Douglas Island news., 1916-07-21
SOMETHING WRONG

ueL 0pptdftU III JUledu paper lt'Vi'll
 Judge Brown has formulated pew saloon regula-
 tions which provide tbat an liquor sold and taken
 out ot saloons be registered and the names of
 the purchasers md tho amounts of the sales must
 be open to inspection by the marshal at all times
 Failure to follow these regulations will be made
 grounds for the revocation of licenses. The judge
 says saloons have license for retail sales only and
 not for the distribution ot liquor beyond their i'm
 mediate ycinities.
 LiQuor not be sold Go be taken Co Anchor
 age or other dry towus. An attempt Co evado the
 spirit of rules will licenses to be revoked
 Notwithstanding the fact that we believe in and advocate prohibition as the only solu- ton of the liquor question in Alaska our sense of fairness prompts us to-condemn the ruling of the Valdez judge, as set forth above, as being unjust and unfair to the sa- loon interests from whom the government takes money in return for license to do busi- ness. but after taking the money proceeds to fence and hedge the iceusee to such an ex- tent that it becomes practically impossible for him to do business under the license granted.
 To compel saloon licensee to keep a register and record the sale of all stock not consumed on the prcmises-a la poison sales at drug stores-is unjust to the man who pays the government Sl0OO per annum for doing du-iuess and unjust to the man who patronizcs him. By granting license the government authorizes and recognizes the liquor traffic. gives the licensee certain privileges which the same government after getting the money, proceeds to curtail and hedge in with arbitrary rulings until it be- comes difficult for the licensee to break even in the business he has paid a good round price for conducting.
 Again: Liquor must not be sold to be taken to Anchorage or other dry towns. " Another unfair restriction on the licensee who has paid for the privilege of conducting his business and one with which he is in no way prepared to comply. He must take the word of his customer and if that customer betrays his confidence and does take his purchase to Anchorage or other dry towns, % he whose confidence was so betrayed is in line to lose his license
 If the traffic in liquor is so reprehensible as to require the weaving around it of so much red tapc-Wing up the licensee so tightly that he is unable to make expenses after complying with all the red tape re- quiremcnts-it should be entirely suppressed and done away with But so long as the business i, recognized and licensed, so long as the money of the applicant for license is accepted just so long has the licensee cer- tain rights which should be respected He is licensed to do business and should be pro tected in that business, instead of horassed and worried by freak rules and regulations which, on the face, are nothing more than salve and soft soap for the temperance ele- ment that openly advocates eliminating the liquor traffic and doing without the money the government so greedily gathers i'm
 So long as saloons are licensed, they should be protected and permitted to carry on business without being enmeshed in red tape, tripped up by a thousand and one techucalities and smothered in bunk