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LAW ON BEER DISPENSARIES! .Important Opinion By Attorney Gen-! -eral Gunter-Three Questions Anskered-Law Permits Prettv Much Anything. Columbia, May 17.-The beer dis pensary knot has been cut. Attor ney General Gunter has rendered a careful decisic i in which he holds that the dispensary law permits pretty much anything that the State board of control wants to do. There were three questions asked: First. Is the royalty system legal? The Attorney General holds that the Toyalty system or any other old sys, -tern will hold legally, and that if the :State board wants to fix salaries en tirely contingent on actual sales it can do so. The State board can con ;inue the royalty system or it can .,abandon it. Second. Can beer be bottled by the teer dispensers? Certainly. Any - thing that is desired can be done 'under the dispensary law as it now stands. Third. What is meant by prem ises when. the law says malt liquors "'shall not be drunk on the premises." Premises include whatever space is sdesignated and rented by the county board of control for the purposes of jhe county dispensary, and 'when the -zounty has designated or provided a suitable place in which to sell liquors, that a "suitable place becomes prem ises on which liquor cannot be open "ed nor malt liquors drunk." Mr. Gunter has, however, thrown something like a bomb gratuitously into the situation in this paragraph: I hardly deem it necessary to add that all beer (as all other liquors) must be purchased by the State board of directors and must be procured 'by the dispenser from tb- dte com missioner, for a violation of which provision a severe penalty attaches. .i;See Section 569.) Now the question will arise under this whether beer dispensers will have *the right to designate the beers they want to sell, or whether they will be 'compefled to sell the liquors bought 'and selected direct by the State 'board. There is much in this little paragraph. Mr. Gunter has gone elaborately into t-he questions involved, and, as will be seen by a scrutiny of the paper, he cites the lawv for every1 --conclusion he has made, and if there be blame it attaches to the law as "it The opinion was given out by Mr. Gurnter this afternoon just before he 4eft the city for Beaufort. where he will be for several days in connection with t'he work of the phosphate .commission: May 17. 1905. I'o the HAonorabie S:ate Board of Directors. Columbia. S. C..-Gentle men: For the information of the State 'board of directors you request m> be adviserl upon the following~ 'questions: (i) Is it legal for the State board .of directors to pay a royalty to dis 'pensers upon the amount sold. or should the remuneration be a fixed m.rnount in the nature of a salary? (2) Under the dispensary law is :the bottling of beer authorized? , C.3) What is meant by "premises" w.ithin the punview of that section of the dispensary law directing that malt liquors "shall not be drun'k on the premises?" 'Tu answering these questions it is - well to observe that the same law *governs the sale of beer by dispens ers who are restricted to the sale of ihat beverage alone, commonly called 'beer dispensers," as that which gov - erns tahe sale of beer by a dispenser -who sells beer, wines, liquors. etc. Neither has any latittude that does not - attach to the other and both are surb ject to the samet regulations, restrie *tions, etc. bgto call firsatetio qtonSection 55 of the Criminal Code of 1902, creating a board of directors wherein iis provided: "The said board shall :and accoun.ting as it may deem -advisable. The said board shall pre scribe all rules and regulations, not inconsistent with law, for the gov rnmnent of the State dlispen' Nary and( the co unity dispenp)SaieS. W'ere there no further reference to zhe remuneration of dispensers than ander the law above qur'ted the State oa c,,u -.:.i.oted1v make a remuneration. jy further investia tion of the law the following pro vision appears in Section 565, whicn not only not inconsi-tenlt wth the a)Ove powers conferred upcn the S-.ate board. but upon this subject is cumulative and most specific: "The dispenser and his assistants shall re ceive such compensation as the board of State directors may determine." Now it should be noted that the lawmaking power did no: use the word "salary," or by any phraseology suggest that an amount should be "fixed" as a compensation, but au thorized the board to determine a compensation, leaving such solely to the discretion of the board. Com pensation is defined as "a recom pense or a reward for * * a service," and is a broader term than salary. (6 Am and Eng Ency Law, P 369, following Courts of last resort.) It follows, therefore, that the State board may determine the recom pense