Year: 1877

OCTOBER 4, 49,
the tippler who drinks by himself is victimized
to the extent of two and half cents, which
is clear gain above former profits for the
barkeeper.


ABOLITION OF THE "sLATE."


One Of the immediate effects of the register
was the abolition of the credit system by the
barkeepers. However willing they were to
risk the loss of their liquors by "charging,"
they are decidedly unwilling to pay the
State tax upon drinks for which they might
eventually receive nothing Hence the ira:
dtional "old score" and the modern "slate"
are no longer institutions in the whisky shops
of Richmond. Every man has now to pay as
he goes, and the bartender takes good care
not to touch the crank for the purpose Of
registering until he has received his pay in the
coin or currency of the country.


POPULAR SENTIMENT.


1t is fair to say that public sentiment to-.
day is largely in favor of the Moffet liquor
law. The custom of one or two Of the saloons
has slightly decreased within the past day or
two, but not to such an extent as to warrant
the idea that the register is the cause. The
small advance in the prices does not interfere
with regular or even irregular drinkers. 1t
is only topers of the lowest type who grumble,
and to these can be added the class who do
not always have ready cash in their pockets,
and who have been in the habit of having
their drinks charged. For these the register
is inconvenient, and hence they condemn it /;
but the great majority of the patrons of sa-
looms are heartily in favor of it. Everybody,
including its opponents, comedies that, as a
source of revenue, it is one of the best ever
devised, and if the law is properly enforced,
there is no doubt that it will eventually be
one of the most effective.


THE OPPOSITION.


The opposition to the register comes mainly
from the saloon keepers, who fail to conceal
their bitter sntagonism toward it. Several Of
them protested against its introduction into
their saloons others saw it fastened to their
counters without word, but with the most
bitter feeling, and still others smilingly and
gracefully yielded to the inevitable, and re-
ceived the little boxes with the tell.tale dials
with the reluctant expression:


"I'm satisfied if everybody else is. The tax
don't come out of my pocket"


It is still the intention of the liquor deal.
ers to fight the Mofet law in the courts on
the ground that it is unconstitutional, and,
failing in this, to carry the war into the next
Legislature. Already, there are number of
candidates for that body who expect to be
elected on the ground of their opposition to
the Mofet register.


WHAT THE DEALERS SAY.


When questioned as to their objections, the
liquor dealers fail to advance any reasonable
argument, except that they have no right to
be made tax collectors for the State of Vir-
ginia. So lar the register has not interfered
with their regular receipts. 1t has rather in
creased them in some instances, and in only
one or two very obscure instances have1 heard
of any decrease.


II hate to turn the damned crank" said
one barkeeper to me ''it looks as if it was
put there to keep you from stealing your
taxes" ..


Said another Everybody that comes in
has to look at that register, and then they be-
gin to count how many drinks you have sold,
and make calculations as to how much busi-
ness you do and what taxes you pay. Now
that's all very annoying to me. The State
has no right to make an exposure Of my busi-
ness"


A third said 1T often interferes with my
business. When have rush, as is frequent
ly the case, it is as much as can do to COL
lect money and make change, and having to
stop every moment to turn that crank delays
me and loses me both money and custom.
Why can't the State furnish an engineer to
work it as well as the machine? 1 certainly
have neither the time nor inclination. l re-
gard it as nuisance and great impediment
to my business" These comprise the main
objections of the saloon keepers which with
time will soon wear away, though there may
be something in some of them.


EvADING THE LAWS.


How to beat the register is now the problem
that engages the attention of many scientific
minds employed in the barkeeping business.
Before the use of the register it was easy to
"knock down" on the boss, but now that cant
be done, as the little dials on the face of the
register tell to drink the amount of cash
that has been taken in. In this way the little
box is a saving to the saloon keeper, as it
serves as check upon his bartenders. While
Richmond has less dishonest bartenders than
any other city in the Union, nevertheless, as
1 said before, the problem Of the hour is how
to beat the register. Various devices have
been suggested, but none have met with sue.
cess so far, as I am informed, except one, and
the genius who invented this is not a barten-
der. He came into saloon this morning,
not far from where write, and after assuring
the proprietor that he would pay half a cent
for every movement made upon the dial of the
register, he took the crank in his hand, and,
by some extraordinary manipulation, and
without at all tampering with the register,
made revolution after revolution, sounding the
gong in the inside each time, but without
single movement of the hands upon the dials,
where the drinks are registered by numbers.
This surprised everybody who witnessed the
operation, but the modus operandi still re.
mains mystery.


WHAT Is EXPECTED.


What the register is expected to do is given
in the following estimate: Last year the whole
amount paid by all the liquor merchants Of
the State into the treasury was $4,000.
Richmond liquor merchants paid s37 900.
Say that man sells per day sixty drinks Of
spirituous liquors, (tax on same $1.5O) or for.
ty drinks spirituous liquors and one hundred
of malt (tax on the two $1.50) his tax per
annum ($1.50x365) would be $54S. Three
hundred and fifty dealers, averaging that


lxo fatal &c Q1O1 S0l