The Washington times., 1917-12-13

First the wisdom of using the Constitution of the
United States to please small band of fanatics eager have
their way at any costs.
Congress is urged to change the Constitution to obiire
the prohbtonss and give them via the Constitution leg
were willing.
and the Saturday Evening Post and editor Of the Phade
pha Ledger is certainly enemy Of real temperance and
no enemy of the prOhibtiOnist He has always been an
In his newspaper the Evening Public Ledger, he had
this to say Tuesday last:
We have repeatedly pointed out in these columns
that to prostitute the Constitution purposes of les
laon is to undermine the authority Of that instrument
and imperl thereby the stability of the Government
ton has ben thy vehicle or If nScv
Not even the Monroe doctrine has been incorporated into
the fundamental law. To compel all the States to
form to the police regulations of majority Of the States
would be to destroy local government which, within the
corpus OF vast soveregnties, well in colonies has
been found by human experience to be vital to content
ment among citizens.
This statement in mir Curtis paper covers the ground
completely regards the of the Constitution obge
few fanatics that Congress fears and often obeys.
Every Congressman knows well that it Is outrageous
to change the Constitution in order to workngmen
and obge extremists it would be to change that Consu
ton to regulate the price of coal the distribution Of
atoes But nothing sacred to the nsistent gentlemen Of
the cewaer persuasion who believe they should have the
entire force of Government with Congress their servant
and the Constitution of the United States their payhng
If congressman vote to change the Constitution Of the
United States order to please the League
der threats of political backma they are obeyng black
mailing threat, and they know it.
As the merit of the suggestion that absolute prohibit
ton should be fastened upon the country in wartime that
well dealt with in the following brief statement from Mr.
Hoover in charge of the nations food problem Said Mr.
Hoover: -.
bear in mind that such pursued THE C0UN
TRY WOULD BE PLACED UPON A Whisky BASIS
entirely"
That tells the story If Congress allows the fanatics to
have their way the workers upon whom the nation depends
for efficiency in war will be compelled to take wiskey or
cewaer-they will have choice between the two. It Is
well known that not all the workers will select ice water
and there is plenty of whiskey
There still in existence and may be sold legally hun
dreds of thousands of barrels of whiskey
And there are more than twenty thousand criminals
manufacturing whskey secretly in the United Sateshou
sands of them have been arrested during the past
Government officials and thousands remain undetected
The whskey manufactured and ready for sale, the
unlimited quantities of icty distilled whiskey that would
be produced the manufacture OF the harmless mild stmu
ants were suddenly stopped would flood the country with
poison and with disaster.
There good many Democrats in the House Of Rep
resentaves that profess respect for Thomas Jefferson
He lived in the United States when the brewing of beer
was practically unknown when, he said whiskey killed
third Of the people and ruined their families He advo
Gated the brewing of light beer because he knew-and his
tory since his day has proved him rghhat workngmen
using light beer would be safe from drunkenness whereas
with whiskey they never could be safe.
He said in his famous letter to Charles Yancey
There is before the assembly (of Virgna) petition
Of Captain Miller, which have at heart because have
great esteem for the petitioner an honest and useful man
He about to settle In country and to establish brew
cry in which art think him skiful has ever
come to America. WISH TO SEE THIS BEVERAGE
eight beer) BECOME COMMON INSTEAD OF THE
WHISKEY which kills third of citizens and ruins
their families He is staying with until he fix himself
and should thankful for information from time time
of the progress of his petition"
There you have Jeersons opinion of beer compared
with whiskey is hardly necessary to say what Jefferson
would think of the proposition to make of the Constitution
legislative tool for fanatics and the time put the
country upon permanent whskey basis by preventing the
use of the light and harmless stimulants.
Jefferson denounced whiskey and President Wilson has
forbidden its future manufacture
Jefferson praised friend of real temperance the light
beer that is taken without injury or drunkenness.
And the President of the United States has just issued
proclamation regulating the alcoholic content of beer limit
of fntalin