The Rock Island Argus and daily union. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1920-1923, 1922-10-17
0Il|Ee|s SPOTS
HIST VANISHING
||i||NROck ISLAND
S.ers d Property Taking Hint Of
C1versnsnt t. Change CAarac.
ters II Tenalts' Business.

c.merous good business loca-
~. are soon to be vacated by the
9scoas which now occupy them, in
S.s,r a other tenants. Work Of
~ ssderal government through
.ssral general and prohibition
.s.sts detailed to Rock Island Is
ssssSriur this about as the threat of
:sssction proceedings is held over
~ "a OF every owner of prop
- = which a saloon keeper who
IN bootlegging has his bust
- loused.
o.ietly, but effectively, the gov
..srent men have been going
.Iut the city the last few days,
.snmunicating with owners Of
ssooerties being used by saloons.
- owners are advised by the gov
.,rment men that the federal oper-
stiyes are considering closing for
m by injunction buildings in
rhich are located saloons where
yoAtions of the liquor laws have
besn found.
The ultimatum is then presented:
within reasonable length of time
~ character of the business car
led on in the property must be
changed. This means that the sa-
IONS must be ousted by property
owners themselves. If this is net
done, the agents show, federal in
junctions closing the properties for
one year may be expected.
Every property owner sees the
obvious advantage of losing re-
muneratiye tenant and having the
building vacant for just a short
time over losing revenue from his
place for an entire year. And
many of the property owners are
taking up the agents warnings and
serving notice to vacate on the pro-
prietors of the tenanting saloons.
Receive Big Rentals.
It a well known fact that own
ers Of property in which soft
drink parlors," as they are styled,
are contained, receive twice OF
three times the rental for their
property which they would get il
the places were occupied by more
legitimate enterprises. This TACT
follows what is regarded as an un-
failing axiom: That the "soft
drink parlor" is an absolute finan-
cial failure; that only those places
which sell home brew, hooch OF
other liquor can operate success
fully as soft drink parlors." Theil
returns under such regime, how
ever, are frequently very large.
In other words, bootlegging Is {
very remunerative business; sell
ing near beer and soda pop is /;
small success for very few stands
and blank failure for the rest. Tn,
federal men have the goods" OF
the majority of these places il
Rock Island. They are in posses
sion of property lists and renta
lists, showing big rents paid TO
some of the better downtown sa
loon stands. Partly as a result o
this. every saloon proprietor VIII,
has been convicted or even is abou
to be convicted of selling, trans
porting or making liquor will prob
ably be thrust out into the crue
world from his long-remunerativ'
business location.
In many cases the agents lear
upon interviewing owners that tn
tenants of the property have pai
their rent in advance, and ask wha
can be done. They are told tina
they should return the rent an
turn the tenants out, and the fac
is pointed out to them that this j
much more economical proceed
ing than closing Of the property 70
year would be.
Helping In Cleaning. =.
Public sentiment attacks thi
proposition from another angle. ]