DAILY OAPITAIi JOURNAL, SALEM, OREGON, SATURDAY, JANUARY 1, 1010
PAGE FOUR
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A Business Man's Review of the Salem Plan
of Regulating the Liquor
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As an example of the Salem method of dealing with the I To the average business man and taxpayer the Salem
lawless saloon might be cited the following instance, I system of dealing with these problems is satisfactory because
Marion county and Salem, the capital city of Oregon,
have never fallen in with the prohibition theory of handling
the problems growing out of the liquor business,
The Salem plan of dealing with these problems is uni
que, original and progressive.
The City of Salem has today, with a population of about
20,000, only fifteen licensed saloons,
This is considerable 'ess than one saloon to the thousand
population.
Tiie license ordinance provide that there snail iijI be
more licenses issued than one to ifco thousand population,
By provision of the city charter saloons are confined to
a restricted business district, and no saloons whaever can
be established in the suburbs or residence part of the city,
While the city is three miles long and two miles wide the
saloon district is confned to a territory three blocks long and
two blocks wide,
The license ordinance provides that there shall be no
screens blinds, paint, or otierr covering on the front or side
windows higher than five feet above the sidewalk.
Inside the drinking saloon there are no screens, boxes,
partitions, or side rooms permitted,
Large signs at the entrance and over the bar proclaim
that no minors are permitted, whether attended by parents
or not.
No slot machines or gambling devices of any kind are
allowed,
Women are prohibited from frequenting the saloons un
der any circumstances,
Licenses are suspended for any infraction of the city or
dinance, and upon repetition are revoked.
A saloon keeper forfeiting his license cannot secure a re
newal in his own name, or in that of a barkeeper,
A saloon that becomes noted for being disorderly has its
license revoked and cannot again be opened as a saloon by
anyone,
This, places a responsibility upon the property owner,
and prevents running a saloon in violation of law by the prop
erty owner or tenant.
t The police department of the city extend no more pro
tection to saloon keepers than to any other citizen,
If they violate a city ordinance, the law is enforced
against them just as it would be against any law-breaker
without fear or favor,
Men showing any signs of intoxication on the streets of
Salem are arrested and taken to jail, no matter what their
station, As a matter of fact, an intoxicated man is a very
trare sight at Salem',
During the Cherry fair and State fair, when tens of
"thousands of people visit the capital city, with its open and
regulated saloons, the entire week will sometimes pass with
out a single arrest for drunkenness.
Strangers from other states comment upon the sobriety
of the people, and frequently say that Salem is the most or-.
deny and most sober community in the United States,
This condition is not the result of prohibton, but the pro
duct of license under stringent regulations,
A man came from California and rented a well-known
Salem saloon,
He proceeded to run an open house,' and . at times a
rough house,
Evidence was placed before the city councii ihat he al
lowed women of dissolute character to enter by the back
door,
His licen.se was revoked.
Friends of another saloon keeper put up the money to
buy out the fixtures and have a license issued to the new
man,
This proposition was refused by the city because the
new man was a "booze fighter" and not- considered a re
sponsible man to place in charge,
The premises were permanently closed as a saloon, and
have remained closed,
No license will be issued for a saloon in those premises,
The Salem plan is founded upon the idea that the re
tail liquor traffic should be in the hands of responsible par
ties, It is based upon the proposition that the community is
a sharer in the revenues as well as in the evils of the liquor
traffic, and that there is to be a maximum of the former,
while the latter is to be reduduced to a minimum without
depriving the citizen of his personal. liberty or invading the
social customs of the people.
If any better conditions' prevail in any city under prohib
ition or any other system it has not been discovered and
brought to our attention,
It will be seen from the above that the Salem plan of
handling the liquor traffic makes no provision directly for
dealing with the social vices, '
The Salem theory does not admit the hypothesis of pro
hibitionists that the liquor traffic is necessarily connected
with gambling degradation of youth, or social vice,
These problems have also been reduced to a minimum
in the capital city of Oregon.
Not thai there is no gambling or social vice, but that the
city in no way undertakes to' license or regulate those evils,
or in any manner to recognize them upon the same plane of
business, with the saloons,
There are no gambling places permitted in the salons,
or in connection with them.
There is some gambling in clubs and the back rooms of
cigar stores, but there are no places where money games are
permitted in such places,
There are minor gambling devices, such as throwing
dice for cigars, playing cards for chips, whatever they may
represent, but not in saloons,
The city government does not legalize recognize, or tol
erate professional gambling in any form, such as faro, poker
roulette or any other of the commoner forms of gambling.
