The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1917-03-17
PROHIBITION CHANGES
WET" PRESS VIEWS
Newspapers That Opposed Prohibi-
ton Now Declare That 1t Is
Great Success
SAY STATE WILL CONTINUE DRY
Should Question Ever BE Submitted,
They Assert. Vote For Prohibition
VIII Be Three 80 One-Unquestion-
ably "A Success.

ing Of prohibition to the District or
Column bia. How these assertions were
convincingly answered by the -Sa :
loon league forces and how the ef-
forts of the whskey people failed Is
now history.
Perhaps the most convincing Of the
arguments against the saloon came
from clements formerly opposed to
prohibition, among these being the
wet" press OF the states notably OF
Virginia, in which prohibition had
been given trial. Tho following letter
by DR.. James Cannon. Jr.. of the VT
ginia Anti Saloon league, to the editor
Of the Washington Herald presents the
case.
Liquor Mans False Statement.
February IL. 1917.
Editor Washington Herald,
Washington. d. c.
Dear Sir,--My attention has been
called to a statement in the issue OF
I your paper of Thursday, February 8,
made by Mr. Robert HALEY, secretary
Of the National Liquor Dealers as
| ISOLATION, concerning the operation or
the Virginia prohibition law.
The statement was as follows:
Look at Virginia. They claim the
Old Dominion is dry but such Is not
The case, II am correctly informed.
~ pbSScu tiIIpHEu GINA yGntot-
day. ! noticed An array OF dead SOL
Hers at about every crossroads sta
ton that we passed"
As | am somewhat posted as to the
operation OF the Virginia prohibition
iaw, ! might make n statement myself
IN reply to the above, but l will give
! extracts from statements made quite
! recently by papers In Virginia which
d, pposed the statewide law, but which
now openly and frankly admit that
the law is a great success, and the
testimony of these papers might be
multiplied almost to every paper pub
lished in Virginia,
( The Richmond Evening Journal OF
( January 20 says OF bitterly opposed
Trohibition):
"Wct" Papers Regenerated.
Three months OF prohibition in
Virginia have done more to convince
skeptics OF the desirability of the
measure than all the arguments put
forth by the dry advocates for years
prior to the passage OF tho Mapp law.
We doubt II there Is a newspaper in
he state that remains unregenerated
On the question. Numbers OF the
teneficient workings of tho prohibit
zion statute are so marked that the
stuhbornness wet contender must
perforCe yield. The state has
made no mistake in banishing the
menace of the open saloon, and that
Virginia Will never 30 back to the
old regime cannot be questioned"
The Petersburg Indcx-Appeal which
was exceedingly wet now declares:
Prohibition has been given q trial
Of three months duration In Peters
turg. The evidence for and against
the law has been weighed with ex-
treme care by all thoughtful persons
The verdict based upon this ninety
lay trial "a well-nigh for the law. II
is hut stating a fact to say that many
who voted against prohibition have
rold the Index Appeal they would not
vote TO bring liquor back to the
state. The quart a month has beer
tut little In evidence. While It may
he that men are getting drunk in pri
yate with that lone quart and sucl
others as they are able to obtain. the
fact that public drunkenness has dis
.9ppeared from Petersburg IL not Il
te questioned. This alone Is suffi
clent in the minds OF many to justif,
he law"
For Prohibition by Three to One.
Perhaps the most interesting testi
mony OF all is that from tho Rich
mond labor organ, Tho Square Dea
winch declares.
prohibition has not had any bat
effects on industry, generally, but II,
moral effect on the state at large hal
been wonderful Working men, WHIT
formerly spent much time. as we'll a!
money In barrooms. nro now spend
,ng that time and money in theil
homes. The attendance and interes
in tho meetings OF the unions hal
shown a decided Improvement Thu
has had good effect on the condi'
tons OF the work RS. a = the poed
hilities for the future are far-reach.
ing. We are firmly convinced tina,
were the question submitted to the
voters OF Virginia. today, after three
months experience, that the people
OF the state would vote three to ont
in favor OF the continuation OF pro.
hihltion"
The Times-Hcrald. OF Newport
News. says:
prohibition In q wuccesr in vir
rfnia from every point OF view
We have no means Of knowing how
much drinking Is oone in the homes
but drunkenness on the streets hat
almost entirely Disappeared: petty
crime has been reduced to small pro-
portions: the Jail population has beer
reduced by half and the efficiency OF
labor has been considerahl increased
Business has been benefited and not
injured, and merchants are high in
their praise OF prohibition for much
money that was formerly spent in the
/ saloons Is now spent in the stores for
general merchandise. Prohibi
/ ton is unquestora a success In
| Virginia. and we have no doubt that
| IL would prove equally SO IN other
! States similarly situated"
! More testimony could be given, but
his is certainly enough to overwhelm
'he testimony OF Secretary HALEY, OF
the Liquor Dealers association, who
obtains his evidence riding through
the state on train. and apparently
FLOATING over dead soldiers lying
out drunk at the crossroads stations.
IT he will specify the stations where
ho ciaime he saw such ""dcal sol
liers," it Is probah' ytrue that 1t can
lie proven that he was simply "see-
ing things at night"
Yours sincerely.
JAMES CANNON, Jr.,
Suppriptp1daot ANTI Saloon