FANATICAL LEGISLATION.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1264, 21 May 1896, Page 39

FANATICAL LEGISLATION.

New Yokic, March 28,

In domestic, as in foreign affairs, there has been lately a good deal of adventurous, and in some cases, possibly, unwise activity. Here, in the great State of New York, we are looking forward with not a little apprehension to tbe possible consequences of a new exciso law, which, after a bitter struggle, has been passed by both Houses of tho Legislature and signed by tho Governor. The saloon-keepers have themselves mainly to blamo for it, for at Hie last election they formally by resolution arrayed themselves against the Republican party, and were then beaten by 60,000 majority. Still, the law seems to sober-minded people to pass far beyond the due limits of partisanship. The control of exciso matters is taken away from local boards, and is vested in a State commissioner, appointed by tho Governor. The rate of annual license is raised from a maximum of 250d015. in Now York city to a fixed fee of SOOdols. C’lubi of all kinds, oven the Union and tho Metropolitan, must, like common saloons, take out a license, and must put a copy of it conspicuously in one of their front windows. Selling on Sunday, cither in saloons or clubs, even of a bottle of beer with a dinner is strictly forbidden ; and a minimum penalty fora proved breach of tho law is a loss of tho license and a fine of double tho amount (1600dols), together with a term of imprisonment for the seller, in tho discretion of the Court, of not less than a day nor more than a year. Mere restaurants cannot serve wine or beer on Sunday even though licensed; nor can an hotel serve to other than registered guests. No license can issue to premises other than hotels that aro within 200 ft of a school or church; nor even then if moro than a third of tho owners of property within 200 ft of them enter a protest. Some of these provisions may perhaps bo modified in a supplementary Bill, but only if the persons seeking relief apply to the Legislature with due humility. Who shall dare henceforth to say that the spirit of tho Puritan is dead ? At least half of the 8000 saloons in New York will bo swept out of existence at a stroke, and as nearly all of these are practically owned by the brewers under chattel mortgages tho loss to the latter will be at least 5,000,000d0ls —probably nearly double that sum. Is it to be wondered at that in order to pass the Bill the Speaker was compelled to order the doors of the Chamber locked ? Ex-State officials find some other privileged persons ordinarily have the right of the floor, and it was feared, probably with justice, that somo of these would assail weak-kneed members with irresistible promises of pelf. But, powerful and wealthy as were the interests attacked, there was not a single legislator who turned traitor to his pledge to tho caucus—a striking proof that tho sense of fidelity to the “organisation,” which is almost the first thing that an American boy now learns at school, is steadily growing keener and stronger.

A Draconian statute of this sort, suddenly imposed upon the twin cities of New York and Brooklyn, with 3,000,0000 f inhabitants, is an experiment such as few despotisms would ho bold enough to attempt:. But the Legislature knew perfectly well that a numerous minority oven in the cities was in favour of tho rigid observance of tho Sabbath ; and outsido the cities tho peoplo of the State aro almost unanimously of the same way of thinking. And in this matter of repressing saloons New York is simply following the general trend of legislation all over tho Union. Massachusetts now charges a license feo in the city of 2000dols annually ; Michigan, Minnesota and Nebraska charge minimum foes of lUOOdol.s; in somo other States there is either general prohibition by a statuto or partial prohibition under the working of local option laws, and there is not one of them which does not treat liquor-selling as an extra-hazardous business. Everywhere, too, tho victory of compulsory temperance is progressive; it is only in very rare cases that a locality that has onco declared for repression takes a backward step. The statistics of consumption, however, show that tho habit of drinking is by no means repressed in tho same ratio as tho number of saloons; in Philadelphia there are only one-fourth as many bar-rooms as there were five years ago, but people still drink about twothirds iis much as before. The New York excise law suddenly ruins thousands of men engaged in a business which has hitherto been legal. Correspondence Sydney Morning Herald.