If gambling is carried on for money to any extent it is
entirely without the knowledge of the police, without their
sanction or protection,
Botli the state law and the city laws are rigorously en
forced against gambling and gambling games as soon as dis
covered are ruthlessly broken up and prosecuted.
it is logical, easily understood ana founded upon good
sound business principles,
If there can be found a better way of dealing with these
problems the people of Salem are ready to investigate.
In conclusion, it will be seen that the Salem plan as
sumes that so long as there is a demand for the retail liquor
traffic well regulated places, where everyone who enters does
so in full view of the community, distributes the responsibil
ity where it properly belongs.
Men are not driven to practice in secret what they hon
estly believe as citizens they have a perfect right to enjoy,
and are willing to do open and above board before the world,
The Salem plan does not go to the extreme of robbing
the saloon of all its furniture and removing all the tables.
If the treating habit is a pernicious evil as many per
sons hold it to be, it is far better that saloons be furnished
with comfortable chairs andtables, where men can sit down
and visit while they have their drink,
To force all consumers of beverage to stand up to a bar
or else go without is a serious mistake in the regulation of
the liquor traffic.
The German custom of each man buying his own drink
and sitting down to a table in social converse is 'far less
injurious than the American plan of standing up to a bar and
literally pouring down the liquor by the glassful, one man
treating after another,
There is such a thing as ifnodjerate drinking, and the
equipment of a saloon should be such as to encourage that
rather than intemperance. t
Laws that are framed to remove all furniture from sa
loons are certainly helps to intemperance, and really in the
interest of the unregulated liquor traffic,
The Salem plan' of regulated, licensed saloons is pro
ductive of far better results than any such iron-clad regu
lations that only drive men to drink more than they really
want to.
The City of Salem collects a saloon license of $600 a
year, payable semi-annually, which is not transferable, with
out a new bond and action of the city council, and no
money refunded in case a saloon goes out of business or
has its license revoked,
Salem saloons are not permitted to be open on Sunday,
nor after midnight.
In justice to the representatives of the liquor traffic it
should be stated that they have been helpful in bringing
about the conditions that prevail at Salem and assisted in
framing the regulations under which they are carrying on the
business,
They voluntarily have adopted the custom of posting
the names of drunkards and refuse to sell to such persons,
and even cut out men, in co-operation with the police depart
ment, who are inclined to squander money needed by the fam
ily for its support.
The saloon men of Salem are all men of families and en
joy the general respect and confidence of well-thinking and
conservative people,
Skyscrapers Invade the Peerless
Metropolis of the Willamette Valley
Tho 11 rut class A stool mul roln
forood onnoroto fire proof business
block In Siilom wns orootod tlw past
year by tho Northwest Hrldgo
"Works of Portland. Tho plan mul
npocltlcntlons of thin building wore
drawn by Frod A. l.ogg, the Salom
architect.
This is a Htuol mul brlok building
of the boat known type of construc
tion on concrete foundations with
reinforced footings. Tho partition
wiUIb nro of tllo, tho Hour nro of
oonorste, and tho whole live stories
nro fnoud with beautiful cream
pressed brick nindo by tho Piusllle
Vnoe Urlok Co,, of Portland. , There
U a largo basement oxtondlng on
thvly undor U tho sldownlk Bpnoo
on Statu u ml Conunorolul BtrootB.
Them Ik nn oluotrlo olovivtor. and
wide, own Htuol stairways with oak
ml.
Tio well-lighted basement Is
equipped with h hydraulic sidewalk
olovatOr and a atoam heating plant
that itutH Htenm limit and hot and
uolcl vator Into ovory room on oneh
floor. All the ollloe rooms and
suites nro equipped with oleotrlo ami
' wis fixture mul nil the wiring of
tho building Is carried in conduits
surrounded by oonoroto.
The bank apartments are furnish
d la very lioavy Hngllah-velned
Italian marble .and . solid mahogany.
The ivorlc ollloes In the bank are
surrounded by gold plntod stool
ratlings and oqulppod with honvy
furiflturo. Thoro Ir a bonutlful Di
rector's room with lochtora and toU
lota for tho employ oh. Thoro la an
elognnt olllco connected with tho
doposlt vnulta and a ladles' watting
room all furntahod In mahogany
very highly polUh'ed.
