PROHIBITION IN U.S.

Dominion, Volume 26, Issue 68, 13 December 1932, Page 9

PROHIBITION IN U.S.

Radical Change Expected INVOLVED PROCEDURE Although the United States House of Representatives last week rejected a resolution for prohibition repeal, a radical change in the Prohibition laws of the United States is expected to follow the assembling of the new Congress next year. The Democratic Party is comple'tely “wet,” advocating repeal of the 18th Amendment, the constitutional provision which forbids the manufacture, sale, and transportation of intoxicating liquor, and the immediate revision of the Volstead Act, an ordinary law which, by defining alcoholic liquor as any beverage containing more than one half of one per cent, of alcohol, has made the drinking of the mildest wines and beer illegal under the Constitution. It is a complicated matter to change a constitutional law, but an ordinary law such as the Volstead Act can be changed by a simple majority vote. There are, however, certain obstacles to be overcome even before light wines and beer can be drunk legitimately. The new Congress cannot meet before March 4 and need not meet under the Constitution till the first Monday in December, over a year after its election. State Conventions. The first thing which would have to be done would be for both Chambers of Congress to adopt by a two-thirds majority a resolution requiring the Secretary of State to communicate with the Governors of the several States directing them to call at once State Conventions of delegates elected by the voters of the several States to ratify a specified resolution. Each State Governor would then communicate with his State Legislature and ask it to vote the necessary money and make the necessary arrangements for the Convention. There would be no precedents to guide the State Legislatures on procedure. Tlie delegates to the Conventions would be elected on the one single issue—wet or dry. The Conventions would assemble and vote on that one question. The assembly and vote would be nothing but a formality, for the election returns would show plainly what the result would be. The country would in effect have had a referendum upon the subject. The results of the vote would then be forwarded through the State Governors to the Secretary of State at Washington, who would, when three-quarters of the States had signified that they wished the LStli Amendment repealed, proclaim that it was no longer part of the Constitution. Industry Would Become Legitimate. The chief result of the change would be that ft vast industry now being carried out underground Would take its place beside other legitimate industries. Bootleggers, speakeasy proprietors, and their followers would disappear, or they might become lawabiding citizens and continue in the liquor trade as before. The only difference in numerous better-class speakeasies would bo that the wine, beer, and spirits would be purchased in a legal manner, Gangsters would lose their chief source of income and their power would be weakened. They would no longer be able to resort to bribery on a large scale to secure protection from police or local politicians, and the toll which they levy in the form of “insurance” and other types of “racket” from the small trader would no longer have to be paid. Business, industry, and commerce would at once be put upon a healthier footing. There might be other economic advantages. Some extravagant, claims have been made about the amount of money which could be saved tlie taxpayer. In 1917, roughly 61,000,000 barrels of beer were taxed for internal revenue. The "New York Evening Post” calculated that this would have filled some 19,000,000,000 twelve and a half ounce bottles, which if taxed six cents a bottle (the tax levied on each packet of cigarettes) would bring in over a thousand million dollars in revenue. The financial magazine "Fortune” reduces this figure considerably by taking the total sum collected by the Bureau of Internal revenue in 1918 when States representing 4S per cent, of the population wore wet. Roughly, 126,000,000 dollars was collected.