or reward for the services of a dispens.r, whether such be a salary large or small, fixed or variable; or an amount based upon the quantity or value of the articles sold. Whatever virtue there may be in the suggestion that it was the spirit of this law that a fixed salary should be paid to a dispenser to negative any motive for an increased sale of intoxicants, and that, therefore, the law should be interpreted accordingly, fails to ap peal to a consideration of the matter in the face of the no uncertain phraseology of the provision quoted, the terms of which cannot be given any other conclusion than herein reached. If such question of policy be involved it is for the consideration of the State board, which is given the latitude above suggested. Replying to your second question I beg to advise that under the dispen sary law it is legal for a dispenser to bottle beer on the premises. As already cited, the State board under Section 556, "shell prescribe all rules and regulations, not inconsistent with the law. for the government of the * * county dispensaries," and in Section 559 it is directed that the "county board of control shall make such rules as will be conducive to the best management -of the sale of intox icating liquors in their respective counties: Provided, all such rules shall be submitted to the State board of directors and approved by them before adoption." That granting such bottling privilege is not "incon sistent with the law" is confirmed by Section 561, of the dispensary law, which provides: "The dispensary commissioner shall. before shipping any liquors to dispen sers, except lager beer, cause the same to be pu: into packages of not less t-han one-half pint nor more than five gallons. and securely seal the same, and it shall be unlawful for the dispenser to break any of such pack ages or open the same for any reason whatsoever. He shall sell by package only. and no person shall open the same on the premises: Provided, that this section shall not apply to malt liquors shipped in cases or kegs or bottles thereof shipped in barrels: and such malt liquors may be sold by the county dispenser in such quan tities, of not less than .one pint. as he may see proper: Provided. the same shall not be drunk on the premises. Dispensers shall o)pen their places of business and sell only in the day time. under such rules as may be made by the board of State directors, or by the county boardI of control wit. the approval of the State board of directors." As this section allows a county dis penser to sell malt liquors shipped in kegs. etc. in such quantities, if not less than .one pint. as he may see proper, there can be no legal objec tion to the filling and selling by the bottle or otherwise so long as the restrictions as to the quantity, and place of drinking and time of sale are observed. It will be noted by refer nce to the section (561) quoted that the inhibition "no person shall open the same (liquors) on the premises." does not apply to malt liquors, to which the restriction goes to the ex tent. only that such "shall not be drunk on the premises." this latter follo'ing like phraseology in the Constitution. Thre is a proviso at the end of Section 571. "That the State board of directors may grant privileges for the erection and operation of brewer is distilleries and establishments stvled eeri en in cities of over :wenty thousand population. to be operated as now prescribed by law." 4 Put this proviso has no bearing on yir question and the answer thereto. and if the intention was to change or modify the operation of dispensaries as herein set forth it is abortive. I hardly deem it necessary to add that all beer (as all other liquors) must be purchased by the Staie board of directors, and must be procured by the dispenser from the State com missioner, for a violation of which prov:sion a severe penalty attaches. (See Section 569.) Your third request, for a definition of the word "premises," as it occurs in Section 561 (above quoted) is fraught with difficulty for it involves to a great extent a question of fact differing in each particular case. From such- an examination as I have -been able to make of this sub ject in the legal authorities I am un able to lay down a precise definition, for in such cases where the matter has been discussed so much depend ed on technical statutes and circum stances that the reasoning is of but little aid here. From a perusal of the dispensary law it is manifest, however, that in determining the limits of the premises recourse must be had to the action of the county board of control in selecting a place for a dispenser to operate. Section 565 directs: "The county board of control shall designate or provido a suitable place in which to sell the li quors," and Section 