New-York tribune., 1919-10-28
Sorrow Lodge
OF Saloon Men
Ends ,;oyo'asly
1870 Delegates Whoop as the
News of Veto Comes, and
Funeral Service of 2.75
Is Halted by a Jubilee

There are two black coffins slowed
away on top of clothes cabinets in the
anteroom outside q lodge chamber in
Terrace Garden, in which the Retail
Liquor Dealers Association of New
York met yesterday afternoon. Behind
the g1aas doors Of the cabinets are the
aprons aud ceremonial costumes of the
secret society that usually meets there.
The coffins are used in limitations.
AS the saloonkeepcrs entered the
anteroom the collins met their gaze
One of the delegates, before the meet
ing room door, with its peephoe and
brass knocker, closed behind him,
pointed lugubriously at the grim play
things and SAID to the stalwart, gray
moustached doorkeepcr: "That's us
after to-day" The doorkceper nodded
sadly, and if the other 4S0 delegates,
representing an the saloonkeepers of
the five boroughs, had heard him they.
too, would have agreed. They had met
to adopt & final resolution expressing
the belief that with the passing of 275
per cent beer there remained nothing
for the awabiding sa.oonkeeper but
to close his doors and clip coupons or
so to work--at something else.
Mess>nge Approaches.
Charles L. Iussey, President OF the
association, presided from high
backed ecclesiastical chair that usually
serves as the throne of the head Of
the secret order. He began to read
TO the assemblage the text Of the reso-
luton drawn up by the executive COM
mittoe
Then, through the dense blue haze
OF cigar smoke that cloudcd the lodge
room. sounded three measured raps on
were halted until the bolts had been
pushed back and the door opened. The
! interlopcr was the manager of Terrace
Garden. no longer a saloonheeper but
a firm believer in that practice that is
always referred to by the individuals
in the meeting as personal liberty.
"Yow," he shouted. and having won
their unblnking attention he con
tinued:
"President Wilson has vetoed the
Volstead bill! Search and seizure is
dead"
For moment there was quiet. Then
an overwroupht LIQUOR dealer from,
Grecnpont began to yell He didn't
cheer; he simply made all the noise
possible with his vocal organs. II
another second nearly everybody was
DONG 1t. SAlOoMkcepcrS who haven I
smiled since they were forced to stoor
behind the bar 20 shake a cocktail
hugged one another and tried to dance
Doubling Thomases Present
There were few cautious one:
= there who said they'd wait for thei,
lawyers opinion before giving any
: cheers. In fact, two of them left tn,
meeting to telephone to William II
Hirst, counsel for the New York Stat,
Federation of Brewers and the So
cicty of Restaurantcurs.
"We've been fooled too many tine
IN the last few months to get al
heated up on another false alarm :
said one of these as, needless of tn,
waiting elevator, he scampered dow
1 many flights OF stairs to booth in
, closed telephone.
+ 1t wasn't long after that before
c committee came out Of tho lodge room
: with information for the press. rep
Y resented by half a dozen reporters
0 Us members said:
n "Our organization has decided t
: recommend 10 all dealers that the
continue to do business in strict oh
aervancc of the law and that no deale
DC allowed to sell anything in violatio
Of the law. We hope that 2.7b ha
c been preserved by the Presidents ac
0 ton"
: c. J. Riley, city representative of tn
o organization; L. Il. Cunningham,
+ trustee, and Nj, j. Jennings, chairma
8 OF the excise committee, gave out thi
r. review of the proceedings behind tn
lodge room door. They said that aftc