The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1909-06-10
Saloons in Residence Neighborhoods

The people in the territory recently
annexed to the city from the town OF
Pleasant Prairie in the southwestern
part of the city are said to be seri-
ously considering the advisability of
attempting to vote their district dry
at the next election and in order to
insure that their residence district
will not be invaded by more saloons
that is the course they will have to
take. The men who are interesting
themselves in the matter should be
able to figure out pretty closely what
the chances of success for such an at
tempt would be. From the number Of
signers to the remonstrance against the
attempt to take this section into the
saloon district Of the city it looks to
an outsider as though the voters would
be likely to declare the district dry
territory should the question be sub
mitted to them although it is admitted
that there is little reliance to be
placed on petitions and remonstrances
as showing the action that might be
taken by the signers of such papers.
1t is certain that if the property own
ers Of that section want the saloon out
of it they will have to act themselves.
Should they rely on the Council to help
them out by refusing licenses to the
three saloons now doing business in
the territory they want reserved for
residence property exclusively they are
going to disappointed. In the first
place it is not the habit of our City
Councils to oppose the saloon in any
way. They never have in the past
and there are not likely to be any
Innovations along that line under the
present administration. And in the
second place, even granting that the
majority of the Council was disposed
to help out the people in that territory,
the Council could not consistently re-
fuse licenses to the saloons now do
ing business there while granting Ii
Censes to others in different parts of
the city against which protest has
been made. AS matter of fact a,
number Of the aldermen would be
pleased to have the matter taken out
of their hands altogether and settle
by the votes of the people directly in
terested. Should the question be sub
mitted to vote Of the people the at
titude taken by the brewers through
their beer agents in the city will be
of great interest to the people Of the
state. 1t has been alleged that the
brewers have been long in promises of
reform IN the saloon business and very
short in performance when the time
came for them to put their words into
deeds and with some show of reason.
The action of the beer agents in the
Somers election Is case in point.
Should the people of the territory
under discussion or in any other resi-
dence neighborhood of the city decide
to vote on this question of creating
prohibition districts, if the brewers
live up, to their promises they will
keep their hands off the fight and their
agents out of ii for they have declared
their intentions in contests of this
nature in no uncertain terms. Here
is the statement Of the brewers as to
their attitude in these cases which
was passed in the form Of declara-
tion or resolution at the last annual
meeting of the United States Brewers
Association: ''We also recognize.
that the maintenance of saloons in resi-
dent neighborhoods when they are not
desired by the residents is neither
profitable nor wise, as the antagonism
created by their presence involves
greater loss than the sales in such sa-
Icons make good, That is plain
II. u