Manchester Democrat. [volume] (Manchester, Iowa) 1875-1930, 1909-08-04
THE STORY OF AN ALCOHOL
SLAVE.
A., rCoIsl L.. rr:..n.,,


remarked to companion, 'If l ever
get chance to hit this damnable
business, I'll hit it good and hard"
In my humble way, nowise com.
parable to The immortal Lincoln's,
hope to jolt the alcohol liquor slave
business.
AT fourteen years of age develop.
owe of statistics, accounts, and
eeping. Since | was fifteen, ]
have kept an accurate account of my
expenditures in saloons, covering a
period from January 1, 1873, to April
~, 1905. The total debit balance of
my personal saloon account" for
thirty years is $17,364.6O. This amour
covers alcoholic beverages, mixed or
straight, purchased by me in saloons,
drug stores, blind pigs, bars, buffets,
cafes, restaurants, hotels, dining-cars,
steamers, and theatres. 1t also COW
ers slight losses at playing sa'oon
slot machines; losses at dice-shaking
| in saloons 70, drinks; losses at card
playing in saloons for drinks; one
gun hold-up in a saloon; three gun
hold-ups in saloon districts; and two
ckloral-hydrate robberies at saloon
| bars.
The Time | Have Spent in Bar-rooms.
| estimate that my drink-mates
bought fully as much alcoholic liquor
for me as | for them. l estimate
that saloon keepers and bartenders
have given me enough alcoholic drink
to offset my losses by the robberies
| have mentioned. Therefore my av-
erage daily saloon expense was S1.57
for every calendar day of the thirty
year period named. Reduced to
drinks, this is an average of more
than ten separate drinks of fifteen
cents drink per calendar day. The
reader will comprehend that l must
have spent considerable time in sa-
looms to have acquired this drinking
average.
My record shows that the total
time spent in buying drinks in eigh-
teen hundred and sixty saloons in
fifty-eight cities of nineteen States
was 1854 hours-l, 1863 days-nearly
four years.
My experience and observation for
period of twenty-nine years in the
United States leads me to believe
that saloon drinkers over forty years
of age are five per cent of the total
number; that drinkers between twen-
ty-one and thirty years of age are
thirty five per cent of the total
number; and that fifty per cent of
the total number of drinkres in sa-
looms are minors.
believe the so-called "best" peo-
pie of our saloon-licensing States are
not aware of the fact that drinkers
and drunkards are originally made by
illegal liquor-selling to minors. know
the perpetuation of the saloon bust
ness is based on minors forming the
habit of iquor-drinking at the earli-
est possible age. l know that cer-
tain saloonkeepers and bartenders
sell intoxicating liquors over their
bars to minors at the earliest
moment they can do SO without risk
ing legal prosecution.
T | wish to emphasize the fact that
/ have had the inclination, money,
time, and opportunity to observe sa-
loon patronage. from outside the
bar, for thirty years. Ordinary sa.
loonkeepers and bartenders consider
that person who pays an average
of forty cents day across the bar
is good customer" Consequently
| have been much praised many times
for many years. by my masters.
There's boy that always buys
when he has the price with him;
Jacks live wire; You're a Jim
dandy drinker, and always with the
COIN; Il wish | had hundred like
you these We're some of the COM
mandatory expressions that they used
concerning me.
Learning Saloon Life as Newsboy.
AT nine years of age l lived in
middle Western city that licensed one
hundred and eight saloons. Outside
of school hours l sold daily papers in
n f,.in A g.lt
horror of saloons, pity and fear for
drunkards, due to home and church
teaching. Darting in and out of sa-
looms selling papers, began to feel
a curiosity as to what peculiar quail
ity lurked in the liquids consumed by
saloon customers. l soon compre-
hended that saloon patrons lived
mentally in make-believe world 1t
tickled my sense of humor to see
grown-ups playing pool, billiards, and
cards with youthful zest, animation,
and noise. 1t was fun for me to lott
er a minute and watch saloon life.
Pool fascinated me, and longed for
the time to come when l should be
big enough to play.
Five years of keen-eyed observation
taught me that saloonkeepers and
bartenders were business men no diff
ferent. as individuals, from grocers;
and that the saloon drinker had to
look out for himself. noticed that
some drinkers drank themselves sod
den, quarrelsome, staggering, or nau-
seated, while other drinkers became
joyful and amiable.
My First Glass of Beer.
At fourteen years of age 1 drank
my first glass of beer in saloon in
the most natural way. Seeing me hot
and perspiring one summer afternoon,
saloonkeeper offered me glass of
bottled beer, saying, you're big
l Lat. 4. II