The sun., 1916-12-17
STOCKHOLM ADOPTS
TO CURB DRINK
Swedish Council Renews Booze
Monopoly to System Com
pany for Three Years.
PASSBOOK PLAN SUCCESS
'.Bc Good or You'll Get No
Liquor Is the Slogan Of
All Retailers.
PASSBOOK PLAN SUCCESS
Correspondence Of Associated Press.

Correspondence Of Associated Press
STOCKHOLM. Dec. 1.-THE City Council
System Company the mo-
popoly In the sale Of liquors which that
has held the last three years.
organization contested for the
franchise. but the Council could see no
reason for making a change.
BY renewing the franchise the city
authorities have set the stamp of their
approval on n novel plan OF controlling
liquor consumption which was first In
troduced by the Stockholm company and
In the beginning gave the company n
unique position among the many "disin-
management companies that
have been In existence under the go
called "Gothenburg system" This plan.
briefly stated. involves "A system by
which those controlling the sale OF liquor
are enabled To say to the
BE good or you'll get no liquor"
DIR. lvan Bratt. a former physician, n
sociologist and student OF the drink
question. is the father Of the idea. who's
outstanding feature In the regulation of
the retail trade by means OF a p%assbook.
called in Swedish 'tmotbok."
old Method Dates From 1858.
The old methoh Of controlling the sale
OF liquor. already referred TO rs the
Gothenburg system. dates from 1855. IL
had as it's specifically Swedish feature
the monopoly In the trade which 1t ell
trusted to quasi-private companies. The
whole business in a definite area was
placed In the hands Of such a company.
whose profits were limited to a small
amount and which was. In the words OF
the old law. to sell liquor "in the inter-
es,s Of morality" Apart from their
power to restrict the total sales. how
ever. these companies had no way OF get
ting at the Individual who used liquor to
excess.
DR.. Brat. after long study OF The
matter. conceived h idea OF the pass
book as the best method OF selling
liquor "in the interest OF morality u
thing which he felt was not being
achieved under the old system. So he
organized the Stockholm System Com
pany-the Stockholm system Joint stock
Company. to give Il It's full name-and
secured the monopoly for the capital city
three years ago.
The mpan has authority 10 con
! duct all retail establishments for this
sale Of liquor to be drunk of the prem
Uses. bu: may also delegate this author
ity q private persons or companies
Some forty OF these sp-called or
licenses are thus held by persons Other
than the system company. but these vii
not he extended after the deaths OF iii,
present holders.
rasshooks for Decent Citizens.
Control Of sales NJ the on" places
IL effected by means Of the p~asshook re
ferred to. \ passhook IL ssued to AZ
| adult resident Of the city uIon applica
: ton, provided his or her record justine'
Il. The maintains an elab
oratc card index, in when ara listed no
only all persons to whom books have
been Issued or from whom they haN'
been withdrawn. but also all persons t.
whom. IL they apply. books will not b'
issued.
Books are not issued 90 habitua
drunkards, to persons who have bcci
arrested for drunkenness within "A yea
last past. 10 paupers or to persons VILE
have figured unplcasantly In police cour
records. \ man who has been a par
ticipant in n public brawl. for example
Is pretty sure to find. on applying for
p~assbook. that his record Is contained II
the index and that he can get no booli
~ Wv ''''
with the police. watches the newspaper
regularly for criminal news.
Conviction OF seriou crimes or q
drunkenness results in the withdrawal o
the ~passbook. Care also has to be take
to note all deaths in the city. other~ia,
said Dr. Brat In n talk with the Asso
ciated Press correspondent. Il has bee
the company's experience that about !
per cent. of all holders Of hooks kee
on drinking liquor until the close OF III
year follow ing their death"
Persons feeling themselves aggrieve
by the withdrawal or refusal OF IA pass
book may appeal 10 the state authorI
ties. but there have been only four q
five appeals during the compdny's exist
encc and none has succeeded.
Good for ~ Liters Of Liquor.
Until recently the ~passbooks author
Ted the purchase Of sixty liters c
spirits yearly. Of which not more tina
one-third OF n liter could be bougf
every two days, Owing to an enforcc
reduction in the distillation of spiri,
due to the necessity for conservin
Sweden's available supply Of breadstun
this amount has just been reduced I
forty-cight liters yearly. and a furthe
, reduction is probable.
No liquor can be imported into Swede
except through the respective comps
MES. A peculiar feature of the sit,
alton IL that the Stockholm company. Il
example, IL obliged TO import any Gel
tain brand of liquor desired by Il
holder OF Il pasSbook. All he has to d
H. to make due application and 'lepos
the money to cover costs. freight an
duty. Ri" company thcgeuion sccur,
i, the desired hraud, \ corrospondir
number OF coupons .s OF course drtachs
from the passbooN.
; II f. Dr. TRAITS plan eventually
eliminate entirely all private profits G
. sales of distilled liquors. The maxim
> established three years age will. instea
of being increased as the c!ty's popul;
ton increases, diminish gradually. an
1t IL hoped that II will some day be POI
sible to provide that no gain shall |
made on liquors by the holders of "oi
: licenses.