New Jersey and the Liquor Problem
- Title:
- New Jersey and the Liquor Problem
- Alternate Title:
- New Jersey and the Liquor Problem
- Collection:
- Persuasive Maps: PJ Mode Collection
- Creator:
- Anti-Saloon League of New Jersey
- Date:
- 1909
- Posted Date:
- 2024-04-25
- ID Number:
- 2460.01
- File Name:
- PJM_2460_01.jpg
- Style/Period:
- 1900 - 1919
- Subject:
- Politics & Government
- Measurement:
- 14.5 x 24 sheet (centimeters, height x width)
- Notes:
- This tri-fold political brochure uses comparative maps (ID #2460.01) to make the case for the adoption in New Jersey of "Local Option" legislation, allowing the voters of individual cities or counties to choose whether or not to allow the licensing of the sale of liquor. Almost all of the state of Ohio, which had adopted local option, is in white, denoting areas where local voters had chosen to prohibit the sale of alcohol. In contrast, virtually all of New Jersey is in black, with just a few spots of white in smaller areas where voters had banned the sale under special charters. The message is below the maps: "Is there a valid reason for denying the people of New Jersey their right of suffrage and majority rule in this matter?"
In December 1908, the State Excise Commission released a "voluminous report" that was "a severe indictment of the conditions surrounding the liquor traffic in New Jersey." New York Times, December 13, 1908, p.18. The headlines alone highlight "Lawless Saloons," "Statutes . . . Openly Violated by Influence of Politicians," "Grand Juries 'Fixed,'" ""Saloon Men Organized Secret Society to Make Their Own Excise Laws," and conclude: "Local Option Urged." A new campaign for local option legislation was launched the following year by the New Jersey Anti-Saloon League. See generally Burke (1909). Although this brochure is undated, the verso (ID #2460.02) lists the sitting State Senators, and 1909 was the only year in which all of those named were in the State Senate. Text accompanying the map and on the verso provides the language of the proposed legislation, references to actions in other states, and warnings about "some pretended friends of temperance" supporting less stringent actions.
The campaign was apparently unsuccessful; the Asbury Park Press reported on December 15, 1911, that "the New Jersey Anti-Saloon league . . . has been vainly striving for several years to secure the enactment of a local option law by the New Jersey legislature." ("Matawan Man Urged to Become Head of State Anti-Saloon League," p.1.)
Cornell University Library is pleased to present this digital collection of Persuasive Maps, the originals of which have been collected and described by the private collector PJ Mode. The descriptive information in the “Collector’s Notes” has been supplied by Mr. Mode and does not necessarily reflect the views of Cornell University. - Format:
- Image
- Rights:
- For important information about copyright and use, see http://persuasivemaps.library.cornell.edu/copyright.