The Corvallis times. (Corvallis, Or.) 1888-1909, 1904-12-31
AT MIDNIGHT.
Old Year Goes out and Town Goes
Dry Saloons Preparing for
Change.


Change. /
At midnight, this Saturday night
the Local Option law goes into eff
feet. Just at the moment that the
old year dies, the doors of the four
Corvallis saloons will swing to for
the last time at least for the present.
and dry town will be ushered in.
The next day will be Sunday, and
for long time now it has been
usual for Corvallis to be dry on
Sundays. Ordinarily therefore,
from midnight tonight, until five
O clock Monday morning, the sa-
looms would be closed anyway, and
during that period, the new order
of things will not be in evidence.
But at five O clock Monday morn
ing----it will be then that the old
soaker will feel a goneness. No
friendly bar will be open for the
early morning drinks that are wont
to make breakfast taste better. No
cosy room will be open all day to
shelter him from the winds of win
ter, and where he can respond so
gracefully and willingly to the in
vite of the free-handed chap that
calls everybody up for a drink. For
him indeed, it will be a great
change, an unwelcome change after
five O clock Monday morning. Cor
wallis wont look so bright under
the sun of the new year as it would
were the old order of wet yet in
vogue. And there are others be-
sides the old soak to whom the new
condition will be unwelcome.
Apparently, no effort is to be
made by saloon men in Corvallis to
resist the law. Were resistance to
appear, it would probably be mani
tested Monday morning by some
saloon opening its doors as usual.
The proprietor would of course, be
promptly arrested and taken before
a justice of peace. The latter Off
Ger is given the powers of a cir
cult Judge in administering the Lo-
cal Option law. The prisoner
would in all probability be prompt
ly fined $50 to $Ioo. He could al
so be imprisoned. If that were
not enough and he should continue
to keep his place open, subsequent
arrests and heavier fines could be
imposed. along with incarceration
until it would get to be an expen-
sive and most unpleasant business.
There might be an appeal to other
courts, but it is the general opinion
of lawyers everywhere that the law
IS sound. Two noted attorneys of
the state are said to have framed
the law, and opinion is general
that they did their work so effect
lively that there is no chance to
break down the law in the courts.
Accordingly, local saloonmen are
preparing, it is said, to go out of
business. None of them have been
ordering supplies of wet goods
since the late election. Before that
they had largely reduced their
stocks. Some of them ran out of
some lines of beverages several days
ago. Most of them expect to be
practically sold out of business by
II o'clock tonight.
A chance upon which some of
the liquor dealers may put reliance
is the legislature. Talk is that the
solons when they get together at
Salem might do something to upset
the Local Option plans. 1t is pro-
bable that, pending the session,
some of the local dealers will hold
themselves in position where they
could re-enter the business in case
of friendly action by the legislature.
None of them have so declared,
but that is believed to be the pur-
pose in more than one instance. If
the legislature adjourns without
action the last chance for resump-
ton of wet conditions would be cut
off for couple of years.
1t is the general belief that there
will be no studied attempt at sur
reptitious dealing in intoxicants in
Corvallis. Many of those who op-
posed the law take the view that
the best way to get rid of it is to
enforce it strictly. A large con-
tingeut of anti-optionists will there
fore join with the optionists in in
sisting upon thoroughly dry town.
Besides there is in Corvallis large
element of people who believe from
principle that a law adopted by
the people themselves by popula,
vote is entitled to complete respect
and its requirements should be held
sacred by all good citizens. AL
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