DOES PROHIBITION PROHIBIT ?

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 12584, 14 October 1911, Page 2

DOES PROHIBITION PROHIBIT ?

BISHOPS AND 'llMlil'S SAY if IS uni'.'.i i i'.j<. li. i'wt) l-.vil.S. BELIbJF THAT 11' DRIVES UNDER L -UVL.It illlu _m.>. ii'ijj'.li' VVtUUI-i. IT MvEivft IU L.ii.h. MAKING IT AlO'iiE Dll'FK.'ii. T T? HANuLIv. ONE-THIRD OL? (K/WJ.XMENT RE- ' VtMili iri i'KLLU lAA U.N aj.C'U- j il'JLk: lihVEKAUKCS. | (New York Evening Standard.) i While several prominent lawyers were wailing m tne Lounty Court House one clay tins week, to take part m an argument m the Supreme Court, a man, considerably under tlie innuence ol nqiiui, passed mem. Alter he was out of nearj ing. one ot the lawyers K'aid :

"There goes a living picture of the evil ol prohibition that does not prohibit. '

'"How is that, Judge'/" inquired one of the group:

"iiiat man never drank liquor until he was more tnan 4G years old. He then went to one of the prohibition States on a business trip. He had made it a rule of his life never to taste liquor, but while m that knvn-of-no-saloons he was put up at one Of those miserable little drinking clubs. There he was tempted to arink, and has kept it up ever since."

' v i r ou can't bla-me the prohibition town for his appetite for drink," remarked one of the bystanders. "I can, and 1 assert that statistics will bear me out that the percentage of A'iliage drunkards m any prohibition toAvn is greater than m the towns Avhei'e there . is a saloon on every block." retorted the ex- Judge.

'"Not only liquor drunkards, but Avhat is far worse," remarked another lawyer, "and that is drug and dope druhfcs. Whyj last summer I Avas m a Vermtiht town Avhere the saloons were closed, and the leading druggist iii the -town told me that hundreds of men, Avomen, and some of the children drank hair tonics, perfumes, and' tboth washes for the alcohol they contained. This druggist told me that one Avoman — refined and occupying a good social position — bought a certain tooth Avash- by the dozen bottles each Aveek, until she had to be sent to a sanatorium as the result of drinking the stuff." - * ■ - ; ■

"Have you noticed," inquired the exJudge, Ayho began the discussion, "that recently there seems to be anaAvakening to the evils of prohibition ? But a few years ago many of the more respectable men Avho liked .their liquor did not talk openly against prohibition. Now, under its many evils before us, even the voice of tbie. Church is, not for prohibition. I mean tliat. many. of the leading clergy of all denominations, while favoring temperance and moderation, are taking a strong and firm; stand against total abstinence.-'

The case ih which tbe lawyers were interested was called, and they hastened into the courtroom.

Tliis incident but emphasises the remarkable anti-prohibition Avave : that seems to be sweeping over the country. Clergymen, essayists, magazines, \vriters and thinkers generally seem to have suddenly been aroused to. the evils of prohibition, Avhich they assert—and sustain their assertions by statistics — does not prohibit, but increases' all the evils arising from liquor. Cardinal Gibbons, head of the Roman Catholic Church m this country, is quoted as saying : . „ I am persuaded that it' is practically impossible to put prohibition into effect m any large community; arid that the best means, therefore, to promote ter n: perance is. to limit the number of saloons by high license. I Avould be m faA'or of inflicting punishment on the proprietors of saloons who violate the law, m the first instance, and m the second - ' u> stance,:.! would Avithdraw; the license altogether. ... Laws, like prohibition, that are certain to bo violated had best not bo made, for^ incessant violation draws down upon them disrespect.'* The Cardinal Avas further quoted m Baltimore as follows: — -

