Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - January 28, 1878, Winnipeg, Manitoba Is. 3, get. To site 8 ails Orry and provincial wows legislature. Saturday Jan. 20. The House met at 3 . Royal. Moved the second read i of the Bill act to regu Foft the Sale of intoxicating liquors. To id the object of the Bill was not to pro hit but to keep the Sale of what is admit 1 to to a social Ovil within reasonable e i he Only essential amendment to h former act3 Jurf that Tho Power to Issue Venses will be taken away from the Muni Ali ties and placed in the hands of a Board to be appointed annually. There will also be an inspector for the pro Nee any municipality can impose new o r penalties Over and above those pro feb Edythe act. Tho object of the Bill 6 moderate and reasonable and sought to protect society from the drunkard to pro f the inebriated from himself and to pro i it the wife and children from the Drunken husband and father. It was not expect a to make a Man More moral or More sober1 religion Only could do that but it was to protect against the social results of Ter Aperance. As Tho Law stood there was no doubt it was Good but the machinery vfl3 defective and the act sought to com Slete it so As to have the Law carried out More effectually. It would be made More elective by concentrating the Power in one Central authority. He intended when the House went into committee to move cer Tain amendments which would make the Law More perfect. It was not a now Law except Tho clause taking away from Tho municipalities the Power of granting Licen ses that providing for the appointment of a provincial inspector and that giving five of an applicant s Twenty near cat neighbors Power to prevent buy Man from obtaining a License. Tho clauses in the old act respecting the Sale of liquor to indians had been omitted from this Bill As it was found in the Dominion Laws on the subject that wore More stringent and perfect than the provincial statute. Tho act also provides that the License in Spector shall report annually to Tho government which report would be submitted to the legislature which would brine the Sale of liquor More immediately under the control of Tho House. The speaker then repeated his remarks in French. Or. Cowan said the act was a comprehensive one and was in fact a consolidation of nil the old statutes and he failed to see Why All the statutes could not be Consoli dated in manner instead of putting the country to the expense of a commission. He had not made up his mind whether to Vot Foror against the Bill. If it was Sim ply to limit the Sale of liquors in. Was undoubtedly a Good measure but if it did an injustice to any class of the Community it we not so Good. He objected to taking the control of licenses out of the hands of the municipalities. Or. Brows approved of the principle of the Bill but in committee he was going to oppose the of liquor in stores outside of Winnipeg. The stores Onesida of the City were As bad As the saloons in it. Lie thought the legislature should do All in its Power to curtail the evils of intemperance although it was contended by Many that hotels were a necessity which could not exist without the Sale of liquors. He would vote for the Bill. Or. Sutherland had expected to see some one opposed the Bill but was highly gratified that no one Imd seen fit to do so. The Temperance question was one which should not be approached As a party one hear Tho first thing that would kill it would be to have some political party Lay it Down As a Plank in then platform. This Bill which seeks to curtail the Sale of intoxicating liquors was a move in the right direction. It was More stringent than Tho former one. He was glad to see that no licenses were to be granted to saloons which ins Ead of the Sigu Saloon should be painted with the words the Broad Road to Des personally he was opposed to billiard tables Bowling alleys Ami the like is the were Only intended As decoys to drawn people into the nets. A Good Fea Ture in the Bill was that the inspector received his fee whether he reported favourably on the petition for License or not otherwise it would be a temptation which few men could resist to report favourably in order to get the fee. A License Bill could not in his opinion to too stringent. Or. endorsed everything said by the honorable member for Kildonan. By a careful comparison Between this act and the Crooks act of Ontario he had found that Tho present Bill was As nearly like the latter As possible considering the difference in the machinery in the two provinces. In Ontario there was a Board for each county appointed by the government and inde pendent of All municipal authorities. The Samo machinery was proposed in this Bill for this province As is now used in a county of Ontario it was a Good feature of the Bill to divest municipalities of the and Vest it in a body not affected by Public opinion. It was Only necessary to look around Winnipeg to see that it was not desirable to leave the Power in the hands of the municipalities. If the saloons Are an evil to the people of Winnipeg they Are More far reaching As the people outside of Lynn Peg who come into the City Are affected by them. It was impossible for the City to be As Independent As the Legisla Ture the government or the commissioners. He approved of the clauses for the Protection of minors. If any one were to walk up the streets of Winnipeg on a mild evening almost every Saloon he would hear a violin guitar or accordion and in two or three even 8 while around the doors Are groups of children of ail Ages listening to the music and watching what is going on inside. The Raturi result of such temptations is appear and needed no further remark. While be act contemplated taking the Power Way from the municipalities it was More than the former one at present Winnipeg pays to the government for every License granted whereas under the act the who1 e of the fees go into the c v Treasury and the corporation still had Liberty to raise the License fees higher if Council see fit so to do. A hoped that amendment proposed would tend to the 8lde of Stringency. A. Black said that the tendencies of the people of this country were fast gravitating of cards Temperance. At the second session Hia parliament an Effort was made by Piu to to facilitate Tho increase Ofsa Fis throughout the Laud and on that of 3 on the attempt was met by the most Ter mined opposition of the other Mem it was to be hoped that this feeling i not be suffered to die away and Asne Means towards that end this Bill would 0 doubt command the Hearty support of ;