Evening star., 1933-10-22
WISCONSIN, INDIANA
AND ILLINOIS LACK
LAWS FOR CONTROL
Milwaukee Barmaids Form
Ur;on and Seek Increase
in Wages.
BY RUTHWELL DUNCAN.

Special Dispatch to The Star.
CHICAGO. October 21-The i'm
pending return of Intoxicating liquor
through the repeal of the eighteenth
amendment is having varied effect in
the Middle West State governments
which have been caught unawares with
the speedy adoption of the act nullify-
ing prohibition are becoming panicky
at the realization that they have no
laws for the control of the sale of
Luuor.
Illinois has a commission which has
been conducting hearings on an ex-
tended scale and which claims it will
have program of legislation ready for
consideration before the thirty-sixth
State has ratified the abolition Of the
eighteenth amendment. But making
proposal and getting it adopted by
politically minded Legislature are two
separate things as far apart as the two
poles AS things stand now. and as
they likely to stand for some weeks
after repeal, it will BE- as legal to sell
whiskey at what Chicago likes to call
the worlds busiest corner State and
Madison streets as to sell shoe strings
or ice cream sodas. Beer can be SOLD
anywhere and everywhere, and indica
tions are the same will go for intoXi-
Cants.
Lack of Unity on Policy.
Various interests involved directly or
indirectly in marketing liquors are pull
ing at various angles. according to their
interests There is utter lack of unity
as to what policy should prevail. Profits
rather than a desirable system Of con-
troll are the rnotivating impulse appar-
entity. Brewers wish the tax lowered
on beer ard made all but prohibitive
On whiskey and hard drinks: distillers
wish a small tax on the latter. with no
restrictions as to sale or manner of
consumption. whether on the premises
or at home; while druggists demand
that intoXicants be sold legally in sealed
packages. for consumption away from
the place of purchase. with drug stores
as the sole dispensaries
Wisconsin. alcng with Indiana and
illinois. has wiped out all its State re-
strictions. so that the three States face
the dilemma of rushing through con-
troll acts in their Legislatures or take the
deluge as it comes. Meantime there is
slump in home brewing and wine
making In Milwaukee the decrease is
estimated at 80 to so per cent, judged
by the sale of grapes. Last year six
fruit boats were operating between the
Michigan vineyard section and Milwau-
ME-, CdIl lLS SlSdG lOduS VI SIdptS,
mostly for wine making Now only four
are operating at about half capacity.
Barmaids' Union Formed.
Also there is a furious debate going
On as to the propriety of employing
barnaids in the new taverns or sa-
looms springing up on every corner. In
Milwaukee the tavern girls have formed
a barmaids' union ito better the con-
Gitions of barmaids" by increasing their
-ninimum pay to Sl2 per week. The
treasurer, Irene johnson, insists that
500 girls are working as barmaids in
Milwaukee taverns. averaging about So
a week each. They ask for licenses so
they can stand behind the bar.
In different cities in this region sales
CT milk are steadily decreasing, attrib-
uted by dairies to increased sales Of
beer. and consumption of ice cream has
gone away down. Soda fountains show
a loss of trade and many attendants are
looking for jobs. Corner locations for
saloons are rising in value. Chicago
alCne has at least 5000 of the So-called
taverns, nearly all screened, all selling
beer and most of them hard liquor on
the side. Before prohibition the num-
Der of saloons was around 5000 or 1000
with minimum city license of $1,000
per year.