Drunkenness in the Salt Lake Herald: 1880-1900

Lisa McGirr, a U.S historian who has focused on policing concerning enforcement of anti-liquour/drug-related crimes--argues that drunkenness emerged as an effort by a collective of state-authorities to target at a disproportionate level within the community, African-American people, and minorities in the U.S, on the grounds of 'well intentioned moralistic reform' towards anti-drug abuse practice  (while devoting far less focus in enforcement to white alleged 'criminals'). The abuse of alcohol and public drunkenness overall, are aspects in which the circulation to black and brown communities was more intensely 'represented' in reporting styles, although within the Salt Lake Herald of the forty stories selected--there were no reports mentioning whether black or brown Americans or other nationalities were arrested on this basis--likely due to the majority white composition of Utah as a whole, terms of population. It is however important to realize that McGirr emphasizes how a police-state framework was at the heart of the efforts of legislative law-makers in the early 20th century--and concerning drug-abuse, this still remains an intensely monitored crime/policed on in black and brown communities (to a marked degree, whereas white communities still remain not policed to the same degree--this likely being a consequence of both these early progenitor efforts of the Prohibition-era, and the War on Crime era from 1965-1980).

Statutes in Utah, 1888-1900:

Licensure to Sell or Exchange Liquour

§ 2160. s 5. Any person licensed as herein provided who shall knowingly give, sell or otherwise dispose of any intoxicating drink to an Indian, insane or idiotic person, or to any minor, apprentice or employee under twenty-one years of age, or who shall permit any of said persons to be and remainin his place of business where liquors are sold, without the consent of the parents, guardians or employer thereof, shall.be held and deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and, on conviction thereof, shall be fined in any sum not less than ten no more than one hundred dollars, and shall also be liable to payall costs of prosecution.

§ 2161. s 6  Any person licensed as aforesaid, or any person neglecting or refusing to obtain a license, as herein provided, who shall either:

1. Sell, give away, or otherwise dispose of any intoxicating drink at any time during the first day of the week, commonly called Sunday, except for medical purposes upon the prescription of a physician, or

Enablers of Drunkenness 2. Who shall permit on his premises where such intoxicating drink is sold, any gambling by means of dominoes,cards, dice, or other articles or any other description of gambling, or

3. Who shall permit dancing, drunkenness, sleeping, dancing, or   lodging in the night time, or who shall permit any disorderly conduct in his saloon licensed for the sale of liquors, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and shall be punished by a fine in any sum less than three hundred dollars, or by imprisonment in the county jail not exceeding six months, or by both such fine and imprisonment at the discretion of the court.

(Please see page 112--114 to view this statute within the document, as well as authorizations given to the state to sell licenses to operate in circulation of liquour/spirits, click the item showcase which will link you to such).

A majority of the reports by the Salt Lake Herald in-state, are concerning the sale of liquour/exchange of such--with the second most common in-state cases reported concerning drunkenness in public. In terms of race there is no mentioning, it is presumed that people who are arrested on the basis of either consumption/sale or exchange of alcohol are white--many of whom are fined and not imprisoned, or as mentioned in the statute on drunkenness--are imprisoned for a short time of no more than six months maximum. The most severe cases, which also happened to be the most sensationalist, were the cases involving assault in which individuals were painted as 'vagrants' or the most incendiary members of society--essentially providing a justification for further crackdown on circulation of alcohol from a Utah-temperance perspective (which, The Salt Lake Herald does in fact co-opts this perspective through a majority of reports). It should also be noted that in terms of charges, there are roughly five to six cases in which law enforcement is involved, assaulted by (presumed) white inebriated individuals--but are usually only fined at worst, or temporarily stationed in jail for a matter of days. In terms of enforcement of these laws from 1880-1900, there was a fairly 'lax' approach to such--for this being a 'moral menace' to society as the Herald discusses/often features sermons regarding. Finally, there was a case featuring a man tried in San Fransisco for the crime of operating without a license, and sale to a Native American regarding liquour--something which Utah's law similar features that is of historical-interest.

References

McGirr, Lisa, 1962-. The War On Alcohol: Prohibition And the Rise of the American State. First edition. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2016.

Compiled Laws of Utah. The Declaration of Independence and Constitution of the United States and Statutes of the United States Locally Applicable and Important. Salt Lake City, Utah, Herbert Pembroke. HeinOnline, https://heinonline-org.mutex.gmu.edu/HOL/P?h=hein.sstatutes/clutad0001&i=786.