The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1908-06-16

The head of the "boOze' trust of
Sweden, or what corresponds to a
trust, is in Topeka on a visit and the
above is his card. Mr.. Mathiasson,
who speaks the English language
very f1uently for foreigner and who
has very likable personality, is in
vestigating the prohibition law and
it's workings in Kansas.
Mr.. Mathiasson has been in the city
for the past five days and after
spending his time looking around and
becoming acquainted with local con-
ditions privately sought out the public
officials of the state, county and city.
He called at the governors Office this
afternoon.
The temperance movement in
Sweden is evidently moving around in
a rather lively manner for Mr..
Mathiasson and two other representa-
tives were commissioned as ENJOYS ex-
traordinary and ministers plenipoten-
tiary to get facts at the head sources
of prohibition, Kansas with which to
combat the movement at home in
Sweden
Yes, the people ARE really getting
tired of all this agitation in Sweden
for temperance, said he. "They are
working in all sorts of ways, some of
them are working with the children
and preaching temperance to them,
that think is right, but others again
are trying to get hold of the older
people which is all wrong. You can't
do much after a nan has become
fixed in his ways. That is spending
efforts for nothing.
"The trouble about this prohibition
in Kansas is that it leads to disrespect
for all law. I could never vote for
that sort, oh no, never" and he en-
N "a h fpa1inpS with
sive shrug of his shoulders and a
deprecatory wave of his hands. 'Isn' t
it worse to do that than to let a man
get what he wants without breaking
the law, to go around it. Now you
have people on all sides going around
this law I noticed that SO much oyer
in this country, this disrespect for
law. Now at home we observe down
to the littlest all the law that is writ
ten down with the majesty's name on
it. Here it is SO different.
mo, 1 don't like this way you have
prohibition in Kansas. I saw more
drunken people here than 1 did in
Kansas City. Maybe it just happened
but you should have no drunkenness
at all here. Is it not so? Now for
myself I don't like the spirit business
but L make my living at it and
think we handle it much better than
you do over here. We have the
Gothenburg system. you have heard
of it. The name is in the dictionary.
A monopoly is given to each town to
sell the spirits. A company is formed
to handle this monopoly, they can't
sell but in that one town and only can
have so many places. In HelsingbOrg,
a town of $4,000, we have 6 places to
get spirits. Three bars at each one of
the leading hotels and three other
drinking places. The places are fitted
up finely. you can get bottle of
schnapps for about cents of your
money and a meal for seven or eight
that is better than a 25 cent meal
here. They don't make any money
off of the meal but on the spirits. The
men come in to these places and can
only take two schnapps at one time,
no more and none is sold to drunk
ager for sell to these monopolies. We
sell to fourteen different cities or
monopolies. The spirits are higher
grade than you get here, no adultera-
tions The monopolieS increased the
price 100 to 100 per cent but the
spirits are better and the places where
they drink are much better. 1t is
only that the places are too few. In
Helsingborgs there are but six places
where you drink and one place where
YOU may buy bottled spirits. That is
too few Too many men come in and
go out and that does not look good.
It looks bad. 1t should be as it is
| in Washington. There it is like it
should be not too many and just
enough In your other cities you have
too many what you call them,
saloons. Then they have these half
doors, they look bad. they should be
the full length like they are in WASH