The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1901-11-07
Fargo Under Prohibition.

MRS. ADA FARNHAM Treasurer.
Fargo Under Prohibition.
The following is ansextract of an
address delivered by Mayor John
son, of Fargo, some time since:
Mr.. MAYOR, LADIES AND GEN.
TLEMEN:- II have been invited to
come and say to you, if I under
stand the subject, what we are
accomplishing in Fargo, without
in any way receiving aid, in reve-
nue., from the liquor traffic. 1 had
the honor, if there is any honor in
it, of being mayor of Fargo during
territorial days, when we had about
forty saloons. So have had some
experience in that direction as we'll
as in the past four years when we
have no saloons. At the time of
the adoption of our constitution,
when the prohibition amendment
was carried it was represented that
it would depopulate Fargo; that
houses would become vacant, the
stores and other buildings would
stand idle, property would depreci
ate. rents would 90 down, and the
town to use slang phase, would
60 to the dogs. 1 am glad to tell
you that that prophecy has not
been fulfilled but just the reverse
has happened. Fargo has pros
pered without saloon far better
than it eyer did with it. Instead
of being depopulated, it has more
than doubled in population since
the saloon left us. Rents have not
gone down, but have gone up, if
there is any difference. There is
not today IN Fargo, nor has there
been vacant house fit for mouse
to live in, or vacant store since
the saloons left. In the past four
years more than one million dollars
has been invested in new buildin gs
in Fargo. When the saloons were
with us, we did not have single
yard of paving in the city, we had
no sewer system, and did not own
our water works. Today we have
more than fifteen miles of streets,
with a sewer under every yard of
paving and miles of sewer where
the paving does not extend. We
own our water works and they are
more than self sustaining. We
have done all that and at the same
time our taxes are lower than in a
great many citities where they have
the saloon. | have an abstract of
the tax list of the number of cities
of the United States, where they
all have saloons, except Fargo,
which | will read to you: When I
say the amount, that includes the
amount levied on real and personal
property at the places named, city,
county, school and State, and docs
not include the amount derived
from license Of any kind. In 1898
the per capita tax of Fargo was
$l0.57; the same year they were
|SlO.73 in Indianapolis; s11.O2 in
Cleveland, Ohio; $l2.06 in St. Paul
Paul; $12.16 in Chicago, Illinois;
$12.19 in New Orleans; $12. 50 in
in Milwaukee; 1926 in Cincin-
natl; $12.6S in Louisville; $12.91
IN Philadelphia; s13 in Jersey City;
Sl3.04 in Minneapolis; $13. in
Detroit; $13.47 in Rochester, N. Y;
$13.65 in Auburn, N. Y; $14.10
in Denver, Colo.; SIS in ,,Allegha-
ny, Pa; $15.42 in Buffalo, N. ";
S16.07 in San Francisco; $1S.O4;
in Providence, R. l.; $12.45 in
Pittsburg, Pa; $24.64 in Boston,
Mass. Our bonded Indebtedness
is lower than the cities named
except Chicago, Denver and De-
trolt. Our per capita Indebtedness
is $3.50, which includes $40, 900
worth of water works bonds paid
out Of the revenue derived from
water rents, and not from general
taxation, while in the cities named
it is all the way from $27.O7 to
$39: 40 in Boston, Mass. You will
notice these cities I have lust
named are not picked out of any
particular section of the country.
They cover the whole width, and
breadth and length of the United
States, from Boston, Mass, to San
francisco, and from New Orleans
to Fargo. You can not say any
particular section of the country is
picked out to show favor to Fargo.
Our commercial trade was practi-
cally nothing when the saloons
went out of business. In 1898 the
whole trade of Fargo was one mil
lion dollars! [ will give the exact
figures. It was $1.152.5O9 36 The