in politics. Wherever there are
saloons, they become, if not the head
quarters of political demagogues, the
principal means by which they carry
out their plans; and usually. when the
aggregated saloon interests are lined UP
in the active support of any man or
measure, then, generally speaking, 1t =
we'll for, self-respecting voters to be on
their guard against them The dispen-
sary system effectually removes TINS
evil
Third. and the most important of all,
this system very much decreases the
quantity of liquor sold This is accom-
plished in many ways. The fact that
no liquor is allowed to be drunk on the
premises. that no sales can be made at
night and that no credit is given, all
have their bearing on this.
II removes the social part of drinking,
and does away with the treating"
habit. When four or five persons get
together in saloon and mutually
treat" it is more than probable that
some one or more of them will be intoX-
icated before the round is made, and
then there is perhaps a job for Il police
man. But under the dispensary system
this is largely avoided, because if the
parties want liquor they buy it, go to
their rooms. and the vicious treating
system being eliminated, it is not so
probable that drunkenness will ensue.
The police records in the little town
mentioned show that only about sixty
per cent of arrests have been made for
the cause of drunkenness during these
two years as compared with the number
made in the same length of time before
the present system was inauguratta
Ordinarily saloon is Il lounging place,
where crowd of people congregatc
(and the saloon is made as attractive
as possible to this end; but it has been
found that there is no trouble of this
kind near the building in which the dis
pensary is conducted generally called
The Dispensary) and there is scarcely
ever any need of policeman in that VI
cinty, because the crowd does not stop
there-those who wish to buy do 50
and pass on.
The people generally uphold aud I'M
dorse the system, and would seriously
object to any retrograde movement; Int
they would gladly have Incorporated
into the law any and all ideas or plans
looking to the further Improvement Of IT.
as it now is 1t has helped the COM
munity morally and financially, and I'M
til absolute prohibition shall come, this
system or some improvement of it, is
likely to be more and more largely adcit-
ed as its merits are more generally
known and appreciated.
1t is certainly step far in advance of
the saloon methods, and seems to b.
the most satisfactory settlement of the
liquor question vet devised
THOS Il. WILDER,
Louisburg, n. @.