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Show uu LONGER HOURS FOR THE SALOONS OF SALT LAKE A plea for long hours to be granted the saloons comes from Salt Lake City, as reproduced from one of the morning papers, as follows The bill proposing c'nnngcs in the luiuor law. as it affects Salt Lake and Ogden, is expected In the house todaj or tomorrow The livjuor dealers of Salt Lake have three amendments offer to the present law. The first of these Is that the slate statute be so altered as to give the city commissioners commis-sioners the power to regulate the hours of closing saloons The state law now specifies Hint the closing hour in flr6t and second clns9 cities shall not be later ihan 12 oclock in o'.her places 10 oclock Is the limit. a Salt hake and Ogden are the only first class and second class cities thai are "wet" those two places are the only ones affected. It is understood that the retail liquor dealers here want to extend the closing hour to 1 o'clock It Is un dertood, moreover, thai such extension exten-sion Is satisfactory to the city commissioners com-missioners and to the chief of police. Many reasons are given by the saloon men why they should be permitted to keep open till 1 o'clock One of them is that persons who attend the theaters like a little refreshment re-freshment afterwards over which to discuss ihe merits of the play, and that they hucn't sufficient time to settle a dramatic argument by as early ear-ly as 12 o'clock. Another reason ob mining in Salt Lake Is that "the last car" lea' es at 1 o'clock ami a good many men like to wait for It in congenial con-genial company and under pleasant conditions. It is the testimony of the authorities authori-ties thai the saloon men of Salt Lake have shown a complete willingness to observe the law strictly and thai there has been it universal compliance with every regulation regarding closing hours. Sunday closing and In respect to supplying liquor to minors. In view Of these fans, the authorities. It Is understood are willing to give them ID additional hour of business The fact Is also taken Into consideration consid-eration that the saloon license is high, and that saloons are no longer resort ng to n breaking of the laws to In 'rease their income. There Is the--,. 'ore a desire to extend the principle of the fair deal all around. In Ogden the saloons are supposed to ciepe al B oclock in accordance th 'ii ordinance passed b the city authorities, but ihere is aid to be ':mr-h dissatisfaction with ihe system n many quarters One of the Sources ' thai dissatisfaction is said to he be inability io enforce the ordinanc The proposition put forward by t hi-retail hi-retail liquor dealers to curtain the number of saloons has met with gen eral approval. The new legislation PI 2le li commissioners power to limit the number of saloons on Mh-basis Mh-basis of one to each 1000 of population popula-tion hi order to reach that basis however there Is to be no revocation of present licenses It Is intended to arrive at the limitation by withhold ng any more licenses The third amendment to the pres in law which will be contained in the new measure will be a requirement that drug stores which do an exteti she business In small flasks shall pay a license equal to that paid by the retail liquor dealer There is at least one most surprls Ing statement in the foregoing and i hat is that the chief of police of Salt Lake is In favor of extending t'ie I losing hours of saloons In that city to 1 oclock iu the morning. That same chief of police was brought to Ogden at different times during the liquor campaign and he became hnown as the most uncompromislns prohlbltloniBt, advocating the com plote destruction of the liquor traffl in this state. Today he Is preachin-prohibltion preachin-prohibltion for all Utah outside Salt Lake, but In that city he would have the saloons close not at 9 o'clock ai night, as in Ogden, but at 1 o'clock In the morning We confess not to be able to satis factonly fathom the purpose of -.hr two prescriptions offered by this chief of police, who recommends that Og Jen be made "dry" but who would keep the saloons of his home cits pen until 1 o'clock at night We note the proposal to curtail the number of saloons In Salt Lake so hat they shall not exceed one to 100(1 population Ogden Is far In ad ance of Salt Lake on this reform an ordinance to that effect having I j been adopted nearly two years ago. I We hope to see that rub. enforced. |