New-York tribune., 1919-07-13
Half-Million Cut
I'm Police Pension
Fund Due to Drys
Loss of Excise Revenue
May Lower Number OF
Police Who Can Be Put
on Retired List Yearly

Prohibition, which will cost the police
pension fund nearly half a million
dollars annually, threatens to have a
marked effect upon present police poll
cies, as we'll.
Unless some other source of revenue
for the pension fund can be found at
once, it will be necessary to cease
placing men OH the pension list to make
way for younger and more active mem
bers OF the force.
This much became known yesterday,
when it was admitted that this phase Of
the operation Of the dry measure is
being seriously studied by Police De-
partment officials. Figures are being
compiled to show how the police will
be affected by the closing of New
Works bars.
Last year the pension fund received
$430,000 under the regulations that set
aside part Of the state excise tax
for this purpose. The sum next year
would have been somewhat larger. With
the closing Of saloons the entire amount
Will be cut off. Since it has been Com
missioner Enright's policy to retire
every policeman as soon as he reaches
an age permitting his retirement in
order to make way for younger men,
the pension list has grown rapidly.
Also, the sum necessary to meet the
pension roll is increasing.
Representatives of the Association
Opposed to National Prohibition yes
terday made public a statement in
which it was sUAght to show that
churches were not solidly behind the
prohibition movement. Excerpts from
statements by ministers and church,
men representing various faiths we're
quoted. After announcing that the
prohibition workers were being unde-
celved as to the attitude of the Church,
the statement said:
The religious support of the Anti
Saloon League, often referred to by
some of the editorial writer's as the
sectarian sovcts, is largely overesti-
mated. Particularly is this true now
that the so-called wartime prohibition
has been tried out for something like
a fortnight, and while the Anti Saloon
League lobbyists are seeking to pass
the drastic Volstead bill for it's en-
forcenent. Men and women of the
churches are not confusing in their
minds the two questions of temperance
and prohibition. Many of them draw
the line very sharply between the two,
and they fail to see that prohibition
proper or effective way to promote tenn
perance.
1T Is short-sighted contribution
to the cause of temperance writes the
Rev. DR.. Charles H. Parkhurst. Il said
Sc when national prohibition was first
brought up in Congress, and I have
seen no reason since to changes my
mind
The saloon has served g. COM
munity need was the keynote of a
declaration Of principles issued by the
Federal Boards of the Episcopal
Church in launching a drive for
S2OOOO,00O for missions and commun-
ity work last April, and the Rev. Dr..
Robert W. Patton, national director of
the executive committee, now follows
this up saying: You cannot take some
thing away from man without giving
him something in return While the
Episcopal Church has taken no official
action upon the merits or demerits of
national prohibition, and will not, pre-
fcrring that it's members may have
perfect freedom in the exercise of
their varying opinions, it would be an
un-Christian spirit that refused SYM
pathy to those who may be put out of
employment by a national law and to
those also who may have enjoyed the
conveniences and avoided the evils of
places where beverages were sold.
"Continuing in ton altogether diff
ferent from the treat 'em rough man
ners of the moral statisticans of
'holier- -than-thou' faith, DR.. Patton
said: 'Episcopalians everywhere believe
in law enforcement, and now that the
prohibition laws are on the statute
books, of course the church's influence
cannot be exerted any other way than
for the full enforcement of the laws
of the land. The moral or political
phases of prohibition we are not con-
cerned about collectively. Our ind-