Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1905-05-31

| In public, is general. Inc writer
visits towns. where on Saturday after
Moons he sees dozens of men under the
| influence of liquor, and such intoXi-
| Gated men, have no more trouble in
| getting another drink than the more
sober customer The same condi-
| lions, that of selling to half drunken
men can be seen in almost any sa-
| loon in almost any town in Iowa after
dark in the evening. Free lunches.
card playing. music and curtained
| windows. all contrary to the mulct
law, are common and general, in some
saloons in some towns.
| Another condition OF affairs is de-
| plorable as q form of nom observance
of law. That is i'm counties and towns
| where there is Il majority sentiment in
! favor of the open saloon, but yet where
| from a variety of causes they are UNI
! able to get a So per cent signed petit
\ ton for the mulct law. In such COM
! nNlnities by conivance of the au-
\ thorites, these saloons run openely,
| but are regularly fined an understood
amount. The same system WAS oper-
ated in these localities while the pro-
| hibiton law was the general law Of
| the state. Such saloons pay no coun
ty or state mulct and only pay it to the
! city or town on condition that said city
or town officials shall let them alone.
OF course. in such places. any citizen
can institute suit for such open de-
fanee of law. but it is almost ilnpos-
sible to convict, on account of the gen.
eral knowledge and understanding that
trn no nil u,
per month for the right TO run" Many
of our best citizens see i'm such open
nom observance of law tremendously
bad effect on the community to say
nothing of the rising generation, mo-
tlclnS the complacent violation of law.
Now we come to the dry" counties
where the prohibitive law is so far
enforced that no open saloons exist
and even here there is much cause for
dissatisfaction. 1t is caused by the
drug store saloon. Before stating what
follows the writer places himself on
| record as knowing that many, perhaps
small majority of our druggists, try
TO live up to the conditions of the
pharmacy law. Such men have le-
gal right to sell Intoxicating liquors.
as witnessed by the fact that we have
q pharmacy law aud a system of per-
mits 1t SO happens that the writer
has personal acquaintance with sew
eral hundred druggists in Iowa, is In
their places of business every day. and
knows what he is talking about. and is
glad to, testify that the majority of
these druggists are doing square
business, |. e.. living UP to the senti-
Ment of the pharmacy and prohibitive
laws of Iowa. But just the same there
are hundreds of whisky drug stores,
saloon drug stores in Iowa. Places
where the proprietor thereof deljber-
dtely went into and continues, in the
drug business. for the purpose of SELL
INC; Intoxicating liquors. both In ac-
cordance with and contrary to law.
That such drug stores are in larger
numbers in dry counties than wet"
ones is easily noticed and observed
And the conservative temperance peo-
pie OF ouch counties say and feel that
ZONE change must be made in our
laws concerning the sale of liquors.
At present the whisky drug store sa-
loon has monopoly in the prohibitive
county. without paving mulct tag. or
y'itles i'ftDiu w vac uttlcI PioNlSlOllS VI
the mulct law.
The statement of existing facts of
the real condition of affairs in Iowa,
relating to the sale of Intoxicating
liquors IN Iowa. amounts to this. our
liquor laws are not enforced. Whether
n state d;spsnsary law system, would
have a stronger sentiment behind It
in the matter of enforcement, can well
be questioned. But there id a grow
ing sentiment all along the line IN fav-
or Of changing our liquor laws. Poll
ticians dread It, and fight shy of any
talk OF change And whether our pro-
liibitive friends like 1t or not. it can
be put down AS fact, there is but lit
tie If any desire to return to prohib-
ition days. Theoretically tho PEOPLE
OF Iowa believe in prohibition. Prac-
tically they know it IS a failure, and
they have little inclination for more
legislation along that lire.
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