The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1908-03-23
THE OTHER SIDE HEARD.

Some days ago there was printed in
some eastern newspapers story
about conditions in Kansas City, Kan,
before the prohibition laws were en-
forced and after The reading public
was told that the driving out of the
saloons and dives had resulted in pa
ralyzing the business of Kansas City.
The report was that hundreds of store
rooms were vacant. that the mer-
chants had little or no business and
that the population was decreasing.
Now comes the other side of the
story.
c. l. Brokaw. cashier of one of the
biggest financial Institutions in Kan
sas City. tells it. Discussing the
twenty-one months of law enforce
ment, he says:
1T has been twenty-one months
during which bank deposits have al
most doubled: twenty-one months of
the largest activity in building ever
known in the history of this city;
twenty-one months in which it has
been almost impossible to find a va
cant store room on the business
streets in which to locate a business;
twenty-one months of the largest
growth in population that the city
has ever been able to record for the
same length of time; twenty-one
months of the least crime; twenty-one
months of the largest progress made
in the building of school buildings and
| the increase of school facilities;
| twenty-one months of theslargest ad-
| ditiOns to our milling and factory ia
| cilities; twenty-one months of the
greatest satisfaction among our re-
| tail business men.
above all, twenty-one months oil
! TIE purest city government we have
! had. and twenty-one months of the
best moral atmosphere this city has
during which hundreds of men who
were formerly committed to resubmis,
sion and who were violent anti-prohi-
bitionists have been wholly converted
to the strict enforcement Of the pro
hibitory law, and who will use all o.
their influence and a REASONABLE,
amount of their time and money t
keep the city clean and free from tn,
influence of brewers and distillers, a.
it is free now.
1T has been estimated by thos,
who are competent to judge that tn,
enforcement of the law, as it has beef
enforced here for the last twenty-on'
months, is d net saving of s.. OOO, 600
year to the citizens of this city
It is not hard to believe that MI
Brokaw tells the truth. No city ha
ever been materially injured through
the enforcement of the law. The oil,
theory that a town must be wild
open" in order to be prosperous wa
long since exploded. The business mel
and merchants know now that this i
fact. In cities that impose no re
strictions whatever ON saloons an
that permit public gambling houses t
be operated the saloon men and tn
gamblers are prosperous. but they ar,
: after all. only small part of the com
munity.
They prosper at the expense OF th
merchant and at the expense of tn
home. Dwellers in cities where IN
laws are enforced have more none
TO spend for groceries and elothin
and house rent, more money to pu
into the savings banks, more to spen
in building and improving littI
homes. 1t can be said with truth tina
no man not directly interested in TIL
business was ever benefited by a sd
loon, and certainly nobody ever profit
ed by the operation of a gamblin
, house except the proprietors and en-
r ployes of the place.
4 The Herald is glad to present tn
$ law and order side of the Kansas Cit,
!. Kan. case. 1t should be an inspire
ton for the enforcement of law
q other cities.