The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1911-02-22

1
its repeal because 1t is violated con-
tinuaiiy? oh. no. 1t declares the law
to be good, and greatly needed, and
calls upon the authorities to enforce
il, and, IL necessary. to provide more
severe penalties. Why not call upon
the authorities to enforce the liquor
laws and impose more severe penalties?
] The law of Virginia forbids the main
tenance of houses of impurity, but the
law Is openly and persistently violated.
! Why do not the wet newspaper de-
nand the abolition OF the laws on this
social evil2 They certainly do not pro-
hibit There is absolute lack of logic
I In the position OF these papers.
Tho Proper Test of Failure and Success
The question, els Prohibition a Fall
+. ure o. is not answered by proving one,
or ten, or one hundred violations of
the law. II can, be answered only by
the comparison of conditions under the
licensed saloon and under prohibition.
| Compare the drunkenness, the crimes.
the cost of courts. the school and
| church attendance, the pauperism, etc.
, These are the tests OF the success or
| failure of prohibition. Does prohibition
| better the conditions surrounding the
home life OF the people? Does 1t
diminish the poverty, vice, and crime
! If so, 1t is better than the licensed
| tigers" and men can by ingenuity and
| stealth minister to their coyetousness
and appetites.
Prohibition Success In Virginia Cities
Tested by this, the only proper stand
| ard, prohibition has been a success In
every city In Virginia where 1t has been
| tried The offici statistics from the
court records of the cities Of Winches-
ter. FREDERICKSBURG, Bristol. Stanton,
Clifton Forge, Radford. Suffolk, Lynch
burg and Danviile, where prohibition
has been tried, show that ii is a great
| success and that the licensed saloon
is failure. The statistics from these
cities have been published and have
shown in every case the great improve
ment under prohibition.
/ But have the vet newspapers
published these facts from our own
I Virginia cities to show how prohibi-
ton works in Virginia? The readers
of those papers would not know that
III Suffolk and Lynchburg there were
I twice as many arrests for drunk and
disorderIy conduct In the wet as in
the dry period. and in Staunton
three times as many arrests in wet
| as In ths dry period. and that the
increase in drunken and disorderiy
conduct In Bristol. since the return
/ of the saloon, has been $50 per cent.
and in Danville 800 per cent For
example, the court records of the city
I Of Danvilie show LOSS convictions for
drunkenness in the mayors court for
the past seven months of the wet"
regime. as against 335 for the seven
! corresponding months of the dry"
regime. In "wet Danville during
| December. 1910, there were 40 ar
rests for drunkenness, while in dry
/ Lynchburg. with fifty per cent. more
population, there were only 20 ar
-
burg In is months there were 1.0l2 ar
rests for drunkenness while in the same
period dry" Lynchburg with one third
more population, there were only 1898
arrests for drunkenness. Poor Peters
burg she In Feapthg tire whtriwind.1 The
( Ttmes-Dispatch has refused TO publish
official figures sent It by a prominent
official of Danvtlle, and has publish
ed none of these statistics from Vir-
/ ginia cities. but 1t publishes con-
finally statements made by liquor
| drummers and dram drinkers con-
corning conditions in distant places,
and declares, on the basis of these
reports, that prohibition is a failure.
Your legislative committee believes
that the facts concerning the effect of
prohibition In Virginia cities are all
one way. and that in any discussion
of the probable effect of Statewide
prohibition, no argument as strong
for Virginia as results already OBJ
tanned in the cities of our own State
OF Virginia.
| In North Carolina
But Ii these newspapers desire to
discuss conditions elsewhere, let US
take our next-door neighhor. North
Carolina The prohibitory law was
adopted in that State by a majority
of over 10000. There has been no
question as to Its repeal. The COVER
nor of the State and the chief justice
/ OF the supreme court and Judge
Pritchard. Of the United States court,
have all declared that the law has
been a great success when tested by
/ the real standard OF success: Material.
social and moral improvement. The
! law has been violated. The near
beer saloons have sprung up and the
club locker has been called into ser
vice. but there has been no talk Of
repeal. The people of the "Old North
State" have demanded the abolition
ofthe near beer saloon and OF the
| club locker. and the legislature Is
complying with the demand. and the
Judges OF the courts are sending the
keepers of the blind tigers" to work
on the public roads
In Kansas
In the State OF Kansas the pro-
hibitory law has been in operation for
shiiy years, ABOUT the length of a
generation, and we have a fair an
swsr Ia the, Question. Cana prohibit
tory liquor law he made a success -.
The condition OF Kansas at the pres
/ ent time AS attributed by her lead
ing public men to the effect OF her
Statewide prohibitory law.
What are the facts?
The death rate in Kansas Is the low
est OF any State or nation on earth.
only 7 LIZ per thousand, and under
! prohfpftion the population has in
| creased 100 per cent: more than SO
per cent. OF the county jails are with
out a prisoner and last year one-half
of the counties did not send a pris-
oner to the penitentiary; 81 counties
or los are without an idiot: 81 OUT
Of the los are without an insane per
son in the asylum; SO counties out
| Of los have not an inebriate: 700
newspapers and magazines are pub
lished in the State and 6se OF the
200 will not permit liquor advertise
ments In their columns: iliiterary has
been decreased 20 per cent; the in
t<ease in bank deposits has been from
$40. 900, 600 to $190,0o0,0oo nearly
three-fold. The per capital increase
OF bank deposits In the past ten years
has been from $50 to e11S: the IN
crease of wealth within tho past ten
years has been at the rate Of $780,
100000 per year. The tax rate IL nine