The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1909-02-13
ACTOR WRITES
ON PROHIBITION
Willard Mack Gives Account of
His Observations in Vari-
Gus Parts of Country.
TALKS ABOUT CONDITIONS
COMMERCIAL ASPECT AS SEEN
BY CORRESPONDENT.
TALKS ABOUT CONDITIONS
To The salt Lake Herald.

10 4 iae XII Lake Et-EdlAs
Since you have so very kindly given ever
a certain amount Of space 70 tie various
opinions relative 20 the prohibition lsg
now under discussion for the city Of salt
Lake, as an observer OF conditions Of vari-
Gus cities Ia the United states. that have
gone through the same experience per-
nit nae 10 advance my poor opinion
am very well aware OF the fact that.
BY those VINO favor prohibition, shah
Be accused Of writing this letter. not for
sny good it msy do, but as means Of
self advertisement To those WHO may
Say or think this. ] can but reply that
whatever they may think they must con-
cede the fact that a EiaH actively engaged
in = theatrical profession. VINO yearly
visits certain territory is honestly quaE
flied 70 judge social ana commercial con-
difions as be finds them from year TO
y4sr and without any disrespect to any
party. class or creed, permit Ine To state
that never never has the prohibition law
done any good for anybody but the
whisky trust Rather paradoxieal. but
true nevertheless
Condition in Georgia.
Take for instance the city Of Atlanta.
Ga a few years age Atlanta IVES the
pride Of the south. What about il today?
Ask the commercial traveller who will tell
you that il "a dead. hopelessiy dead; that
the liquor revenue which helped build Up
the city to what II was is now spent in
various towns ana cities near by that con-
tain distiiieTies and wholesale liquor
houses.
ana speaking. or writing. now CONNER
cially- / am working 20 furnish theatre
Eoers here with 4 place OF amusement my
business interests ere AT stake 7 take
your MONEY and I then turn it back. for
the most part into circulation among You.
i've with Eeu- dine with you and some
times drink with you / am here. If pos
sible- 10 become a permanent citizen of
tel
men VINO favor prohibition OF the sale of
LIQUOR in this community. you are wronE
Teu wiil destroy the interests Of the very
men who helped build your city To what
Il is
II the prohibition or the sale Of LIQUOR
would destroy the appetite for it well and
good. but il don't, and no man or party
would be rash enough to say that II does
Men will drink liquor, and il viii come
into your city gentlemen, and you cannot
stop it. The same amount Of money will
he spent for it. but rot here, and that is
where IL viii hurt YOU.
Somebody stated. in one Of the daily pa
pers here the other day. that they felt
sure II the liquor traffic was entirely
stopped. other industries would arise in
Us place. which is quite true. IN Okla
hama when prohibition went into effect
the price Of a certain patent medicine
jumped 30 cents per bottle.
Evil of Home Drinking.
How many men who drink certain
amount Of liquor day havf it in their
homes? Not - per cent. because unless
a man falls very low through the effects
Of alcohol he does not wish his wife or
children 30 see him under it's influence,
which IS quite true. But you take away
his downtown resort where he procUres
each day what he consumes, and it is not
long before one of his children will report
t9 mother that father is asleep in the
coal bin.
No gentlemen If won't 10 yo,f e.nro4
destroy the appetite for il. therefore rec
cgnize conditions. conditions that have ex-
listed and will exist when We no longer
trouble this earth.
If had q son and he wanted and was
determined to drink whisky. ! would ralh-
er take him into first-elass bar and buy
Il for him myself than TO find him drink
ing from a flask hidden behind some ash
barrel in an alley, and so would you. So
v ny. in the vernaCular of the curbstaH
does any one imagine that if the sale of
liquor is prohibited in this state we are
to see fewer drunken nen2 Do YOU i'm
sgine that your police records will show
that the drunk and disOrdeTiy list has d.
Ininished2 If YOU do you will be sadly
disappointed. The only difference You viii
notice is that instead Of our officers ar
resting men under the influence Of LIQUOR
in the main streets, they will have to drag
them ont Of alleys and doorways. and God
knows where, and his honor will face lust
as many Monday morning
ing Il. for the welfare Of your social and
commercial interests. give them a place
TO imbibe and govern such places with
as much energy as YOU are now using 10
eliminate them.
Ways TO Beat the Game.
Tn conclusion, to illustrate that you can
not keep Hsen from getting liquor. little
story from Atlanta may not be amiss
a certain party of citizens who had
used their influence to enforce the pro-
hihition law. were very much chagrined
and surprised n month or so after the
law rad gone into effect. 70 learn that
with alt their vigilance lqaor was being
sold in their midst, so they selected one
OF their number TO do little secret ser
vice work and he was Instructed to find
out where the hquor was coming from
and who was selling H.
Near the Piedmont hotel stood an old
col0red man with bundle under his arm
Mr. Secret Service man. approaching
Uncle Amos asked him if he knew of any
place where he could buy a quart OF
whisky. Uncle scratched his head a mo
ment. and then said: We'll I donno
Boss. I might try. but it viii cost YOU
s. Very well" said the prohibition
man. here IL IS. now hurry hack" Uncle