The Cordova daily times., 1916-10-30


 fort to refute the contention Of the EmIire that an intOlerable condition of laWlessnees would result from any attempt to enforce prohibition in Alas ka until this territory secures govern mental machinery that would place crime preventing powers behind the law. They quote excerpts from an ar ticle signed by C. B. B1ethen, which appeared in the Seattle Times of Oc- tober 1G. to justify their position. The excerpts contain those portions of MT. Blethen's letter in which he expresses the opinion that the general results of the Washington law have improved old conditions.
 However, this same article from the pen of Mir. Blethen, considered as whole, completely justifies the posi- tion of The Empire.
 TO start with, the state of Washing ton has not prohibition. The law in that state does not contemplate pro- hibition. It permits anybody to pur- chase liquor in limited quantities by taking out permits to do that Mir. Blethen contends that the permit sys- tenn is not broad enough, that it is so restricted that it does not PERMIT OF THE IMPORTATION OF ENOUGH ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES TO TAKE AWAY THE INCENTIVE TO BREAK THE LAW" Therefore. The Times is urging the adoption of initiative measures that will permit the manufacture of liquor in the state which contains not to exceed four per cent of alcohol and to permit the sale of such liquors at regulated stores and their use in public dining rooms.
 Mr. Blethen's article referred to contains the following. in addition to what appears in the Dry" advertis- ing matter:
 50 far as The Times and its edi- tor are concerned, they will always labor. first, to keep the saloon from returning, and second. in the general cause of temperance. But-the word temperance is here used AND NOT CProhibitionO.
 When the present liquor law was framed great care was taken to make the measure one expressing temper ance rather than prohibition. Provi- sions were more or less carefully thought out under which reasonable quantities of liquor could be secured for home consumption.
 "The framers of the law thought they were thus providing against the bulk Of probable bootlegging and gen eral illicit handling of liquor They thought they had so framed the law that no such gigantic series of crim- ina1 rings would grow out of the na- tural desire of certain men to get the alcohol they crayed. as has sprung into existence in Seattle
 Their failure to accomplish this purpose is we'll exemplified here in this city The permit system was too constructing to permit Of the impor- tatton Of enough alcoholic beverages to take away the incentive to break the law
 "The result was inevitable. It fell to the city administration and it's pc lice force to determine whether the law should he enforced honestly or not The events of the past week speak for themselves.
 q haven't the slightest idea that it will have a chance at the polls. The majority of the people of the state are so thoroughly satisfied with our liquor law they wouldn't change any part of 1t for anything in the world That doesn't change my right to my private opinion that '24 dnititative measure referred to), would prevent to a considerable degree the INCEN- TIVE that exists for corrupt men to form eonspiracies to break the law. that an unsatisfed demand may be met"
 The Washington law permits every man or woman over the age of 2t years to purchase four and a half gal Ions of whiskey and 54 gallons of beer a year. Mir. Blethen says this is not enough to take away the incentive to break the law, therefore a "frightful condition" of crime exists, and The Times urges that the law be made more liberal.
 Now, if a law such as that in the state of Washington, permitting the use of nrarticaHy five gallons of alec l