Los Angeles herald., 1910-01-07
TheLiquorQ Question
City Should See That None of Its Laws
Works an InjuStice-RetaH Dealers
Subjected TO HardShipS by
Frontage Rules

exact compliance with every provision of law governing
the sale of liquor within its limits should be very careful
to see that of its laws framed to work an
injustice to the people of whom they demanding
respect for and compliance with these laws
1t is fact that at the present time the retail liquor
dealers of the city are subjected much hardship and
injustice of the requirements of the law regu
lang the front footage consent necessary to be obtained
before they can their businesses from place
to another upon the block The requirement of the
law present is that the consent of twohrds OF the
frontage on both sides of the street must be obtained
before change of location the block can be made by
liquor dealer. A requirement OF anything more than
500 would in opinion ali the necessities OF the
case as that would make it necessary to obtain some
frontage upon both sides of the street before change
from one side to the other could be made Reducing the
requirement to- say, $40 OF the total block frontage
would at the time reduce the possibility OF land
lords enforcing unjust demands for rental from liquor
dealer who his tenant has been done in many cases
in this CITY, There doubt that the law as it stands
has in many instances, been made engine OF great
imposition liquor dealers by some landlords. we
have knowledge OF instances where landlords have taken
advantage of the present requirements OF the law to en-
force rental charges against liquor dealing tenants sew
era hundred per in OF what they could have
obtained from any other class of tenants This wrong
full exacton might have been rendered impossible II the
tenant had been permitted change his location on the
block by securing consent Of say, $40 of the block
frontage in place of the wohirds each side now re-
quired Such change in the law would be in the IN
terest of Justice would not in judgment work any
wrong to any person property and should be made
Another regulation Of the liquor business required by
every consideration of right decency expediency and
nocv is that breweries and wholesale dealers should be
absolutely prevented from holding retail license The
owning of retail dram shop, licenses by DreWeries ana
wholesale dealers become such prolific source OF evil
that the matter has been taken by the legislatures OF
some states we'll by the awmakng bodies OF many
cities For many years the cities in the state of Missouri
suffered from this evil aggravated form on account
of the great wealth of the breweres in that state and
narticularv in the city of St Louis permitting them to
acquire and use large numbers of RETAIL or dram shop
licenses To do away with this evil the legislature OF the
state of Missouri 1907 adopted dram shop law con-
tanning the following provision:
"Section 2o9O a-No person, firm or corporation, or
agent empoye representative ol any person hrm OF
cornoration engaged in the manufacture OF malt OF spirit
uous liquors, the sale as to wholesaler or o9oer OF
malt or spirituous liquors, shall be licensed to keep
dram shop
Our own city has witnessed of the evils OF the
control of retail liquor licenses by breweres and whole
sale dealers and that these evils may be prevented Tor
the future any liquor legislation adopted by the counc
should contain provision absolutely preventing the
ownership of retail licenses by persons or corporations
engaged in either manufacturing or dealing as Whoe-
saers in malt or spruous liquors. or by agents or repre-
sentatives of such persons corporations In ordef 10
this effective, the DOarQ OF ponce
should be gwen the power to summon before tnen any
holder,of license and require him upon oath to an
er as TO whether or not he holds said license for his own
use or for the of any other person or corporation ana
every applicant for license should be compelled to he
written petition for the ver1hed by oath ana III
this petition he should be required to show hat ne mas
no interest in any brewery wholesale or ooong quor
business and does not represent any such interest,"
Furthermore and probably most important OF ALL the
law regulating the issuance OF licenses should De so
changed that every liquor license IN the city snail expire
with the end of the calendar year. the license 10 De re-
newed at the beginning OF the succeeding year upon dP
pcation and the holder of the license to be entitled TO
receive renewal of it, unless 1t should be made 10 appear
that bv his manner of conducting business under the II
cense he had shown himself unworthy of holding it.
IF everv holder of retail liquor license in the city
understood that once every twelve months 1t would be
the duty of public officials to investigate the manner IN
which he had conducted business under his license II
would he powerl incentive for liquor dealers to con-
duct their business in unobectonabe and aw-abdng
The Importance of limiting licenses to the term OF the
calendar wear which they are granted has been reco
nzed all over the world in legislation dealing with the
liquor business and in force in almost every city and
state in the Union except in own city 1t has been
the rule in the county for many years. ana II shouu DC
made the rule in this city.
We believe that the adoption of the regulations sug-
ested in this and the preceding articles would improve
the retail liquor business of the city of Los Angeles IN
every way and that persons engaged in that business
while bearing lust obligations imposed upon them, would
receive the protection to which they rghtfuly
titled under the law