The Washington herald., 1918-03-01

1t Is too bad that general news OF
the world drove to an inside page, and
to a story of moderate length, the
recital of the prohibition hearing be-
fore the New York State Legislature.
The presence of Mr.. Gompers there,
as an advocate supreme of the cause
of moderate drinking, and Of William
J. Bryan as the principal wearer of
the white ribbon marks the occasion
as one of more than passing interest
1t means, in fact, that the prohibi-
tion campaign has reached serious
proportions in this country. 1t means,
just as has been intimated here sew
eral times of late, that labor officials
believe some of the trouble with labor
in war work has been due to the per
sistency of the prohibition cam
paigners, and their oft-repeated state
ments that while the war is on they
mean te take advantage of it, and
secure as strong anti-liquor legisla-
ton as they can secure.
A study of the two men. and their
interest in the question, is the only
Perhaps IL they are analyZed-
Gompers and Bryan-we will know
more about their interest in this fight.
knows them very well.
''Gompers, at Albany, was not
speaking for the brewers or for the
saloon keepers. He was speaking, as
he sincerely believed, for the best in
terests Of labor, and of this country
at the present moment" he said.
"Gompers was not even indorsing
drinking He was indorsing temper
ance-and good common sense mixed
in with every glass OF beer that he
would allow the workmen of the
country to take IL they want IT.
"Gompers held that the reform is too
dangerous to daily with at time like
this. Prohibition. he said, was not
cure all for government wrongs, for
il it were Russia would now be on the
side of the allies and not bending the
knee to German intrigue.
"Mr. Gompers has studied the cues
ton from all angles. He knows work
ers more intimately than any other
man in the nation. he speaks with
more discretion and more influence
with respect to them than any other
man. His is the problem of other
men, the desire to bring about what
is best for the great laboring classes
and for the country which those
classes must serve.
Mr.. Bryan is riding down the home
stretch with a hobby which he first
trotted out when he saw the purse
set up for the one that would race
it to the quarter pole. Mr.. Bryan
has been living for years in the pur-
suit of reform. not particularly that
the reform should come, but because
he keeps alive a certain personal fol-
lowing by it.
''Mr. Bryan, in other words, while
he believes what he is saying. never
theless found first attachment to the
prohibition cause when he realized
what he might do with It as a politi-
cal asset. And as Bryan, the public
man, has kept alive the various hob
bies which he has ridden, naturally
Bryan, the public man, has made a
more formidable showing.
Few public men have made as
much from the platform as has
Bryan-probably not a one living to-
day. And while many earnest prohibi-
ton workers have gone over the
country year in and year out for
years, no small number of them Have
had little to take care of them in
their declining years. Certainly none
of them had a bigger bank account
than Bryan after their spirit advocacy
Of prohibition" -.
From the start of the prohibi-
tion battle we have pitied the po-
sition of President Wilson. For,
particularly, ever since the outset
of the war drive of the prohibit
tionists he has, been between two
scorching fires.
He has had Samuel Gompers'
ideasof the working of the fanat-
icism, and has hesitated thus far
to take from the workmen Of the
East that which he believes them
to be entitled to. But he has had
some of the prohibitionists of the
country, on the other hand, urg-
ing him to strike while the iron
is hot and put into effect, ut once
and without reservation, a strong
prohibition policy.
The particularly enervating fea-
ture of it is that the country real-
ICES that If he only said the word
he could, at almost a moments no.
tice. come out in such a way for
prohibition as would bring about
the accomplishment of the very end
the prohibitionists seek
:. Thus he has been held by some
prehibitionists to be responsible
Cor the fact that the country IL