Perth Amboy evening news., 1906-04-16
BILL
is ATTACKED.
Continued from Page ~


street when so required. No screen,
non-transparent glass, shade, blind,
door, shutter, merchandise or any
other article is to be placed so as to
interfere with this view. On sun
days and election days all saloons are
to be thus exposed. On other days
bars may be kept concealed as at
present, unless the board of excise
shall require them to be open all the
time. This the board has power to
order. BY violating the law the sa-
loonkeeper loses his license. and may
be tried for misdemeanor, in keeping
a disorderly house.
The Exceptions.
The exceptions are, however, very
remarkable, as noted above. Hotels,
clubs, bowling alleys, restaurants on
two floors, etc, can keep up their
screens just as they want to. The
little saloons on the street are the
only mark. and if the law is not obey
ed by them it is hard to see how they
can escape losing their licenses.
A leading lawyer said yesterday:
so far as the ordinary saloon is con
cerned, it must be so fixed as to show
the entire interior from the street on
Sundays and election days. Any two
men could practically cause the
keeper to lose his license. That part
of the law must be obeyed beyond
any question"
nl,A 1aat anntiA@ AF t1,N nVs n IL
that which saved the measure with
the machine" Republicans, because
it was aimed against Mayor Pagan, of
Jersey City, by Boss Dickinson-is
likely to be contested, and will prob
ably be defeated in court, on consti-
tutional grounds. The section reads
as follows:
-. Hereafter. in all instances
where excise commissioners are now,
by law appointed by the mayor or
governing body of any municipality
in this state, such commissioners
shall be appointed by the court of
common pleas of the county in which
such municipality is located, and the
term OF Office of all such excise com
missioners, now holding office, shall
cease and terminate at the expiration
of twenty days after this act takes
effect, and the appointments first
made under this act shall be to fill the
uneXpired terms Of such excise com
m~issiOners.
1t has been claimed that such an
appointment by a judge would not be
constitutional, as he is not an eXecu-
tive official; but this is doubtful
ground. II is also said that the fail
ure to prescribe the duties, salaries,
terms, etc, of the commissioners,
would make the section imperative
and void.
Stronger objections than these eX-
list, however. The title of the act is
as follows:
A supplement to an act entitled
An act to regulate the sale of spiri-
v%inous, malt and brewed Ii
quOrs, and to repeal an act entitled
An act to regulate the sale of intoXi-
eating and brewed liquors. passed
March 7, 1885," approved March 20,
1889"
This title does not cover the ap-
pointment Of excise commissioners.
The constitution requires that ''every
law shall embrace but one subject
and that shall be expressed in the III
tie" The title refers only to acts in
regard 70 certain liquor measures, but
not 10 the appointment of officers or
commissioners, which provided for in
other enactments. il is claimed that
this section will be invalid. but that
its being declared unconstitutional
would NOT affect the other parts of
The act, which are not likely to be
disturbed by the courts, except to in
terpret them.
The Act Poorly Drawn.
Inc whole act is drawn with an ig-
norance of English and a careless
ness which causes much criticism.
No measure of such has been sc bad
Iy written and clumsily enacted in
the memory of lawyers.
The action Of the Legislature in
fixing every feature so as to operate
against city saloonkeepers and allow
ing the country sellers to escape
without such legislation, has been
discussed and blamed. 1T is a coun-
try act all through said one saloon
keeper yesterday.
Corporation Counsel Record, of
Jersey City, the close friend and legal
adviser of Mayor Pagan, declared
Saturday that he would attack the
new law in cour at tine first oppor-
tunity. He believed the bill might