The Scandal of the South Aberdeen Saloon License
A concerned mother accuses city officials of corruption and moral failure for granting an illegal liquor license under the guise of charity.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
At the last regular meeting of the city council, application was made by one Sophia Johnson for permission to sell intoxicants in South Aberdeen on the unexpired license of a woman named May Stanley. This license was, according to the wording on its face, not transferable, and a majority of the council decided accordingly. Yet in spite of this fact, and in the face of the prohibitory laws of our state, at a special session, a transfer was granted. This transfer virtually amounted to granting a free license. The councilmen pleaded that the woman was poor and had a family to support. However, it is common talk about town that the city attorney had negotiated the sale of the Stanley woman's stock conditioned upon the transfer of the license, and that Sophia Johnson had deposited $62 with him to be paid to Stanley. I know of my own knowledge that Johnson is not poor; she owns a two-story house, several lots, livestock, and possesses Amazonian strength. I protest against this action, and I insist that we have a right to expect better of our councilmen.
“What a delightful charity it is which moves men to aid a mother in consigning her hapless offspring to surroundings most degrading and debasing.”
This 1892 dispute over backroom deals and the morality of vice regulation echoes modern civic debates in Aberdeen regarding the intersection of economic survival, zoning for nightlife, and the perceived integrity of city officials.
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