The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1906-03-09
SOME CONVINCiNG "CLiNcHERS"
Presented at the Local Option Meeting
Sunday Evening.

last Sunday evening IN the interest OF
sustaining the local option law in this
county was largely attended and en-
thusiastic. Nathan Thomas, vice presi-
dent for Paw Paw township presided and
music was furnished by the male quar-
tette of the NJ. +. church. After scrip
ture reading by Rev. Mr.. Hufler and
pray er by Rev. Mr.. Mumford the speakers
of the evening were introduced by the
chairman. The speakers were Mr.. Asel-
tine, county superintendent of schools
County Clerk VIM. G. Mosier and Judge
David Anderson Some of the leading
reasons advanced by the speakers for
maintaining the present law were that
the abolishiug of the saloon is protec-
tion to the schools. If it is deemed wise
to prohibit saloons within a certain num-
ber of rods of school houses, it is still
wiser to extend that limit an equal num-
Der of miles. If it is good policy for the
law to require the school children to be
instructed in the effect of alcohol on the
human system, it would be poor policy
to counteract that instruction by legaliZ-
ing the open saloon for the sale of
alcoholic drinks. The bottle traffic and
bottle drinking is not confined to Van
Buren county, but Is more hagrantly
practced in saloon counties than with
us. The drug stores are not responsible
for all of the drinking that goes on in
Van Buren, county. The drug stores IN
Van Buren, county are more closely
watched, more carefully and persistently
restrained and better kept within the
limits of the law than they are in saloon
counties The official reports of the
prosecuting attorney and chief of police
of Kalamazoo county show that in the
last six months of 1905 there were 787
prosecutions for drunkenness in Kalama-
zoo county, which at the same rate would
be 1874 prosecutions for drunkenness in
Kalamazoo county for the year 1909
The population of Kalamazoo county is
49,762, thus showing one arrest for
drunkenness for every 81 people in
Kalamazoo county during the year 1905.
The official record of the prosecuting
attorney of Van Buren, county shows a
total of l03 arrests for drunkenness in the
year 1908 out of population of "a $50,
being one arrest for every 339 people.
In other words the prosecutions for
drunkenness in Kalamazoo county are
more than ten times as numerous as in
Van Buren, county. The official records
show that during the last five years
Berrien county, with 90 saloons aud four
wholesale houses, has had six murder
trials; Kalamazoo county, with II saloons,
has had three murder trials i'm the last
five years. Van Buren, county, with no
saloons, has had one murder trial in the
last five years. The benefit to be derived
from saloons in the way of taxes is trivial,
Outside the corporation 20 saloons in
the county would cause a reduction in
taxes of but 80 cents on every 81 ,000of as
sessed valuation.
Every saloon is headquarters for the
wrong kind of politics and political in
fluence. Van Buren, county is now free
from the saloon and its political influence
and should remain so. Ifit be admitted
to be true as is so often claimed, that
the drug store is no better than the saloon,
even then Van Buren, county is far ahead
of any other county in southwestern
Michigan. The official figures show that
! Allegan county has one place for the sale
of liquor to every 6S3 people; Barry
county, one to 734; Branch county, one
to 776; Berrien county, one to 4S9; Cass
county, one to 646; Calhoun county, one
to 495; Hillsdale county, one to l,066;
/ Kalamazoo county, one to 49S; Ottawa
county; one to 72S st. Joseph county,
one to 466; Van Buren, county, one to
l,345. Figures from the auditor generals
office at Lansing show that there were
more real estate transfers in Van Burer
county in 1905 than in any other county
in the state. Van Buren, county is the
: ODlN COuull III SOubll-Wbot
not having a large city within its borders
that shows any substantial gain in popula
ton between 1900 and 1904. The coun
ties of Barry, Branch, Cass, Hillsdale anc
st Joseph show loss in population
during that. period. The counties of
Allegan and Berrien show gain of less
than one-half of one per cent. The county
of Van Buren,, being almost entirely al
agricultural county, shows gain of 1861
people, or over 3 per cent its popula
tion The other counties to show a gair
were Calhoun, Kalamazoo and Ottawa
each of which has good sized cities withir
its borders.
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