The sun., 1919-10-29
PORTER TO ACT
TO CLOSE BARS
HERE AT ONCE
Enforcement of Dry Law
Waits on Activity of
U. S. Agent.
SALOON MEN DEFIANT
"Whiskey" Is Sold Openly in
Practically All the Sa-
looms in the City.
SALOON MEN DEFIANT

Now that the Senate has left no fur
ther doubt about it the only thing left
for New York to do is to watch what
Lieut. Col. Daniel L. Porter and his
Internal Revenue Agents do to the de-
fiant Ganymedes who continue to dis
pense alcoholic drinks of more than
half of 1 per cent. kick.
The Colonel was sick yesterday;
stomach trouble. his secretary said.
But he'll be at his office to-day and it
will be quite as we'll for all publicans
to stay home. for last night Daniel c.
Roper, Commissioner of Internal Rev
enue, telegraphed Col Porter to do his
duty. Moreover United States Attor-
ney Caffey let 1t be known that he
needed no word from any one concern
ing his programme. The law, ne de-
clared, made it illegal to sell liquor
and those who sold it might expect
nothing but unfriendly treatment from
his office.
From the looks of things last night
the Colonel AMI Mr.. Caffey need not
fear that time will weigh heavily upon
them. The Internal Revenue Agents
| probably will be rushed with work to-
day. Park Row was no drier than
usual last night and one had no need
of suffering from thirst in any of the
Harlem public houses that long since
repudiated Congress. You could pur-
chase all the 2.75 you wanted at any
one of a score of West Side saloons
and. If you could stand it. there was
, an unlimited amount of "whiskey' to
| be had.
Broadway was trying to look uncon-
| cerned as usual, but lack of enthusiasm
| featured the nonchalance of the cafe
! and restaurant proprietors Capt. Jim
Churchill. who used to be a policeman
| and therefore believes thoroughly In the
| observance of law and order. said that
his place had been getting along without
| booze and would continue to do so.
Samuel Slavin, proprietor of the Cafe
| de Paris said that the absence of liquor
had cut down his patronage trifie but
| that he was doing nicely. The Moulin
| Rouge people contemplate something
radical such as the installation of a
| table d'hote dinner or something.
New Workers to Stay Home.
Other places along the famous thor
| oughfare are keeping up brave front
| and their prcprietors are trying TO be
| philosophc about It. But there is a
| general feeling that it's going TO be
tough winter for some of the cafe own
ers and that a lot of New Workers ara
| going to see a lot more OF their own
hresides than they ever did before.
| On the Bowery and up in The Bronx
things seemed to be going along as
| usual. Beer OF the 2.75 per cent. alcohol
variety was being quaffed in generous
| quantities and villalnous whiskey was
| being handed out to all those citizens
who had the necessary money.
There was of course a decrease in
| the number OF places where you could
| purchase anything you wished, provided
you were rich enough. But even some
| of the Broadway cafes-uptown for the
most part-were dispensing beer and
sterner stuff as of old.
From Jersey came the same story.
Here and there favorite cafe OF bar
room yielded up the ghost-Murray's s
| place at Broad and Market streets, New
! ark. for instance. But the general deci-
| sion on the part OF the innkeepers was
| TO the effect that they'd die game,
| Virtually everybody who has had any
| thing to do with booze of any sort
| those who made 1t, those who sold It
| and those who drank it-had statements
to make. William II. Anderson, super
intendent of the Anti-Saloon League of
New York. not TO be outdone, came for
ward with statement setting forth his
' NM NIlt,,.ar % IAaV
| Wilson and Samuel Gompers.
Hugh r, Fox, secretary of the United
States Brewers Association. accused the
drys in the House of Representatives of
| sharp practice" II. ]. Schaefer, presi-
dent OF the New York State Brewers
Association. declared that he and his
| fellow brewers will turn out a cereal
beverage that will be we'll within the
alcoholic limits of the Volstead bill until
the courts have decided upon the con-
| stitutionality of prohibition generally.
| Dry Stretch Ahead.
But II was the general impression
| among those whose interest in booze
was merely that OF the consumer that
prohibition WAS with us for a long. long
while and maybe forever and that the
only hope in sight was the possibility
OF "a-lington decidlng that the war
| was over and that there could be no
wartime prohibition because there wasn't
| any war,
There ls much talk about the losses
| of those bankers who still held bonded
warehouse receipts for whiskey. Time
was when such receipts were looked
| upon with great favor as safe credit in
struments But Percy II, Johnson. vice
| president OF the Chemical National
Bank. declared that he did not believe
that bankers had been foolish enough
| TO cling to these receipts.
| Mr.. Johnston declared that the state
u Continued on Second PGOe.