564, authorizing the county board to appoint a dis penser, says: "Every appointment so made shall specify the building, giving the street and number or lo cation in which intoxicating liquors may be sold by virtue of the same." When the county board has designa ted or provided a "suitable place" in which to sell liquors that "suitable place" becomes premises on which liquor cannot be opened nor malt li quors drunk. Were a provision of this return directed to individuals, premises under such circumstances would be limnited to some pla - over which such individual had t'he legal right to e-ercise authority or con trol. This rule applies to the govern mental ageacy having the selection and control of the place where li quors are sold, and, of course, cannot apply to places over which the coun ty board 'has no authority. There is no law authorizing the county board or any other officer to provide a drinking place. If such be attempted it is withou: warrant of law. It fol lows, then, that "premises" is such a place as is; provided by the county board for the sale of liqrors and over which the state agencies have c ntrol. This trust is devolved 'up-. on that body to be performed accord ing to the cxpressed .neaning and purpse of the law. Very respectfully. U. X. Gunter, Jr., . Attorney Genreal.. The state board of control will meet in a (lay of two to -take up the important decision of the Attorney General, which practically places all of the questions involved, except that of premises, in the hands of the board for ainal decision. A. t' Women's Clubs Defended. W. L. Bodine, Superintendent of Compulsory Education in Chicago. does not agree with Grover Cleveland that women's clubs are pernicious. ie writes: -I believe in women's clubs, because I am in an official position, as Super intendent of Compt. 'sory Education in Chicago, to know the vast amoun: of good they have accomplished in child-saving work, in securing legis lation on compulsory education. parental schools and juvenile courts. and in the suppression of child labor. Women's ckibs are not theoretical. They are practical. They act. They 'do things' for the good of the com munity and the country. WVhile meni have been busy quarreling over the monley question and the tariff quies ionx wmien's clubs have been busy' afe-guiarding humanity. "Gro:eri Cleveland in. a recent ar tice assailed women's clubs, lHe be. ieves thev' are inimical to 5'ociety, a menace to the niation. The (list ina uished .gem!~eman fromi New J ersey rat es much f home in life. wf wman. her duty. her work. He it remember lk-nial wo lived half a ceittir as a chaih hachelo )r beiOre that indefinable pI f cchantment ,wnab r "-aaS "For soIne time prior t that event. during Ir Cleveland's first administration. t-ie republic beheld the spectacle of a president setting as an example :o his people. a man in the White [louse who had no wife and no concrete value for home life-. then a distinguished exponent of race suicide. to say the least. Be it said to the credit of Mr. Cleveland, he has since redeemed himself. But as a penitent it is ungracious for him to assail mothers who belong to WomeNI's clubs, and some of whom had families long ere he had taken unto himself a bride. It would be unreasonable for him or any other citizen to paint the ideal wife. in this day and generation, as (ine whose life was bounded by the kitch en and drawing-room, the nursery and the front porch. Any man who would not give his wife a day off once a week or oftener, to spend an intellectual afternoon at a woman's club, is unreasonable, undemocratic and un-American. "Women's clubs do not impair home life; they promote it. They do not tend to race suicide; the majority of their members are mothers. They not only improve their own homes, but they extend the help:.; hand of benevolence to o:her homes-to other people's children, to the fath erless and oppressed. to the poor children of the city whose outings and vacation schools are a few of the many beautiful philanthropies where the al:ruistic doctrine of women's clubs is apparent." Explained. Wife-"George. how could you keep urging Mr. Brown to have some more ice cream when I warned you before dinner not to ask him, for the supply was limited." QUIT COUGHI There is no r Lungs out, w tie of Murra5 lien and Tar, A few doses of this Househol lief. A positive cure for Ina Throat. Anti-Spasmodic in THE MURRAY DRI Whiskey _ _ Mrhine, Habit. MoHi, Cured by Keeley linstitli 1320 Lady St. (or 0. Box 75 )columnbia. S. '~t~,Is Your Bathr If it is not, don't you think -into conditions, and remodel or re You cannot have too many si self and family, especially the gi S plumbing is as dangerous to the h -- is beneficial. 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