The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1916-12-28
FOR
NATION'SCAPITAL
Vets Give Up Struggle when
Senate Ties Vote 80 to SO.

The capital of the United States will
be dry city before Thanksgiving, 1917
There is no doubt about this. The
citizens of Washington and Americans
end foreigners who frequent this town
may make up their minds to it right
now. for the vets gave up the fight
several evenings ago when the Senate
in committee of the whole divided, 50
to SO, upon the proposal to let tax
payers Of the District say whether
they wanted prohibition.
Senator Hughes, leader of the vets,
said that no fight would be made upon
the bill itself when it was placed on
final passage, There will be no roll
CALL which will ease the mind OF many
a member of the Senate whose convic-
tons do not square with the supposed
wishes of his constituents.
As it has been pointed out, the House
OF Representative is certain to pass
the bill when it comes from the Senate.
Both party whips ard several members
who are violently opposed to prohibi-
ton gave positive assurance that the
bill would be passed. The majority
will be so safe that the chances are
there will be no roll-call in the House.
either. There is no disposition upon
the side of the vets at least to place
their fellow members IN hole"
This puts the questioned dry Wash
ington up to the President. Mr.. Will
son is not teetotaler and does not fol-
low his esteemed William Jennings
Bryan to quite the length stated by the
Nebraskan in his declaration of the is
sues of the campaign of 1920. How
eyer, trustworthy information from the
White House makes safe the prediction
that the President will not veto the
Sheppard bill.
Prohibition is one of the few sub
jects now under consideration here
which is of countrywide interest. The
politicians all are afraid of the subject
Few of the Senators and Representa-
tives who are'voting dry do so from
conviction, but because they are afraid
of the thEeats made by the anti liquor
lobby.
The Sheppard bill, imposing a pro.
hibition law on the District Of Column
bia, will 90 into effect IN November,
1917. Briefly, it provides that no IL
quor of any sort may be sold within the
limits of the district. All saloons and
hotel bars will be forced out of bust
ness. 1t is provided, however, that
residents and visitors may bring in
liquid supplies "for their own use.
The vote in the Senate was painful
shock to those who. believed that by
means of the referendum they would be
able to devitalize the prohibition bill.
There were two chances-first, chat the
people might vote against it, and,
second, that the Supreme Court might
declare the bill unconstitutional be.
cause of the referendum. The wets
were particularly grieyed at the vote Of
Senator Phelan, of California, not E
prohibition state. Mr.. Phelan was
counted on particularly because it was
to please him that the recent discrimina
ton of the wine taxes against Cali
fornia was changed.
The tie vote of SO to 38 will not be
changed, because the twenty Senators
not voted are accounted for by pre-.
viously arranged pairs. Had Vice.
President Marshall been in the chair he
could have broken the tie and passed
referendum amendment.
The two Indiana Senators voted with
the vets, and some say Mr.. Marshal
would have been with them. Others
say he is dry. But Mr.. Marshall left
for Arizona, so no help is to be expect.