The Hawaiian gazette., 1918-07-12
CECRETARY OF NAVY
= TELLS OF BENEFITS

CECRETARH Or NAVY
- TELLS OF BENEFITS
WASHINGTON, June 26-Aft Ed
ward n. Hurley, chairman of the Uni
ted States Shipping Board; Percy H.
Johnston, vicc-president Of the Chemi-
cal National Bank of New York; A.
S. Rurleson, postmaster general, and
Samuel Gompers, president Of the Amer
lean Federation Of Labor, had spoken
in opposition to the Jones Prohibition
Amendment to the Emergency Agricul,
! tural Bill, JOsephus Daniels, Secretary
of the Navy, made a profound impress
sion on the committee by his testi-
/ mony in favor of immediate prohibi-
ton. He based his statements not on
what might happen, but OH the actual
results which he had noted in his ex-
perience through the Punishment of the
saloon, from all the fields under the
direct supervision of the navy depart
ment. 60. p.
" Speaking for the ENLISTED men and
personnel Of the Navy" said Secre-
tary Daniels, 81 want to say that the
! elimination Of liquor has increased eff
fieiency in every particular and that
efficacy and its wisdom"
( In every case, he declared, where
there had been change from the open
saloon to prohibition, the results were
the same, and spoke volumes in favor
of the change Further, he declared,
those who were opposed to the change
have since then approved and testified
to the benefits which have accrued to
all concerned. As an illustration of
what the enactment Of dry law could
do for the shipyards, Secretary Daniels
submitted the cases Of Mare Island
San Francisco and Newport, Rhode
Island.
Help to Sailors
The commaudants of these yards, he
said, had repeatedly APPEALED to him
to issue an order prohibiting the sale
of liquor within the fve-mile limit
After full consideration the orders were
put into effect, with marked improve.
ment of work in yards where the eftici.
ency formerly was of a very high or.
der. The saloon, he said, is a tempta-
ton which should not be permitted to
exist and (which ought not to prevail
wherever we wish to secure the highest
possible efficiency"
Speaking Of the general effects of
prohibition Legislation, Secretary Dan.
els told the committee that reasoning
from the change of opinion in districts
which have gone dry there is no req
son whatever to dread dissatisfaction
or to shirk the issue. when the Con
gress of the United States" said the
Secretary of the Navy, tells 1000, 1000
kor
are not to take liquor or go into q
saloon. it cannot be argued that you
are cncroaehing on the rights of in,
dividuals when YOU make these re-
straints universal.
No Food For Booze
eve ought not to ure q bushcl of
wheat for anything which is not Il
prime necessity for eating or for
drinking, much less to- tolerate n
business that is NOT essential an
which lessons cficirnry' concluded
Secretary Daniels.
Edward y. Hurley. chairman Of the
United states Shipping Board, had pre-
| viOuslv declared that ~" reason VIII
the shipping beard md The emergency
feet corporation wcr" opposed to the
enactment Of pr0hihrti"n legislation
was because they Wer" npprehcnsive of
any change that might cOnceivably
/ interfere with the work IN the yards.
Both Mr.. HuTlev aud BrainbrihGy
Colby. whose claim that the taking
away Of light wines and beer wOul
reduce the United States shipyard out
nut twenty-five percent was responsible
for the committees rropening Of the
hearings on the Jones prohibition
amendment 10 the Emergency Agrcul
turul Bill admitted that th"y we're not
speaking from any knowledge of what
actual resrlts might rnsue from the
passage Of the amendment, but de
clared that thew were disinclined to
have any experiments in the yards at
this times In other words. both the
itrrsseS submitted II priOri argu
ments based on tn" assumption that
the banlshnent of the >aloon might
ra"sr abstraction nwong the men
who, thew declare had now reached
high level of efficiency. They ap
Dealed for the maintenance of the
status quo, hut refused to say that
prohibition would hn,r bad results.
"Tn my mind" said Mr.. Hurley
"there is more risk in this prop" ga
than there would be in the conscrip
tion of labor h"rRuS~ # is partia
interference with liberty without any
increase of control. | have oppose
the CONSUMPTION of labor because
have felt that We should 80 long as il
may be possible rely upon the volun
tary and patriotic cooperation OF
American lnhor
Hurley Opposed