282 THROUGH CANADA 



after all a gamble, and there is no knowing which 

 thimble the pea is under. 



Some of the temptations that beset life at home 

 are to a large extent removed from the path of the 

 Canadian settler. The drinking habits are less 

 prevalent than in European cities. Tea and coffee 

 largely take the place of alcoholic beverages. Dining 

 restaurants are in no cases licensed for the sale of 

 intoxicants. The public-house as an institution is 

 unknown. The only place where drink can be pub- 

 licly obtained is in the saloons connected with hotels, 

 which must justify their existence by providing a 

 definite amount of sleeping accommodation. 



The principle of local option in regard to the 

 saloon system further indicates the condition of public 

 feeling on the liquor traffic. It was introduced by 

 Senator Scott in the form of a Temperance Act and 

 allowed electors in any county to decide by vote 

 whether the sale of intoxicant liquors would be per- 

 mitted within their respective districts. The Act has 

 checked the growth of saloons generally, and in 

 places has led to their complete prohibition. In the 

 province of Manitoba the people pronounced in 

 favour of total prohibition, although an attempt to 

 procure the same principle in the provinces of Ontario 

 and Quebec was defeated by an overwhelming 

 majority. 



These provisions by no means make drinking 

 impossible, but it is an undoubted check on the habit. 



