The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-02-01
WATER WAGON COMPANY
 GOES INTO BANKRUPTCY
Blind Tiger Route Doing a Prosper ' ous Business.
tSy Far. the Greatest Censumptio. -es Liauor. is in the Fifty ode se- eiaI Clubs of Birmingham With UnIimited Mem-
 bership.
BY CHAs. L. HAROLD.

t
 birmingham. Jan. so.---tspeciaL)--l with many hurrahs and loud demon- strations the Birmingham Water Wa Igon Company Limited. started on it's .tznomentous journey January I. 1908
 There was big crush of passengers to get aboard. For a while it seemed Ishere would not be room for all. The soliciting passenger agents. named Ehere the Law and Order League, had gone through an industrious campaign The 1908 Special was heraided as thel most magnificent. effort in the history lof time. to haulSthe red-nosed and the .yubicund to the. haven of peace and prosperity and steer all classes. clear of evil anJ It's consequences.y
 All this signalized the coming of tprohibition to Jefferson county and Bir- mingham Is a great part of the county. Whatever would be done here, would be Typical of the whole county. It was a big and dapper wagon, advertised as fully able to accommodate all classes. tt1 promised to never shy at the blind ti- Rer' cross roads and to deliver Its bur den of humanity safe at home at nights, Co rob the Demon Rum of its siren charms and dlssipate the immoral clouds which were looking very, very bad in these parts.
 As time passed, as the work of the soliciting passenger agents relaxed, as the blind tiger geni began their hein-I uus doings the lustrous sides of the AppoIinaris Chariot began to lose In ettractiveness. there were scratches Of the paint and it's general movement was impaired. The scratches were raused by well-intentioned passengers nlIding of the chariot. The business of the water wagon line began to fall off The driver was doing hts part 4he soliciting agents were still busy bnt not quite so busy as at nrsts. and the men actually hauled during the month, showed less than the month.
 The blind tiger route was claiming mora of the water wagon converts They sprang up on avery side. did thsss saiTophied animals of qlss sss, The Ssg5scers of the law who are Instructed fo keep ehe tracks of the Appolinaris Chariot in ship shape, found things growing more difficult as time passed.
 To be plain, prohibition was not pro hibiting It is not prohibiting now in .4hfs Magic City of Coal and Iron, where s.ary" verdict was given in October. 1907, to take effect the following Jan uary i. The discouraging phase of the conditions is that prohibition is prohibiting less as the days ron round. At first the measure of prohibition seemed to be on the basis of mans in- RCnulLy. IH0 LAW anu OEAGt A4tG4RuE was once a powerful factor in the en- 'forcement of the statute. Their ef- forts were at first spectacular, won the name of fanatics for the members. Nevertheless the most enraged antfs must have been convinced that if pro- ihibition in the early months of 1908 was. not prohibiting, 1t was nearly do- dng so
 But while the violations of prohibI- Gion early in 1908 depended in a large degree upon the investive power of the sellers, it Is less so now. The neces- sity to go out of the way to get a drink fin this city is diminishing with time. When at first the fear of being Taided by deputies or police prodded by the Law and Order League kept the fs'toper" obedient. such fear exists but little at present. Although 1t is charg- ed by the antis that the League Is fIr- ans spoilers, the viOlators are feeling more secure daily. The walls wnicI, surround the social clubs are no thick er than they used to be. The doors are no more fortified than to begin with It seems to be 8 toleration of the blind tiger in his protean forms grow ling in number. growing in openness and almost soliciting in the search for profit
 Hotel POrtera.
 One of the forms of the bliAd tiger kss the hotel porter. A strange guest was Approached this morning and as his breath told tales of good souse, he was asked where he got the soakings He told without concealment.
 'T registered at the hotel last night at 10 o'clock. It is one of the leading hotels of Birmingham" he began. "Af- Ner the nights rest. felt thirsty. The more thought how thirsty was. the more deplored the blessings of prohi- bition. was a stranger in the city e of the clerks. and of course I had no Ifriends among the porters.
 "Y thought would take long shot. Non examination found that I, had a se- were cold. Surely could justify myself i9or doing anything to break up that Ieoid. I rang the bell. The porter re- taponded, asked the negro to help me out of a difficulty. I asked him 10 Wei me a drink He smiled and safi ne could get me half pint. I told him to hurry and get it. Tn five min I,,fes he was back with the half pint for which I gave him DO cents.
 And the guest did not stop until he thad done away with the half pint. He lrouId not get the booze in less quan- Ieitv. It is the minimum sale in the hotels And it may be just to say just here that rarely is there a sale of drink tesIpposed to be done without his Knowledge. The porters are said to be doing the business on their own hook. They keep 1t in iced tubs in a tsecret part of the building: There Is no law holding the proprietor of a ~ place responsible for such violations ETe cannot be arrested even if the 9lrinir is found stored on his premises. 'y Only the man who Is proven to have made the sale is liable. The porters EiRnifcantly do not go to jail but make ready bond and pay om their mes with unusual show Of coin.
 By far the greatest consumption of aiduors is in the fifty odd social clubs of Jefferson County of which about half hre in Birmingham. Nearly every day kvitnesses the organization of social or iIterary clubs for which charters are issued by the Probate Judge in ac- cordance with a section of the new State Code ostensibly for the pro N notion of literary and social advance Tnent," the membership has but one idea, of course. and that Is to secure a place of easy access in which to drink his fill of rye and beer. Al first