The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1900-05-06

AUBrRN. Me, May .. - Last November,
at a meeting Of citizens of this city and Lewis
ton, a committee was appointed 10 investigate
he methods employed by the officials in en-
forcing the prohibitory liquor law in the two
cities and in AndrOsCoggin county, In lis
report the committee say, in part
We have found that the Sheriff
and his deputies are tender-hearted and have
no desire 10 prosecute any one. that they do
not want TO make any liquor seller feel that
he has been singled on, for the laws assaults,
but that il j. their fixed policy TO treat all about
alike, 10 raid them at Irregular intervals ana
secure evidence against them where possible,
80 that "A large number Of them shall be pre-
scented for trial at each term OF court :
Meantime, and all the time, with almost no
exception, the business Of liquor selling, goes
on. While the liquor dealer l. facing the Judge
in court to receive his sentence for violating
the law OF the State his place Of business l.,
open and hi~ barkeepers are rs busy a. usual
The officers claim that the methods, they
! pursue II restricting the business and closing
some places All the "~vrdenc" your committee
has been able TO gather, after most painstaklng
investigation, gOe, 10 show that the business
Of liquor selling is not being restricted IN. IN
droSCoggin county that the number of places
and that within the past year new, places have
been opened Still further, II Is plain that the
business is not being driven into the dark
Liquor selling i done. openly, and bars, With
''l'N' 80 ''ll'i ~ ~
be seen from the street
Il have taken the names Of fifty Of the liquor
sellers of Lewiston, nearly all OF whom have
| been in business n number Of years. OF these
fifty the names Of thirty-nine appear on the
court docket AT least once, many ri them more
than once, for the -four terms Of court beginning
In January, 1880, Against these thlrty-ilhe
law breakers there were, during the four terms
Of court, ls2 complaints and indictments, eighty
zoe Of these were nOl-prosscd, seventeen
we've assigned to the special docket, and thir-
teen continued for sentence, which means,
10 all ln'nnts and purposes, that ll3 Of these
complaints and Indictments were brushed
ASIDE This leaves -iyty-nlne cases against
the thlrty-nine men during the four terms
Of court, or an average Of sonl"what less Than
TWO counts against each individual for that
length Of time
The average total fne imposed upon these
thirty-nlne men under th"se ,iXty-nlne cases
during these four terms Of court was sS!''
and every one Of the thirty-nine, with ona
exception the i in lalll, l. ~ business to-day,
and, 20 lar a. We can learn. had never been out
~ business for q day during the time covered
nv these calculations.
Nv attention has been repeatedly called 10
tho fact that local officers after making raid,
and securing in some cases large. quantities.
Of liquor. have found the Grand Jury under
some circumstance unWllllng to grant an in
dIctmeui and the case, after passing through
the nuniCipal court, has been dropped and the
LIQUORS returned Equally suggestive is the
tact thai business mon mon Of i%nln-nce in the
county. POLITICALLY, socially, and, IN some cases,
! am led TO believe, .religlou-ly, stand in thu
way ~ the laws enforcement stand in the
way oven Of the attempts which are made
To enforce II, and not inireuueutly, by per-
from the plain path of their of1Cial duties,
because, for-ooth, interference with certain
LIQUOR dealer, would he detrimental N business
Car We blame th" officers for regarding
such advice as an indication Of a prevailing
sentiment sufficiently strong 10 warrant them
in regulating their Official conduct by IL"