Arizona republican., 1919-03-18
DREWERS' DEF|
 |S BACKED UP
 BY EL|AU ROOT
Beer Makers to Proceed Making Regular" Bever- age Right of President Questioned-Point of In toyication Debatable - Revenue Officials Are Non -committal
Republican A. p. Leased Wire1

NEW YORK. March 17.-Announce- ment of the intention of the lager brewers board of trade to ignore the government definition of non-intoxi- cants vas made today, following unanimous adoption of a resolution advocating le"al action to test valid ity of the presidential proclamations and internal revenue regulations, based on the food conservation laws of Aug ust 10. 1917, and November 21. 1918. The latter act, providing for war time prohibition. already has been chal- lenged as to it's constitutionality in a stockholders suit filed here in the fed eral court.
 The board also recommended that it's membership could proceed. accord ing to the Root-Guthrie opinion and that in case of proceedings or threat e1ed proceedings against any of them by the commissioner of internal rev enue, the defendants at once commun- icate with the board. ''So that there may be harmony and consistency in the. conduct of legal proceedings to protect the rights of the brewers
 The opinion was addressed 10 Chris tan W. Feigenspan of Newark, presi- dent of the United States Brewers as sociation. with which the New York board is associated
 Root Is Brewers Counsel
 Elihu Root and William D. Guthrie. counsel for the brewers. based their opinion, it was stated, upon an assur- ance by their clients that malt liq- uors which contain not to exceed 2.75 per cent of alcohol by weight, or 33 per cent by volume, are not intoxi- eating" and that this could be "es- tabiished by the evidence of experts and other competent witnesses The lawyers declared that there is no provision in the acts of congress which authorizes any executive officer | or the government to determine what | malt liquors are. in fact, intoxicating, or to prescribe any fixed test or stan dard for determining when malt bev- erages shall be deemed intoxicating
 They added, the opinion that the < proclamations of the president dated January 30 and March 4, 1919, author 1 lze the use of grain and other food products In the production of malt li- quorS which are not, in fact intoX- icating. and that the act of November T, 1918. (containing tha war-t time pro-
 hibition clause) does not apply to non intoxicating beers''
 The conclusion we have reached, therefore the opinion continues. "is that brewers may lawfully disregard the interpretation placed by the com missioner of internal revenue upon the act of November 21, 1918, and upon the president 'sproclamations above re- ferred to. insofar as such interpreta- ton would prohibit the manufacture of malt beverages containing more than one-half of one per cent, and not
 to exceed 2.15 per cent of alcohol by
 weight, or 3.3 per cent by volume
 Need Not Fear Seizure
 In reference to the suggested in- junction against government interfer-
 ence with the brewers announced
 plan of action their counsel advised
 that 'the supreme court of the United
 States had clearly decided that a suit
 may be thus brought against federal
 officer, acting TT threatening to act in
 excess of his authority, or under an
 authority not validly conferred It
 seems to us reasonable to assume
 that, if such a suit were pending, the
 government would not proceed sum-
 marily by way of seizure or arrest, but would cooperate to bring about a
 speedy determination by the courts of
 the grave questions involved"
 In pre-War days. according to off
 cers of the brewers board of trade, beer contained on the average. S14 per cent alcoholic content. The 234 , per cent standard was established un- der the food conservation law of 1917 by President Wilson, who decreed that after January l, 1919, no malt liquor ,, except ale and porter, should be man ufactured with greater percentage of alcohol
 Revenue Officers Mum WASHINGTON, March 17-Offi- cials of the internal revenue bureau declined to comment openly tonight on an announced decision of New York and New Jersey brewers to resume |, manufacture of beer containing 2S, ! per cent alcohol, pending examination l of the brewers statement of legal au- thority for the action.
 ;. Beer containing one-half of one per cent or more of alcohol, by volume, is r considered intoxicating by the internal Q revenue bureau. Officials explained n that this standard was based on q 5, number of lave and court decisions in : the past, and was not an arbitrary Il executive ruling.
 On the face of the situation, it was . said unofficially by some bureau off e cials, the brewers action would con. e stitute direct violation of a recen
 revenue bureau ruling.
 h Edgar Rickard, acting food admins = trator in the absence of Herber 0 Hoover. said tonight that the food ad
 ministration was no longer interested
 in the question of the brewing of bee
 from a food standpoint and that tn.
 alcoholic content of beer was a matte e entirely up to the bureau of interna s revenue to determine
 $ A letter, MT. Rickard said, has beer s written Secretary Glass at the secre d tary's request, outlining the food ad
 ministration'S policy regarding food