Salt Lake Tribune | 1917-01-28 | Page 28 | Prohibition will Cut down Revenue

PROHIBITION WILL CUT DIMM REVENUE Estimate Made of Loss in the Event Legislature Passes Dry Bill. 4000 ARE DEPENDENT Small Army of Workers Will Be Obliged to Seek New Employment. ft is estimated that mora th.m 4000 persons arc dependent on the liquor .business in Salt Lake, and, with tho coming com-ing of prohibition in Utah within sii months J'roni now, this army of workers work-ers will have to seek new employment. "Figures have been compiled to show just what effect, the enactment of the dry law will have in this city on busi-nes-i . directlv and indirectly connected with the. traffic. There are 127 saloons in Salt Lake. They pay a saloon license of $15IK) each. The animal total is $1110,500. The ag-gre':tk- of other taxes on these saloons is ijilOJli. There aro thirty, eight drug stores holding liquor license and they pay $400 each, aggregating $1.1,200. There are twelve wholesale liquor houses which pay $400 each, aggregating aggregat-ing $4800. There aro two breweries which pay an aggregate license of $27oO. There aro eight clubs which pay an aggregate of $;2o0. The aggregate of these licenses is $217,4150. Losses of Railroads. The Oregon Short Line estimates that it derives revenues from the liquor business busi-ness (annuallv) as follows: Beer, $65,-Ooo; $65,-Ooo; whiskv," $90,000; molt, etc., $50,-000, $50,-000, making a total of $205,000. The ilio Grande estimate is approximately the same, $205,000. This makes the total for railroads $410,000. The two breweries, taken together, have a total of 350 emplovees. Their pay roll is $100,000 a year. 'Their plants are worth $1.000,000,' and there will be a loss of $750,000 on the plants in the event of prohibition. Most of the employees em-ployees aro married and many of them own their own homes. It is estimated that the employees and their families number from 1000 to 1400 persons. Saloon dependents are estimated at 2000 to nooo. The Anheuser-Busch "bottling works has a force of ten men and its annual pay roll is $15,000. Its property is valued at $15,000. Loss on property will be about $10,000 in case of prohibition. prohibi-tion. Tt pays an annual license of $400. Letup's bottling works has a force of ten men and its pay roll is $12,000 a year. Its property is valued at $7500 and it would lose $5000 in case of prohibition. pro-hibition. It pavs an annual license of $400. Home Other Results. The express companies say they are unable to make an estitnato of their losses in case of prohibition. In the 127 saloons there are more than 500 (some say 750) employees who will have to 6eek othor work. Unless the buildings are rented there will be 127 vacant structures on the hands of landlords when prohibition comes. In the business district in Salt Lake there are an even 100 saloons. This district embraces both sides of State street from Fourth South to First South, and both sides of Main and West Temple Tem-ple between the same streets. Also embraces em-braces both sides of First South, Second Sec-ond South, Third South, Fourth South and Fifth South, between State and "West Temple streets. The estimated monthlv rental is $15,400. The annual rental $1S4,000. Outside of the business district there are twenty-seven saloons, the average monthlv rental is estimated to aggregate aggre-gate $1550 a month, or $16,200 a year.