The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1909-06-20
CITY THAT LAUGHS AT TRUSTS
WORCESTER'S UNIQUE RECORD
IN MANUFACTURING.

N--Hemarkable for DlverSity OF IN
dustries-About $500 Articles Mad,
Observation-Disclosures the Keynote
thirst OF a no license American city
Of aoout $50, 900 inhabitants amounts Il
in n month? Well. there's Worcester
Mass. There she stands. as some o n
Dnce said Of Massachusetts,. one OF the
most interesting municipalities Of the
United States and also one OF the mos,
remarkable for industrial activity. trusts
or M trusts.
Worcester went no license a year age
last May. There isn't a saloon in the
place. and the police say there isn't a
blind tiger either. Yet the people OF
Worcester consumed in the month Of
May just past no less than ~ ,22s cases
of beer. 1915 kegs Of beer and s ,s42 gallons
OF distilled liquor, mostly whiskey; and
practically all the beer was made right
there in town. Theoretically it wasn't
sold there.
That amount of beer and liquor
represented what may be called the
satisfied or partly satisfied thirst OF
Worcester. There was undoubtedly a
good deal of thirst in the place that didn't
get satisfied. Just suppose that only
ali OF the folks got as much drink as
they wanted, or that all the folks only
got half OF what they wanted. and you
can figure up what an American thirst
amounts to and how American folks
beat a law that says liquors shall not be
sold within specified limits.
IA " ~,-- H.
counting men, women and children, in
Worcester had a case OF beer or its eauiva-
lent for the month Of May. One person
in every six had what amounted to a
bottle Of beer a day, excluding Sundays.
II that was only half OF what the
inhabitants would have liked. or il
only half Of the inhabitants we're fully
satisfied. you can guess what would be
going on in no license towns and cities
in the United States provided they had
the advantages OF Worcester people for
shaking their thirst.
Worcester not only possesses the dis
tinotion Of being the most remarkable
city in the country as regards it's diver
sifed industries, but it has also the finest
advantages Of any city OF large size to
beat a no license law: and it does beat
that law too!
The town is so clean morally, so
orderly, so comfortable that is is doubt
full IL license will win again for some time.
The people say that they want to beat
the open saloon. that is all, and that they
have no objection to folks drinking at
home. 1t was simply the saloon and its
pernicious influences that they were
fighting.
BEER SHIPPED AWAY AND SHIPPED BACK
Worcester gets its beer through the
operation OF the interstate commerce
law. 1t is situated within fifty miles Of
Rhode Island and New Hampshire. The
Federal law says you can't interfere with
shipments Of beer from another State into
a no license community provided il il
shipped in the original packages. Owing
TO that happy provision Worcester can
wet it's whistle at any hour Of the day or
night almost.
The peculiar thing about II Ia that the
town makes its own beer. just as It has
done for years and years, ships IL out Of
town into another State. then orders it
shipped back in the original packages
and distributed to its various homes.
II you know the game it is one Of the easiest
things in the world to get a drink in wor-
cester. but some kind friend has got to
explain the process to you.
There are two large treweries in
Worcester. When on May 1 Of last year
the dry law went into effect and sll the
saloons closed down it was thought that
the breweries would he so hard hit that
they might Ia We to close down too. True,
the surrounding towns might want some
small supplies. but 1t seemed as II the
breweries would he so crippled that
practically they would be put out OF
business.
The wise ones knew better. There was
Nashua. \. H.. and Providence and Woon-
socket. r. l.. within fifty miles. The
Worcester brewer;es promptly set UP
Offices in those cities and shipped their
products to these agencies. Then an
express service was organized with the
horses and wagons and drivers OF the
breweries, new signs were painted on the
wagons reading Express instead of
Brewery and the same old and some
new beer routes were established.
When n citizen o. Worcester now wants
some beer he goes to the express COM
pany's office and orders ii from Nashua,
Providence or Woonsocket, G.. q. n. and
express charges added, and in from three
to four hours an express wagon stops in
front OF his place and there's the beer.
Marvellouslv short time for an order TO
be filed! 1t would probably require
twice or three times that time TO get a
bale of hav. Queer how railroads and
express companies rally to the comfort
OF a person in distress from thirst.
EASY TO 6ET IT SOMETIMES.
Some folks in Worcester grin a little
As they tell you Of the distress Of a local
statesman who recently gave a blowout
TO some OF his friends and almost up to
the verv hour 1t was to begin forgot to
order the beer. S%traightway he rushed to
the beer express company's OFFICE. He
was agitated. hut had Yankee cunning.
Got an express package for me from
Providence?" he asked the agent.
well, I don't know said the agent.
q haven't looked over the latest arrivals
yet. What were you looking for?-
.Well, I was looking for a case OF beer.
Y'see I'm giving a blowout to some OF
the boys in a few minutes, and what I
can't understand is why that beer hasn't
come. Miserable blowout without any
beerl"