The Jennings daily record. [volume] (Jennings, La.) 1900-1903, 1902-06-07

c,arv>n,an 10 hold evil office, be
sent to the legislature, or even elect
ed governor, but l am the hrst, SO
far l know. to sit on Doafu u
excise commissioners
IS Ny appointment came about. ho~HV.i,
in a perfectly natural manner. lhe.e
had been complaint regarding the gram
ing of licenses in the town. in wnlch coli-
plant as not improper for "a clersS
man | had Joined. An unexpected result |
was that on the next vacancy in the eS-
else board Judge Vreeland appointed tne
to the position. To my on1ectlohs me ~ |
swered that had found fault WIN .iie
manner in which things were done l. vas
unreasonable in me to decline posi 49,
| w.y The Office sought the man ana ne
| could not we'll escape.
In accepting the appointment reeos
nized that I was to vote tor d se ~ hs
| number of licenses. If no one was 10 De
| allowed to sell if every one was 10 ne
| allowed to sell il would have been sum
| cient to post up a notice to that erect
| ,Tbe very existence of the board implied
| that a distinction was to be made between
| applicants. that the liberty OF safe "hiSi
was be refused TO some was ~ W
granted to others. , -
Nor did i see that my disapprovai OF
| the liquor business forbade my voting 10
| allow a man to carry 1t on frohiDiliou-
| lists who condemn the of alcohol IN
| medical practice and of fermented VINE
in the church supper Will enact ia"
which permits sales for such purposes;
w. r,av 5enounce the use of tobacco ana
be able to show that numbers OF men are
plainly killing themselves by eNcessiS.
nse of the weed. but nevertheless consent
70 ire sale A thing we diSapprove we
may still tolerate 100, ..
The stoutest prohibitionist could serve
on an excise board without any neon
sis,ancv Re il rived that a license
law does not 'leSalZe' the sale OF iq uor
! il accords to the dealer no stanoihs "tlctI
he did not have before any such la" was
nassed All that a license law does Is
70 lesalize sales. to say that the liberty OF
traffic which has heretofore peen UNI
,-arsal shall henceforth exist only IN spe-
c;ai cases And in these excepted IN
stances the law grants n" ne" PRIV iisIss
: il simply consents to leave Things as tneE
We're simply forhears TO INTERFERE WIZ
. an existing privilege. ,..
| The appointment created some ulsHUH
} sion in our town papers. but WINE my
accordance, of it was criticised ny some II
was approved in an article from u tns ne,
+ of the president of the local W ONE"
r Christian Temperance union.
y Nv associates on the board Wer" t"f
business men of high standing. ana W.
worked in perfect harmony. In some IN
stances we refused to renew licenses ~
they expired. but generally We tn"uS'.
- letter to allow dealers to continue l
:, they would keep within the law cu
{ Do,icv was to refuse PERMISSION hot 10
: ALI sales of liquor. but only for such a
) i,xo1yad drunkenness. disorder and pun
- lie annoyance. H.,
a as chairman of the board could sta I
l. rbat in our town OF 1000 inhabitant
e, there were outstanding only hotel and
lie saloon licenses. with grocers permits
l. sell by the quart and upward not 10
s. drnnk on the premises. What this mean
se can be understood only by compariSot
y. founded on the reports OF the nl'e
s. states revenue department. EVERY ma
Y, engaged in the sale of liquor has to pa
or a faS to the general government. an
is thus we know something about sales
n prohibition towns. In Augusta. NC
of cirv NOT so large as ours there were r.
$. Gently fifty drinking places paElhs ~
e. United States tax. Inc cotoi..on So zen
as ! 70 he the same throughout the state. eve
IT in the small villages Sherih aeais,
rs saws that when he came into once
nd found in Portland 81 United states iiI n
ed licenses-tnis in the city OF Neal DO
"A AFTER fifty years of prohibition-af
Is though he has fought the thing emerge
of icaIly venture to say that TO-DAY
ed | that CITY there are three tineS as ma I
10 | liouor shops in proportion to the popul
m ton as we have in Morristown; IN ~
ce the average number of liquor sellers pa
IL ing United States tax was TO the 'ho
lv sand of population--in the country
large $50; in the five prohibition star
" hy themselves. lbs, while IN MorrlStoT
"a we have of retail dealers only one 10 q
~ thousand 80 population. do not heSita
We to declare that there is not in the VINO
MT country n prohibition town as iarst
INF ! ours that does not have double the nun
M her of liquor shops that we have.
he | other words. under our excise board [
,nt sale of liquor in our city is not more IN
70 | half what il would be were We q II
Ie ucanse town Prohibition is one TIM
Sc and suppression is quite another
- Rut while the traffic restrained
w never before, my relations with the iiqN
die dealers We're peileS'iS -s.,o 49,, ,
ma renewal l would go to him and say; y
at you willing to meet me nan way =, -
a., will vote to extend your license VIII y
- promise me by all that is sacred that y
Nv. will keep your place in so orderly a ma
- | ner that no one will have reason 10 DIG
but me TOT NollhS ~ a,isa Tor he knew
in | could not otherwise get ms hcense' d
~, III the promise would be fairly well re
ILL Wnen nsa H.a,-s wing the mat
and ping ~ So, s,rnr,v went to n
D. and told him friend that ne was
tremendous fool to tempt US TO take
his head and the admonition was gen
siIv efrective When you have a re
OF around a mans neck ne Will iSleh i"e
eS- ~ your advice ,,
loft Though the dealers were much troup
ran when my appointment was nIst
use nounced they soon conceded that
.s what they called "a square man.
We, .bsv saw that 1 did not seek to interf
itch with what tney - 80 fairIx or
lnie buslness' .nae IL .,,;raa M ..r,ll,'
Tho obtain it, and that asked ohiS W
H. thew all felt to be reasona ole-hamt
Nv that they should not sell to boys hor
- drnpkards nor In forbidden hours.
was noteworthy that when We revoke
n, mans license he had no sympathy IT
- the other dealers, but all admitted !,
60 he deserved what he got. / was surprt
a. to find how easily the whole thins co
pom be managed
satn the success OF our pot.u ~ = :.
rled with what is generally considered Il '
pro- perpleNing munlclpal l'''leHl -,
meet being nominated as ~S i ,ti,,,,n -
Nv ~. other nominee gentleman