Down With the Old, Up With the New

Down With the Old, Up With the New By J. B. Sumsion The Liquor License Act has been abolished by the good people of Ontario, Canada. And in its stead the Ontario Temperance Act has been firmly planted. More than three millions of people, after a hard and strenuous fight have come to a mutual understanding and by an overwhelming majority have consented to extirpate the whisky influence from this progressive province. On September 16, of this year, there were in the Province of Ontario approximately fourteen hundred saloons; of this number one hundred and fifty were in Toronto, not including fifty small shops. The internal revenue derived from the licensed saloon and from the sale of liquor amounted to $1,000,000 annually. Nevertheless, the people were willing to inaugurate the temperance law for the abolishment of the liquor traffic which has been estimated at one hundred and three millions of dollars. Mr. Eudo Saunders, the Provincial Secretary, stated in an interview, "There is no doubt but what prohibition will bring added success to the Province of Ontario, although we set aside our one million dollar income, we expect to get it back in other channels which are more respectable and legitimate. Even at this time, the results are noticeable." "The business men in general," said the Secretary, "are well pleased with the act; the money that used to go into the saloon goes now into the business houses. The men who are the head of the mining industry are especially pleased with the Temperance Act, as it has had a tendency to lessen the number of accidents." "In talking with the officials of the Provincial Government," Mr. Saunders said, "I am inclined to believe that they are in favor of this law, as it eliminates the obligation of the 'treat habit,' which is so characteristic of men in public office." In answer to the question as to what was considered the most essential element toward the success of the act, the Secretary replied: "We cannot afford to have a law and then have it winked at; as a rule when the liquor law is not working, the failure is due to the moral degeneracy of the officers. I have in mind a place in the states where the police were controlled by the liquor interests; that condition is impossible here because

DOWN WITH THE OLD, UP WITH THE NEW 129 of the quality of the officers. So you see," he continued, "we must be discreet in the choice of officers." The following figures will show the conditions prevailing today in the city as compared with this time last year: Arrests for drunkenness during week ending at midnight Sunday, September 26, 1915, 276. Arrests for drunkenness during week ending at midnight Sunday, September 24, 1916, 29. Reduction, 247. Arrests for all offenses during week ending at midnight Sunday, September 26, 1915, 912. Arrests for all offenses during week ending at midnight Sunday, September 24, 1916, 561. Reduction, 351. These figures show that offenses against the law in this city have been reduced three hundred and fifty-one, in one week. Drunks are very rare. There has been a great change for the better in matter of conduct, on the street cars, we are told by the officials. The officers say they were always bringing offenders into court, but now the condition has changed wonderfully as the rough element is gradually being discarded. When Toronto was "wet" the "drunk" was particularly obvious on those cars which traverse a particularly long route. The "drunk," with the intention of sobering up, would take a long trip to the beach; or a long ride on the Dundas car; or he would go round and round on the belt line. At the railway office they say it would be rather hard, at this early date, to give any figures to estimate the effect of prohibition on the volume of traffic. But they are of the opinion that the father and his family will spend more in the stores, and will travel more on the cars; as a result the car company will be materially benefited. What's going to happen to the Toronto jail farm is a problem that is perplexing some of the civic officials, now that prohibition is prohibiting. One month of the "dry" has cut down Superintendent Findlay's health resort, out at Thornhill, to a bare seventy-four men. It is almost impossible for the officials to get men out there to harvest the crop. Toronto has almost $500,000 invested in this well-meant enterprise, and the fear was actually expressed today, by one municipal expert, that the city might have to hire laborers to go to the jail farm to harvest the crops. It is a common thing to have 120 to 130 men at the farm. The record has been 150 and there is accommodation for 250. Incidentally, the change at the jail shows that Toronto is being rid of a lot of low down thieves, "lush-dips" they are sometimes called, who make a specialty of hanging around saloons and robbing intoxicated men when they get into the alleys or lanes. But now they have flown like birds of prey to other