Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1902-08-08

majority vote, if the state board gives consent.
There are two counties in the state where no
dispensares have ever been opened, as the
necessary vote was not obtained at the cleo
ton. In one instance dispensary was closed |
by vote. of the people. In these "dry" |
counties drunkenness is as often seen as in the
other counties.
The local dispenser having given bond and |
been provided with place of business, sends
an order to the state commissioner, specifying
the kinds and quantity of liquor that is want
ed. From long experience, however, the state |
commissioner usually ships a stock such as in
his Judgment is adapted to the wants of the |
community. The goods thus shipped are
opened in the presence of one of the men,
bers of the local board of control, so as to
guard against dishonest claims for breakage.
a price list is kept in a conspicuous place,
usually the front window, showing the cost to
the consumer of each package kept in stock.
few feet from the front door there is cross
counter which shuts off the rest of the store
and customers never 60 further than this a
dispensary looks very much like drug store,
with the bottles arranged on shelves. When
one wishes to make a purchase in a dspen-
sary "permt book" is handed him in which
to write his name, place of residence, quantity
and kind of liquor wanted on blank as fol-
lows:
FORM NO S.
Request to Purchase Intoxicating liquors.
To the County Dispenser:
The Undersigned, age. residing at No..
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
desires to purchase the following intoz icat.
ing liquors ........................
ATTEST.
DISPENSER.
These permit books are bound in packages
of a hundred and are used in the settlements
which the county dispenser must make with
the auditor, as well as for the information of
the inspectors, and they are also always open
to the public. The idea is to have every pack
) age of liquor shipped from the state dspen-
sary accounted for 1t is further a check on
a dispenser and prevents the sale illicitly of
t whskey on his own account
t The purchase having been completed and
: money paid, the purchaser must leave the
: store without breaking the seal or opening the
f package. No questions are asked, and the
= only limitation the sale, is: The dispensers
l must not sell to a minor or to a person "who
is known to habiually get drunk" There is
no credit and no bookkeeping except to sum
5 up the amount OF the days sales, with the list
of the various kinds of packages disposed of,
| WHICH are CndtStu against inc SlOCh. 1 Tic
/ profit made by the local dispensary, after de-
, Quoting expenses, goes half to the county and
e the other half to the town. The state re-
, ceives its profits in the price charged to the
local dispenser, adding to the first cost the ex-
e pense of bottling, freight, etc. The net profits
y for state, town and county, for eleven months,
e ending December Ist, 1900, is S522,543 The
y states profit goes to the free school fund.
J, What is there about this method Of selling
r liquor which makes it superior to prohibition
or to the license system?
First: Liquor is the only article of COM
= merce in general use that is consumed at the
r time and place of its purchase. 1t is safe to
say that three-fourths of it is thus disposed of.
e The dispensary law enforces a different
n method by requiring the purchaser to take it
9 away as he would package of shoes or a
e sack of flour. He must 90 somewhere else
n than to the place where he buys it to con-
sumo it.
e Second The element of personal profit
t which lies at the root of the saloon evil is de-
= stroyed. The dispensers receive fixed salaries
i proportionate to the amount of work they do.
S They don't get commission on sales and
c have no incentive to push them.
0 Third: Treating" is destroyed, and this
does more for sobriety than possibly any other
:, feature of the system. The man who has
: bought bottle al the dspensary may treat
n one or a half dozen of his friends to one
: drink and that will be all. The inducement
/ and obligation to recprocate which are SO
e well understood do not exist
Fourth: At shutdown the dispensary closes
r 1t opens at eight o'clock in the morning. The
legitimate demand for whiskey is supplied
r during daylight, and the dispenser having
S closed up his place of business, has no incen.
\ t;,,a 70 - TO 10 n al TpJav NJ
=. form of license is this possible. Besides it is
g misdemeanor to make sales in any way or al
y any time except as the law provides.
e Thus far the comparison has been with the
e saloon, or license system, rather than with
e prohibition. With the latter there Is really nc
=, comparison to be made except to point to re-
e suits. OF course it is well understood where
h prohibition has been tried, that the certificate
|, of physician that liquor is needed for medi-
n cine has been an easy thing to obtain. Iiy-
y pocricy and perjury were both increased
a That men will drink is SO well understood
y that the facts adduced to show how little pro-
II hibition prohibits in Kansas and Maine are
|, alone necessary to show that the dispensary is
y superior to that system of liquor control. The
IS testimony of unbiased judges is that in South
l. Carolina drunkenness has decreased to d
o marked degree-from 50 to IS per cent
e since this law went into effect. In most OF
" the counties liquor is sold only at the court
It house town, and men either obtain their sup
l. ply there or it Is shipped in from outside for
is personal use, direct to the individual.
n Dispensers can sell on written orders and
S. send goods by hand or express. There is nc
is attempt to prevent the use of liquor, We
d eight the devil with fire." We combat the
al abuse of whiskey with the use of whskey
p supplying the demand in the least harmful
e way.
1t would be easy to amplify the argument;
4 and 60 much more into details, all of which
y would be interesting and instructive, but in the
h limits of magazine article this is impossible
l. will only add that the law has been sub
IS jected to series of bitter contests, and ha:
been practically the only issue in state politics
d since it was enacted. 1t has always triumpheC
+ and in the last election against combination
s. of prohibitionists, high license advocates anC