The Press Monday, August 28, 1922. National Poll on Prohibition.

Press, Volume LVIII, Issue 17544, 28 August 1922, Page 6

The Press Monday, August 28, 1922. National Poll on Prohibition.

Although it is mere than two ana a half years since Prohibition became the Law of the land in the United States—which is not £t all the same as saying that it became an accomplished fact—the controversy over the question increases, as time gees on, in volume and intensity. In the welter of assertion -and contradiction, of charge and conn-ter-charse, and or ceaseless propaganda by both -wets" and "drys." it is impossible to discern the real mind of the nation. "With, a view, therefore, of ascertaining the will of the people towards this matter, that admirable periodical the "Literary Digest"' organised and carried out, on its own responsibility, a nation-wide referendum! on the two pressing questions of the day—the Prohibition law and the proposed bonus to American soldiers and railors who had served in the war. A poll of every adult in the States- was out of the question, but the "Digest" distributed in the first week in July ten million ballot papers "to all classes " of voters in all States and all commu- " nities in the nation." Millions were sent by mail, the addressees being largely the telephone subscribers of the country, a constituency whose vote, while very representative of the more or less permanent population, was regarded as tending to be "solid and oon"servative rather than radical." Large numbers were also distributed in certain great manufacturing works, care being taken that factories employing women should receive as many as those in which the workers are men. The ballot paper, so far as the prohibition issue was concerned—the question of tho soldiers' bonus is outside the present issue—invited the recipient to mark his or her preference for one only of the three following policies:—

(a) The continuance and strict enforcement of the Eighteenth Amendment and Volstead Law (the E'ghteentn Amendment of the Constitution prohibite the manufacture, sale, or transportation of intoxicating liquors within the United States or their exportation therefrom). . , . „. . , (b) A modification of the Volstotid liaw to permit light wines and beers (the Volsteid Act enforces the Prohibition Amendment). (c) A repeal of the Prohibition. Amendment. Peculiar interest wa3 given to, this huge poll by the fact that congressional elections will shortly be taking place in many States, and will tarn largely upon I the country's attitude on Prohibition and the bonus, while the further fact that a similar poll conducted by the "Digest" two years ago indicated accurately the great majority scored by 'the Republicans lends additional interest to this test of- public opinion. When the latest mail to hand left Now York only two issues of the "Digest" had been published subsequent to the circulation of the ballot papers. The second of these showed that up to the date of issue 207,394 votes had been counted, with the following result:— Those in favour of strict enforcement of the existing law ~ .» 76,597 Those in favour of its modification to permit light wines and beers ... i ... 85,151 Those in favour of repeal of Prohibition amendment ... 45,646 It will be seen that the largest vote is given for modification. But to realise the full effect of the poll, the votes for modification and repeal must be added together, since they are all cast against the continuance of the present law. Out of over 207,000 voters, more than 180,000 registered themselves as opposed to the strict enforcement of the "dry" law—in other words, practically 66 per cent., or very nearly two to one, of the voterß were dissatisfied with the effects of Prohibition as it exists in the States to-day. Further results will be watched with keen interest, for as a leading New York paper remarks, "as an indication of popular sonti"ment the returns from ten million "ballots should be fairly accurate." It is noteworthy that the Prohibitionists do not seem to care for this poll, and some of their leaders are doing their best to make it ineffective, asserting that the poll' may be an actual hindrance to the enforcement and observance of the law. That is, of course, ridiculous. The people who made the law can repeal it, and no unbiassed effort to ascertain their views on the question, such as the "Digest" is making, can reasonably be construed into an attack on tho Constitution.