Evening star., 1909-04-12
IN DRY BIRMINGHAM
Effect of Executing the Pro-
hibition Law.
OPINION OF MAYOR WARD
Presents Statistics Showing the De-
crease Of Crime.
SAYS CULPRITS ARE PUNISHED
Asserts That Workmen Are Steadier
and Disorder Has Fallen oh-An-
other Declares s'Blind Tigers
Are Numerous.
SAYS CULPRITS ARE PUNISHED
BY WILLIAM e. CURTIS.
Special Correspondence Of The Star and the
Chicago Record. Herald.

BY WILLIAM e. CURTIS.
Special Correspondence Of The Star and the
Chicago Record. Herald.
BIRMINGHAM, April TO- 1902
Although the mayor and city officials
of Birmingham, and, l believe, all the
county officials except the sheriff, were
opposed to the passage Of the prohibition
law, which went into effect January /,
1908, it has been enforced more strictly
here. l am told than in any other city in
Alabama.
have been trying to interview the anti
prohibition leaders ever since came into
the state, and If do not publish that side
of the case it is because ] have been
unable to find anybody who can give me
the information. There is no organiZa-
tion, there are no committees, there Is
no press bureau. there are no agents or
agitators representing the element who
are opposed to prohibition. and when
get the names of people who are on that
side and call upon them, they send me one
to another. or speak in generalities with
out records or tangible evidence to sus-
tain their statements.
l called upon several gentlemen in
Mobile who had resisted the passage of
the prohibition law because they believed
that 1t was unwise and would be in
furious to the business of the city. But
none of them would permit me to quote
him as to the effects of the law. / was
sent to one Of the most prominent at
torneys in that city, who has been the
legal adviser of brewers, distillers and
saloon keepers associations, but even
he refused to talk for publication. He
said that he had represented the liquor
interests in court and had advised in
dividuals and organizations in legal mat
ters, but had nothing to do with politics
or newspaper publications In their in
terest. or could he tell me any person
who could give me accurate information
from the anti-prOhibition point of view.
He warned me that no reliance could be
placed upon the statements Of former
liquor sellers.
1 have found a similar difficulty in
Birmingham. 1 have called upon five
gentlemen who were represented to be
active "antis'; but Mr.. Mcqueen, one of
the largest manufacturers in the place,
is the only one Of them who was willing
to talk Tor publication, and he apologized
for not having more definite information
than he could give me- He said that
the anti-prohibitOn element had no or
ganization, no committees and no leaders,
made no inquiries and kept no statistics.
although during the fight a year and a
half ago they sent q lawyer and the
former chief of police to Kansas and to
Maine for the purpose of investigating
the operations and effects of prohibition
in those states. Their reports were used
as arguments against the enactment of
q prohibition law in Birmingham and
other parts of Alabama, and were quite
effective In this city, which cast 800 ma
jority against prohibition, although 1t was
overcome by the farmer vote in the rest
of the county.