The Wenatchee daily world. [volume] (Wenatchee, Wash.) 1905-1971, 1909-03-05
BAD WEATHER
FOR WH|SKEY
CONGRESS FRAMING 1T UP TO
PUT EXPRESS COMPANIES OUT
OF THE LIQUOR BUSINESS.

Washington, d. c., March 5.-Ex-
press companies are in danger of
being driven out of the liquor bust
ness in "dry" territory. 1t may not
be generally known they are in the
saloon business, but they are, and
are making money hand over fist.
The game is this: Distillers ship
original packages in small quanti-
ties across the state line into prohi-
bition states addressed to John
William Jones" and other fake
names, sending the packages G.. o. D.
All the man with thirst has to do
is to go in the express office and ask
for a package addressed to "John
Brown" He gets it and pays the
charges. This shipment is lawful
because it is interstate.
But the house of representatives
has just passed an amendment to
the penal code bill which prohibits
this sort of thing. If the senate
does its part-if it does-"dry" ter
ritory will really be dry"
The amendment as it passed the
house prohibits:
The shipment of any Interstate
package of intoxicating liquors to
be collected for on delivery.
oh nf %D
persons giving fictitious names
The handling of any package that
does not indicate plainly on its face
the consignee and the amount of
liquor contained therein.
Any railroad or express company
handling the forbidden shipments of
the above character is subject to a
$4,000 fine or Imprisonment for two
years of it's officer or agent Ship
ments to bona fide consignees can
be delivered only upon written or
der of consignee himself.
Representative Bartholdt of Mis-
SQUIRT, who represents the saloon and
brewery interests in congress, at
tackled the provision as an invasion
of the rights of the citizens and also
as i'll timed Representatives Parker
of New Jersey and Kusterman of
Wisconsin supported Bartholdt. At
ter the three had talked themselves
hoarse, the amendment passed, 116 to
I34
This is bad weather for whisky
men. The saloonkeepers may be in
different, but the distillers, the rec
filters, the blenders and the whole
salers are in the slough of despon-
dency. Following the panic of 1907,
wave of prohibition swept through
the most industrious whisky drinking
states. Along with this came a
sharp advance in the price of corn.
Following the passage of the anti
express liquor traffic bill comes the
uncertainty of what the pure food
law may do.
Still further down the road the
prohibitionists have erected a sign
reading: National prohibition
1915. So the liquor men have
some cause to be detected. They are
letting out cry of personal liberty
| that can be heard all over the district
of Columbia.
And the blue ribboners are con-
tinuing to do business. They have
mapped out a plan for the sixty-first
congress that is anything but en-
couraging to the saloon interests.
The campaign includes the introduce
ing of a bill providing that an
amendment to the constitution pro-
hibiting the manufacture or sale of
liquor in the United States be pro
proposed to the legislature of the As
states.
Should three-fourths of the state
legislatures ratify the proposed
amendment. the United States would
become nationally dry"
II congress refuses to pass this
bill, the national prohibition commit
tee will try to have three-fourths
Ut the state legislatures petition con-
gress to adopt the amendment. Then
congress wou1d he forced tn do so