Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1911-09-02
THE LOCALIZED SALOON LEAVES
A SHINY SERPENT'S TRAIL.
Striking Testimony Of Business Man Who Is
F Familiar With Conditions Under Local
Option and Under Prohibition.

haoie 10 nave saloon, regardless Of
IT'S size. In a country town in Mass,.
chusetts. located near large city. the
sum OF $4,000 was paid for a license
ior saloon. which was located in a
Darn upon a farm, and as result alI
KINDS Of crime were committed in the
! town, including more than one muir
| der by roughs who came there from
the city and larger towns.
! Men of the better element come
more quickly under the saloon inf,u-
ehee in local option states. When
what is called good man is eieetel
to office people naturally expect n
great deal of him. but too often he Ia
sold beforehand. body and soul that he
may be elected. In order To- soc,,ra
| the votes of the liquor interests he IL
Obliged To give something In return
mayor was elected "a few years aco
| in an important city in "A local onti,,,
state. who was considered "A man az
high moral character and social stand
ing. He appointed a license commits
sion OF which a majority of the mem
bers were the selection Of a certain
brewery. which threw entirely the ap-
pointing of the local holders licenses
into the hands of that brewery.
i have seen parents IN Il giided ga
loon with the father 1T the bar hold
ing Il little child In his arms and feed
ing il with beer. IL liquor Is sold u
somebody's boy under o-lieense 1t ..aa
be traced back To the person who sold
il and he can be made to suffer under
the law. but, il under local option a city
votes license. the law protects tie
runshop and there Is no redress.
III we have license in the State of
Maine those who vote for it will be
voting to give the saloon man a chance
to get somebody's boy-and he will get
hm-for with the iegalized salosn
comes Il kitchen bar room. different
from the Maine Kitchen bar room.
THE effect OF the licensed saloon
upon the workingman will be to inflici
great injury upon them and their fapi-
lilies. The man who under no license
takes a drink noW and then will go on
a prolonged drunk instead. i know.
for | have seen them. just what viii
happen Their families. who under
no. license have been well kept will 20
ragged and hungry and the men viii
remain away from their work"
"Some of our coed oitizens are dis
gGsted with the way the law is being
enforced. why blame law? Why not
iinpeach the Ulcers who have sworn
to uphold the law. If the law is not
enforced theso men are violating the
oath Some of our citizens also say
lets turn the State over TO tie rum
interests and show how bad 1t viii
be, then people viii want to return to
State wide prohibition This Is a.
fearful delusicn, for the state OF
Maine once in the hands or the whole
sale liquor interests will remain -
for they haYe millions of dollars al
their command and the power to DO
it. ence turned over to rum. Decent
people who vote with the rum inter
ests will regret 1t as lang rs they i've
There is deplorablc i2nprair ~
the part of some of our resident voters
to the extent that they absolutely be-
lieye now that the wholesale liquor
intere SITS are in favor of Statewide
prohibition. They have not Weakened
to the fact that the rum interests are
moving heaven and earth to repeal
the law.
some Of our business men now do
ing good business. If license prevails.
will be sold out from their places OF
business II the liquor men want the
buildings. Rest assured the liquor ih-
terests have the money. III VIII coihe
from the wholesale brewers or the
wholesale liquor dealers association
and the business Iuen viii nave 10 va
cate.
"The rum interests say we are try
ing to drag the children into H. Ihis
they strongly object to BECAUSE they
want To drag them into the rum shops
/ later on and to some extent they Wh'
succeed. If the constitutional provision
| for prohibition is repealed ana as the
| local ruluseller Is not usually reput-
| able man and in many cases uoes NOT
own a cents worth of property. The
| business simply stands in his name
the money having been furnished oy
| the brewery or the Wholesaler VINO
sets him UP in business and whose
| pooGs he sells. In the open rum si4op
| thev run credit system which ~
/ paid by the habitual drlnker on pay
| dav, before the grocer and the doctor
are pajd in order that his credit VIII
| be good the following week
eDuripg a state campaign "A certain
| man deposited money In Il rum spnp
| to pay for rum to secure votes at tiie
| caucpa The man was deacon IN
tho church and when 1t became KNOWN
| those who had been his He long
friends deserted him and he WAS de-
lfeated. This is not a story picture but
| true to life and shows how local OPP
ton pollutes local politics,
Voters of the State of Maine, don't
cast your votes on Sept. ii to bring
such conditions into our good state!