Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1907-03-05
CONTROL OF The LIQUOR TRAFFIC
The Sanla Of Norway System Of Dealing With the Evils
Of Strong Drink that Possesses
Much Merit

8 &c. t. Lee in Minneapolis Journal.)
America has taken the lead in many
reform movements. Recently DR.. Paul
Herr of the University of Berlin has
investigated the American system of
reforming minors and claims that
American reformatories can hardly be
surpassed. But our temperance re-
4 form movements are hardly entitled to
similar commentator.
Neither prohibition, local option, the
different license systems, the mulct
4 law nor the South Carolina dispensary
system have proved entirely satisfac-
tory. The government has not given
the subject the attention it desery es.
Little has been done to secure reliable
1 information, and few Investigations by
experts have been instituted by the
government authorities.
A private committee Of fifty organ
lied in 1898 in New York appointed
two men, DR.. Frederick H. Wines of
Springfield, H., and John Koren of
Boston, Mass, to investigate liquor
i legislation in several states of the
union The investigators found that
at every point they encountered an in
tense partisanship, which blinded wit
nesses and obscured the Judgment of
writer's and speakers. One result was
that no secure conclusions could be
based on statistics now in existence,
so much are they affected by tenn
porary, local and shifting conditions.
The questions should be thoroughly
investigated in its economic, physio.
logical, sociological, legislative and
ethical aspects.
SsS As it may be Of interest to know
something about the manner in which
the liquor traffic has been regulated in
Norway, submit the following facts
about the Norwegian company system
or Gothenburg system:
Swedish Original of the System.
The samlag or company system
dates from the day when the editor
{ of the Gothenburg Commercial pro
1 posed lin 1S64to the municipal coun;
Gil of Gothenburg, SWedn, that it ap-
3 s,y,, ~, ~ 90, 70, ~ ~ I, f},n
tent of and causes for pauperism.
y The council assented, and the editor
and four other eminent citizens were
appointed The committees report at
Il tributed pauperism and other evils tt
the brandy the poor consumed, and
suggested that the municipal authori
ties take advantage of provision OF
B the law of 1855, and hand over to a
company, composed of twenty respect,
ed business firms and private individ.
uals, the licenses for the bar sale OF
brandy then disposed Of at auction to
the highest bidder-tfle company en-
gaging in the business, not for the
sake of profit, but solely for the good
of the working classes, and the share
holders refusing to derive profit be.
yond the ordinary interest on the CAPT.
ia invested
In the heavy lettered words may be
4 found the unique, vital principle
which differentiates the system from
others The recomme ndation was APP
proved and company was formed
which began operations October, 1865
and ten years later secured control Of
the entire retail trade in spirits. II
/. 1874-75, when Gothenburg had popu
lation Of 1886, the bar trade in bran
dy amounted to $780, $50 quarts a year
8 and the total consumption Of spirits to
4 ,740, 110 quarts.
IN 1892, with a population of 106,
356, the bar trade in spirits had fallen
to 548,071 quarts, and the total con
sumption of spurious liquors to 1923,
PSI quarts. Thus while the population
1 had Increased 46,370, the consumption
Of brandy sold over the bar decreased
132.4S6 quarts, and the total consump
ton decreased 2216,859 quarts.
Soon other towns and cities in Swe
den and Norway adopted the same sys
tenn
The Norwegian Methods.
The rules governing the company
stores in Christiansand, Norway, In
1893 were as follows
Sd First-Th bars are kept open on
week days from 3 a. m. to 10 N. and
from to s p. M. exception days be
COMPETENT JUDGES.