Thoro aro three vaults In tho
bank, two lire proof and one burglar
proof, coating upwards of $12,000.
Tho later la of tho Moslor pattern,
hoavy chromo steol Riirrounded by
twonty-throo tons of stool railroad
rails, bedded In ooncroto and Inter
loakod nt tho corners. Tho safety
vault department la equipped with
private counting rooms.
ThV four stories of ofllco rooms
nbovo tho main tloor are finished In
Orogon fir, stained to bring out tho
natural grain. All tho hallways nro
laid In moHiilc tllo of a bountiful
pattorn. All the rooms aro equipped
with basins. Thoiv are toilets for
men and women on ooh lloor. Tho
windows of tho on tiro building are
of plato glass with tho partitions
lighted by prism glass. All the out
side oxposuros are covered with
wire plato.
Adjoining tho bank thoro Is a
meronntllo room 26x100 toot, which
will be used by a prominent retail
establishment. The people qf Salem
are Justly proud of their flrst steel
uuUdlng.
The building lot between tlio bank
building and the alley on State
street has been sold to 1). A. White
& Sons, for a line brlok building for
their feed and seed store now on
Commercial stivet whleh will be
built this coming year.
Greater Salem Movement Is On
in All Social and Commercial Clubs
Commltfaeos aro at work to raiso a
largor publicity fund thnn ovor pui
up hoforo to ndvvrtlso this olty bo
foro tho world.
Thoro Is n distinct movomont on
for a greater campaign for a Oroater
Salem, with n largor and moro com
prehensive organization back of it,
to promote publicity In a more offoc
tual and economical mannor for all
Interests concorned.
To obviate tho handicap of main
taining throe organizations, a move
ment has been started and is woll
undor way to consolidate tho Illlhee
Club, tho Hoard of Trade and tho
Huslnoss "Men's hongue, and purchase-
a proporty. have n conunerolnl
organization, with nt lonst 500 work
ing, active momhors, and start tho
campaign for n city of 50,00,0 by
1916.
That will bo going some, but ,t
will bo possible.
Tho keynote was sounded at tiro
annual mooting of the Hoard of
Trade, when Dr. II. C. Kploy de
clared tWe time had oomo for that
organization to have a moro commo
dious homo, and that It should be
made a cent or for social oontnot for
all business men and professional
men Interested In the growth and
development of the city.
At the ilrst meeting of the Hoard
of Governors a speolal committee
was named to consider tho question
of a new home for the Hoard of
Trade, and provision for a mad-day
lunclwon, composed of It. C. Hlshop.
J. It. Linn and M. O. Huren. who
are considering locations for a larg
er and better headquarters.
Seemingly, la the same spirit of
progrese. n special committee lias
boon at work to revlso tho constitu
tion and by-laws and articles of In
corporation of tho Illihoe Club,
which is a very conservative social
organization with a largo Income
from its various features of ?ntor
talnmont, and which closed tho
year's work with a grand New Year's
ball last night, which was attended
by the fashionable people of tho
city. With all Its largo Incomo and
ovr 100 members, the Illihoe Club
fools tho noed of advancement to
moot tho growing community, which
it sorvos in an admirable way, so n
spoclal committee was named by
President Gilbert to revise tho or
ganic laws, composed of E. P. Mc
Cornack, George G. Hlnghnm. C. L.
McNnry, J. A. Carson and W. H.
Hyrd. Thoy hnvo had sevoral meet
ings, and will report a sot of amend
ed by-laws and constitution at an
early mooting of tho club, looking to
enlarging its membership, and put
ting In a grill room, whoro mem
bers caa meet at least once n day
and have meals servod, as do all the
larger social clubs In Portland and
other places. It le likely that the
billiard room will be oxtonded to
the east and a dining hall added In
that direction.
Tho directors of tho Hlks lodgo
are H. W. Mejvrs. Govrgo K. Waters
and Frank Meredith, and that or
ganisation is anxious to sell the pres
ent Klks' building, and erect a tem
ple for their order, to cost from
$60,000 to $60,000. The Hlks lodge
would be glad to toll their present
building, and it would be admirably
adapted la many respects for a com
mercial headquarters wltk the social
features that are part of the clubs
elsewhere.
The
Engine
Is the Best All
Purpose Engine
For Prices Call On
Jiarry P. Chase
No. 101 Front St.
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POISAL & SHAW
General Grocery Store
We also carry a full line of cigars, tobacco, candy, paints,
drugs and stamps. Phono 76s
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