"Local option should under no circumstances apply to this city. I regret to be compelled to return to the subject, but as a citizen and a churchman Avho loves his native city I am'- profoundly impressed with the sense of its temporal and moral welfare. Liquor could bo sold here quite as abundantly under prohibi : tion laws as under well-regulated license. The consequence Avill be tliat liquor will be dispensed contrary to law, instead ol being sold m accord with hvw. Then, too, the city will be deprived of a large revenue which is so much needed for the government of this community." Bishop Potter is quoted as saying : "Our prohibitory 'laAVS, whether we put them m operation on one day only or ori all days, are as stupid as they are ineffectual. Most of our methods for dealing witli the drink evil iri our daj and generation are tainted Avith falsehood, dishonored by essential unrealitj and discredited by widespread and consistent failure." Bishop Hall of Vermont, a local option State; it is said, . expressed himself on the teubject of prohibition a's follows •. * "Prohibition drives underground the mischief which it seeks to cure, making il more difficult to deal: Avith tho evil and, rinpoßSible- to- regulate the trade,, as,, foi instance,- dri< tbe,.quality of 'liquor, sold." Several other .bishops, and prominent clergymen * have expressed like views tc such am extent' ,tbat the lawyer seems tc be justified Avhen he said that the voice of the Chuuch is not for prohibition. In an address delivered on Decembei 13, 1908, before the convention of the New York State Lager Beer Brewers Association, the Rey,. William A. Wason. of Riverhead, L.I. told this amusing story m suppovt ot his', assertion that "prohibition- is a prolific "breeder oi hypocrisy 1 and perjury.", , , "Four or'nVe' years ago, Avhen River.-; head was 'dry* according to legal fiction, vone of thej hotelkeeper.s received^ letter from a Avhisl<y concern asking him if he Avould .send them tlie names of anj persons m tbe • community who he thought might be likely to purqhase Aye! goods. This concern 'bad a very fine brand, of whisky that it Avished torecott* mend, It would give him 10 per cent, on a|l sales made, through him. Well, the hotel man thought he would have some fun, so he sent m the names oi thirty of the most rab'iel prohibit ion ists m the town. He thought no more about „thQ'h^a'tte^, until 4bpui two jnouths late*,; when he received a cheque, for 27d01a») as his commissions on the sales aggrj? gating 270dols,*\. „' ■ .. . '% The entire Revenue of the Government m that ye'at Svaa 665,140 r ,334.0'j dollars, so that -the Government derived about oue-third of its revenues from alcoholic beverages. ' As" tlie revenues ' were 84,OPO.QCQdoK above the expenses, alcoholic beverages paidV considerably more than one'-thifd' of the expenses of the Government.

The receipts of the Internal ''Revenue, Bureau for the fiscal' year ending June 30, 1907, show that the United States Government dervied about one-third of its revenues from alc.oh olio beverages; The receipts of the/ Internal Revenue Bureau during, the. $ea v ' ending on June 30th, ;9Q7, were 269,664,022. 85d015. Of tliii} iamount tberq 'were paid:-— .-' >. Dollars'. From spirits ' distilled from _. fruits :....,.....;..' 2,193,057.07 Spirits' distilled from grain 147,556,281.56 Retail liquor dealers, spfe-' ' ' ' " '•' '■ cial tax and other matters connected wth distilleries 6,587,563.26 Fermented liquors 58,546,110.69 Special tax, . retailers, etc. . LQ21.707.49 Total .:..:..,;,„;.:;.. "2f5,"904,725'.07 The opponents of prohibition assert that prohibitory laws create an habitual disregard for all law' and engender evasion aiid, i hypocrisy, and encourage perjury, and that while it does not stop drinking it outs off from the cities and visages the revenue Avhich they derive from the liquor-, bigness. . They.plso say \hffi pfohiibi.ion largely mcrea'ses ptiblic expenses m tlie vain effort to enforce th'e law. While the opponents of prohibition are engaged m pointing out its alleged many evils, it lias just been announced m tho newspapers that, urged by the ........ , r.

recent successes of the prohibition movement m Alabama and Georgia, tho Prohibition party is preparing to conduct a most vigorous campaign and will maintain a press, bureau, flood the country with prohibition campaign literature, and Avill furnish to friendly newspapers a plate service.

It is clear that one of tho most bitter fights of its existence is about to bo waged by the Prohibition party, Avhich has been rapidly losing ground." In the meantime tlio opponents of prohibition aro speaking and writing against Avhat they consider its many evils.**