New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1904-01-24
WANT SUNDAY OPENING
SETTLEMENTS DEMAND.
Neighborhood WOrkerS Unanimous
for Excise Lac Change.

report on Sunday opening in this city, from
information gathered by Settlement workers of
the University Settlement, Nurses Settlement
West Side Neighborhood House Gordon House
Union Settlement and Greenwich House is pub
Ished IN the current issue Of Charities" The
workers favor strongly d Grange IN The law. The
report says II part:
At the December meeting of the Association %
Neighborhood Workers, which embraces practically
al The settlements OF New ork CITY an Informal
that the members present we've almost unanimollsIv
OF the opinion that. In the interest of wholesome
opening CT saloons should be allowed in New York
report upon the extent Of the evasion Of he u
II IS a common impression that the present excise
day generally evaded Bur very few Citizens en- who who
60 not themselves patropize the saloon on Sunday
know either INC extent Of the evasion OF the law
o. the moral effect Of such evasion The commit
the public Of the evasion Of this law and it ,
The date selected Tor the investigation OF the
day was chosen merely because it Was cons s
beaause the law Would he ess PssP0ss and not
OBSERVED than on any other GATE. AS a matter
vas exceedingly inclenent. The investigator was
made fairly: No stloons were omitted because they
iected was visited. And the streets and avenues
weI so selected merely because OF their pro-
ton. The area investigated covers the upper and
52p Low East see the lower and middle West Side
s4u one secuon or Brooklyn
All but thirteen OF these saloons were in the
%eFg LISTED on Sunday DECEMBER % visited
In is OF these either Touor was nurcbssed or seen
70 be purchased. or else was seen being carried
could be entered bjtt in man, $50 en- T ot
necessary as the business could be seen from with
but people who were known TO the watchers were
seen coming and going in sufficient numbers TO war
rant the investigators in stating that they
open. Apparently 81 saloons were closed and not
IS were open to those who were sufficiently known
10 the watchers and 81 were not.
: T-neiFr ~ h. rich
section OF the lower East Side. OF these. s.
were open ard % were closed; the LARGEST per
centage or closed saloons found In the sections
where the Irish and Germans are the predomnating
2 were found to be closed: thus showing that the
c Largest aemand for The open saloon on sunday
In BROOKLYN Only one neighborhood was selected.
open. The population in this neighborhood is large
y IRISH, German and American 1t must not be
visited IN Brooklyn was open that BROOKLYN is an
6Sm aa, above al others The reason may have
i is 10 be noted then that while the demand for
and German. still it is by no means confined to
them: II comes also from 2s domestic race
that the neishborhoods put down Irish and
man IN three Of them there is rather large
Italian colony; in the same three a large number
generation or more is between them and the
Old World. It has been the custom to speak Of /
the demand for the open saloon as coming from /
the Germans desire for his Sunday beer 1t is !
the opinion Of this committee that the demand /
comes equally strong from the Irish element |
Thus the opening Of the saloon only noon for !
nand is also for meeting place for social inter
course, and this demand comes from all nationali- !
The saloons are not universally wide open. In
Vho were not known or vouched for. An uptown |
man who tried 10 help in this Investigation was |
one Thing over which the investigators in many
Instances were surprised the quietness Of the !
drinking. There was very little boisterousness and
reading. smoking. drinking and talking But it is |
, ot apparently me sunday drinking which is car
n four courts in Manhattan this particular sun
Jay were fewer by eighty-nine than the Saturday
One saloonkeeper offers as reason that. OF
ssn f and 25s0 SHE'S n as more an sa
aturoay night. when they have the whole OF
SUNDAY. when they have to work on Monday.
me s9Sds c6T OK the Fend IA fs
liked habits, customs and traditions Of the people
UPTOWN saoonkeepeT reports that he actually loses
money on his Sunday business but he keeps open
. @ The other saloons that do keep open.
n SIndav Which seems ~ he 100 e+ronf5 for The
aloonkeeper 10 resist. IS accentuated by the
II is very dificult TO secure evidence that will
onvlct in the magistrates courts Where this
lfllculty IN securing eTl1ence on which Tnagls-
rate VIII hold 2 saloonkeeper exists the policeman
t % S81 otba a * fb me ny ulng en9
Z those arrested for violation Of the excise law
cd less than Is per cent Of those brought before
hem
Because such very large percentage Of the
oQulatlOn opposes any real enforcement of this
W. L is practically impossible to enforce it, |
he moral effect IL many directions may De noted /
he most alarming effect Of this law is upon the |
eighboThoods in which the law is violated. A | :
hole generation Of people is being raised up IN
cw-York who have a disregard for statute law !
hlch does not fall in with their personal
as'rfs- In another part OF the city, the investi-
lto-s found that the doors Of the saloon were
ling guarded not by who would attract I
ntlon. but by women and little children. Here
ere 80 young that they were really unable NOR
~ to know the extent OF their wrOngdoing. One
lice officer reDoTts that frequently when he
On main thorOughfare into a side street. a
lmber Of children viii down the street. tap {
ng o. the doors OF saloons TO warn the pro- /
1etoTs and those within that the officer Is z
ming.