Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-03-17
VETS HAVE A SHOW
Two Men Before House Dis
trict Committee.
BOTH OPPOSE PROHIBITION
One Presents Statistics and Serious
Argument.
THE OTHER IN LIGHTER VEIN
Both Believe Temperance Will Be
Promoted by Using Beer and
Wine Instead of Strong Liquor.
HE OTHER IN LIGHTER VEIN

cussed the prohibition question. Mr.. Bar
| boro favored the Sims bill for absolute
prohibition in the District-with material
amendment excepting from the terms of
the measure naturally brewed beer and
wines containing not more than II per
! cent of alcohol
Il came 1900 miles, he said. Ito do
all in my power to aid in removing the
curse of drunkenness from our midst-this
curse that now afflicts our country. affect
ing the rich and the poor ana that per-
vades and permeates all the professions.
But Mr.. Barboro insisted there was a
right way and wrong way. and said
that. in his opinion. if the ideas of the
radicals. who wanted to prohibit the
drinking of wine and beer as well as the
drinking OF brandy and whisky, were al
lowed to prevail the curse OF drunken
ness would be more of an affection upon
this country fifty years from now than it
is today. He believed. he said. that the
people of the United States should be en-
couraged to drink pure wines. and If
necessary, legislation should be passed TO
help them along this line.
Prohibition does not prohibit, said
Mr. Barboro. enunciating the battle cry
of the vets Then he proceeded to dis
cuss the situation in those states which
had observation-disclosures of them for
hibition statutes. He called attention to
one particular town in Vermont which
had enacted such stringent prohibition
| law as to prevent the saIe of whisky and
| brandy in drug stores. even on the pre-
scription of physician and for puSely
medicinal purposes. Soon after this law
! went into effect, Mr.. Barboro said. a
| marked increase of insanity was noted
| in the town. and an investigation dis
| closed that while the drug stores had not
| sold whisky brandy or other intoXicants
| they had sold almost tons of cocaine, NOR
phine and other drugs. the use of which
| had been responsible for the increase in
| insanity noted.
Deaths From Wood Alcohol.
Mr. Barboro then read extract from
San Francisco paper reporting the
death, from drinking wood alcohol. of
several sailors from an American ship
and the permanent injury Of several 9TH
ers. He deplored the enactment that had
made dry the locality where these sail
ors found themselves. inasmuch as their
craving for drink had been such that
they had been driven to the drinking of
poisonous wood alcohol. In reply to
question by Representative Sims, Mr.
Barboro said he thought that man,
through usage. etc, had come to require
| some sort of stimulant, and, as prOhibi-
| ton did not prohibit, if he could not get
|
| bother about the quality of the stuff he
| drank.
| Mr. Barboro then told of a conversation
| he had with John p. Young. managing
owner of the San Francisco Chronicle,
after the latter had returned from half
years tour of Europe. MIR. Young, Mr..
BarborO said, had expressed the most in
| tense surprise at having seen wine drunk
everywhere in Europe that he had gone
without the accompaniment Of the slight
drunkenness Az matter Of fact the
| only drunken man Mr.. Young had seen
| was in Paris and he had been imbibing
! absinthe.
Just suppose for a moment.' said Mr..
Barboro. that you gentlemen of the COM
mittee could go among the millions of
people in the United States-which would
| fairly approximate the population among
which Mr.. Young found himself-and see
| but one case of drunkenness.
| 1t was not in the slightest degree a
matter of climatic conditions. Mr.. Bar
! bOro insisted. Up in the mountains Of
| Switzerland everybody drank wine, and
| jags were unknown: down on the plains
| of Italy everybody drank wine. and jags
were equally unknown. while on Mr..
| Barboro's vineyards in California 1000
! families were employed. and drunken
person had never been seen, although
every one drank wine.
Babies to Drink Wine.
! Babies should be taught to drink wine
at the table lust as soon a they left off
nursing. Mr.. Barboro said and it was his
| sincere opinion that this would do more
! to stop drunkenness among the people
than anything else in the world. His four
children had been brought up that way,
he said. and he had never had occasion
to regret it for a single second. They were
happy, healthy, still drinking wine and
a m, HOY foi idea of xyhat ip.
toxica ton meant.
| In reply to a question from Matthew
| O'Brien congressional representative Of
| the national prohibition party-that's the
way his cards read-asked Mr.. Barboro.
through Chairman Smith. if he favored
t prohibiting the sale of whisky. Mr.. Bar
/ boro said he did
Among the statistics presented to the
! committee bv Mr.. Barboro was a state
! ment showing that in Italy. France and
! Spain-the chief wine-drinking countries
of the world-there was a per capita con-
sumption of thirty gallons of wine and
one gallon of spirits per annum. while in
| Russia, England and the United States
/ these figures were just reversed. the per
| capita consumption being thirty gallons of
| spirits TO one gallon Of wine per person
! per annum. In the first-named countries
! drunkenness was practically unknown,
while in the latter countries it was very
| prevalent.
! Mr.. Barboro c,osed his statement with
! the remark that he couldn't imagine the
| District committee reporting the Sims bill
IN Its present form; that it was ridiculous
| to suppose the committee would favor alb
soute prohibition of wine and beer drink
| ing. 1t was just as reasonable. he
thought, TO prohibit the sale of tea ana
| coffee.
MI. Sullivan's Argument.
MIR. Sullivan followed Mr. Barboro be-
! fore the committee. and SAID he repre-
scented about $1,000 persons directly con-
nected with the business of serving the
Anne rican people with liquid refreshments.
! Mr.. Sullivan was also quick to sound the
/ cry of prohibition does not prohibit" and
he backed up his statement with some
! highly amusing comments on blind pigs, "
blind tigers and kitchen hells," which,
! he said f1ourished in prohibition communi-
ties. and sold line of wet goods that
! would make a man bite himself on his
| own leg.
| Mr.. Sullivan then pointed out in SINH
/ larry original and entertaining language
the committee seemed to like It all right
that the Jail force in Maine, thc original
| home of absolute prohibition. was treble
the Jail force of Minnesota, where things
were wide open.
| Why" said Mr.. Sullivan. scornfully,
lone of them prohibitions said the other
day that out in some Kansas dry counties