The Chapel Hill weekly., 1959-01-22
Letter to Editor

To the Editor:
Please allow some comments on
the forthcoming vote on A.B.C.
stores in Orange County.
/. 1t seems obvious that making
liquor more available can only
make it more plentiful. For our
college people it can and probably
will increase the present regret
table amount of drinking. For our
high school youth there will be
the temptation to pose as a legal
age to purchase it.
2. Our schools do need more
adequate support. But are we. so
poor that we cannot find respect
able means for educating our
children? Income from thas which
ruins so many homes is Nardly
in keeping with the education of
little children. | have heard one
father say, Il had rather have
my taxes increased somewhat
One of our school men asks, How
do we know that schools will get
Imuch-if any-of the money! apd
a teacher in one of our elemen-
Itary schools says, Il had rather
take less salary than see liquor
stores in our town where my pu-
pills and my sons are growing
up"
3. Extra revenue for other coun-
Ity agencies is also desir able But
let us take the long view. 1t has
been estimated that the county
derive $4,000 in the first year
from AB.C. stores. The News
Leader even suggests SIS, 600 after
they have gotten started, But let
US look further and make some
comparisons based on the ex-
perience of other areas. In l943,
a special commission was ap'
pointed in Massachusetts to study
the relative income from liquor
and the cost to the state from dam
age caused by 1t, including the
cost of arrests, prosecution and
prison care OF offenders, care OF
alcoholics in mental institutions,
and of dependents, Revenue de
rived from liquor that year came
to $lS, l39, ,926.79. Damages wrought
by liquor came TO more. than
$61 900, 10000. Judge Joseph /
ZOttoli, commenting on this re
port said, For every dollar col
lected in taxes for liquor the state
expends at least five times as
much to salvage the breakagt
caused in the social fabric" In
Fresno, California in recent year
the city received $l68,0O0OO in
liquor license fees, while alcoh0
lie included expenses were $4S8,
O0O.O0.
As C. Aubrey Hearn of the
Christian Life Commission of the
Southern Baptist Convention, anc
authority for the above figures
says, Liquor is not a real source
OF revenue. II is instead a source
of crime, i'll health, absentee-lsn
bad citizenship, juvenile delln
quency, corruption in government
broken homes, want, suffering.
4. Will legalized liquor great!
reduce bOOtlegging? Law en-
forcement officers with whom WI
have talked say not: Those whit
want cheap Whiskey are going Il
get it anyway, either to avolt
taxes or after the stores are clos
ed And it is well known tina
legal liquor is b00tlegged OF
the week ends regardless of Wher'
the stores are located. Putting
store in or near Chapel Hill vii
only make it easier for this grOuI
of law-breakers. We are promised
that the A.B.C. system will pro
vide additional laW-enforcemen
officers to help our police force
No doubt they will be needed.
5 Many church people, gOot
Christian citizens are perplexet
about this vote. Did not Chris
provide wine for the wedding
feast?" we ask ourselves. WAS no
wine, used temperately, accepted
in Bible times?" Yes, but wha
was this wine? Most certainly i
was not distilled spirits. For ac
cording to DR.. Clifford Earle o
the Presbyterian Church in tn
United States in his book, Alcoho