The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-12-10
TO ELIMINATE PRIVATE PROFIT

TO ELIMINATE PRIVATE PROFIT 1 It is pr. Bratt's plan eventually to l eliminate entirely all private profits on sales of distilled liquors. The maxima established three years ago will, in- stead of being increased as the city's population increases, diminish gradual ly, and it is hoped that it will some day be possible to provide that no gain l shall be made on liquors by the holders i of Ion" licenses.
 The Stockholm System company diff fers from an ordinary stock company in two important respects, namely, the manner in which the directors are ap- pointed and the Limitation of it's profits l One of the five directors is named by the state, two are chosen by the city council of Stockholm and the other 1 two by the shareholders The com panys capital is 100000 crowns, and the profits available for dividends may not exceed per cent on the capital, making only 10000 crowns available | for distribution to stockholders Di- rectors' salaries and the running ex- penses of the company-rent, pay of some 800 employees, etc.-are paid from gross receipts.
 All excess profits accrue to the state The municipalities, which prior to 1913, received them, now receive annual sub- sides. which diminish gradually and cease altogether in 1885.
 Statistics appear to establish Dr. Bratts claim that his idea has justified itself. In 1913, under the old system, 5,602,397 liters of distilled liquors mainly what the Swedes call "aquavit" a fiery brandy-were sold in Stock holm In 1915, despite the increased population and the great number of foreigners in the city, total sales sank 1 to 3.422,09 liters. Cases of chronic al- coholism reported by district physi- clans sank from 492 in 1909, 519 in 1912 and 492 in 1913 to SIS in 1914 and 173 in 1915. There were 537 cases of delirium tremens reported in 1912 and 625 in 1913;' in 1914 the number fell to 459 and went down to 36S the follow ing year. Arrests for drunkenness fell off from some 17,000 in each 1912 and 1913 to 11,S78 in 1914 and 11,323 in 1915. The number will be below 10000 this year, according to Dr. Bratt.
 Dr. Bratt himself is not tee-totaller, and does not strive for prohibition. There is, however, a very strong pro- hibition sentiment in Sweden. It's be- ginning dates dack to 1880, although the agitation begun then--which was largely due to an American crusade abated considerably after the passage of the liquor act of 1855 and did not l revive until the end of the '70s. Then aSaln the impulse came from America The International Order of Good Temp lars passed into Sweden in 1879, and now has nearly 25O0 senior and more than 1000 junior lodges. In addition literally dozens of temperance societies exist, with a total membership ap- preaching a half million. Tee-totallers |attached to dissenting religious bodies such as the Methodists and the Saliva tion Army swell this total.
 In 1909 joint convention of tenn perance bodies arranged for a vote on the question of prohibition. No less than 1,SS4,S77s men and women over IS years old--that is, more than 55 per cent of the total inhabitants of Sweden of or above that age-voted in it's fla vor. A royal temperance committee was appointed in November, 1911, to lprepare measure for local option and to deal with the question of prohibition The committee made it's recommenda- tions in 1914, but the Riksdag could not reach an agreement and the matter fell through.
 Indicative of the part played by Sweden in the prohibition movement is the fact that since 1905 the position of international Chief Templar has been filled by the Swede. Edward Waw- irinSkv