New-York tribune., 1908-08-21
PROBLEMS IN LAW ENFORCEMENT.

A prohibition law, like an automobile or q
Missouri mule, is likely to give its managers q
large amount of invaluable experience before 1t
settles down to enforcement or iDnOcuous desue-
tude as the case may be. The wonderful In
ventfve faculty of the human brain Is never so
fully developed as when it is devising ways and
means to circumvent law designed to prevent
the introduction of choice brews and distilla-
tions into the human system. The thirsty cid-
zen. in the early days of the drouth, resorts to
the simple expedient of running into the near
est drug store half doubled up with pain In the
'tummy' but in order TO avoid giving the I'M
preston of hopeless invalidism 1t subsequently
becomes necessary to discover other less obvious
methods of going into liquidation
The Georgians have been felicitously referred
TO as the Yankees Of the South, and since the
| massage of the recent prohibition law those
hibllously inclined citizens have been doing
their best to prove their claim of relationship
to the wooden nutmeg makers of New England.
| The inventive genius of brewers and distillers,
too. has been stimulated by the pressing needs
of the people, and there is large trade in
near BEER which comes so close to answering
the purpose that the problem of regulating IL
is very little different from that facing the au-
thorities in the days of the old-fashioned gin
MILL In Atlanta the shadow is SO good substi-
tute for the substance that at a recent meeting
of the council two ordinances relating TO the
sale of this species of liquid refreshment were
adopted one prohibiting women from entering
the saloons and the other ordering them closed
on Sunday.
In one of the smaller towns of the state the
situation is little different from that during the
days when the reign of demon rum I'M
disputed Last Sunday prohibition sermons
were delivered by every clergyman in the place,
and the fight is to be carried into the next munic-
ipal campaign, just might have been the
case in the most unregenerate days of the munic-
ipality Near beer is to be outlawed, and now
the question arises, just how near to near beer
will future drinks dispensed to thirsty Geor-
gians have to be in order to fail under the near
beer ban?
1t is also pathetic to note the deep and abld-
ing interest of the liquor men in the constitu-
tionality of the law which prevents the use Of
wine in communion services. They announce
r their intention of bringing suit on the ground
that to pass any law preventing religious organf-
cations from using the communion wine is
blow at religious liberty, and as such must not
be tolerated in this country. 1t is almost
worthy of note, however, that the sanction of
polygamy by one of the strong churches of the
country did not prevent the passage of a law
which put an end to the practice, and up to the
present time the constitutionality of that law
has not been seriously questioned.
In Georgia. as in New York there is the ques-
ton of enforcing the law, apart from the moral
issue involved The people Of Georgia passed a
law with the definite purpose of putting an end
to the liquor traffic, and they intend to enforce
that law The people Of New York, in revising
the constitution, made racetrack gambling a
crime and later. through their representatives
in Albany reiterated their demand for the
abolition of the evil, and there seems to be
general demand for the enforcement of the
law New York and Georgia both have large
problems of law enforcement their hands,
and in both instances the country awaits the
outcome with interest