The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1919-12-12


the Teaboard., The ensuing year
promises tn be normal and may yi~hi
basis OF more reliable comparisons.
CONFTS(.AT'ED ARDENT Spirits
Most Of the liquor seized by officers
is destroyed as 1t Is unit for medicinal
use and uuprnftable to have the al
+, cohoi extracted, but a considerable
quantity has been set aside--10, 500
gallons said To be suitable for mcdici-
nal purposes, and this was distributed
among the druggists who nrc licensed
4 to I'll prescriptions for ardent spirits
and small quantities TO a few ply
stcians for use In the practice Of their
profession. Most of this liquor Is sent
( directly from the jail or court house
when ordered by the court to be
| turned over to the commissioner. TO
| tho purchasing druggist and there Is
little OF It that finds It's way to q
small store room kept for the purpose
at Richmond. This store room In not
| very secure and cannot be made so
! except Mt considerable expense and
then would not be safe for whisIey
without Waterman This place has
| been broken into on two occasions
| and small quantities go gallons on
| one occasion. five gallons on another)
stolen. Since then il there has been
| Any SpIflts ON manu- nave n Wattu~
! man until they are disposed Of IT Is
regularly as the quantity Is small and
| most OF the time there is none on
| hand
CpNFISCATED VEHICLES
considerable number of vehicles
seized for unlawful transporting ar
! dent spirits were at first released
under specious pleas of defense set
up oF aggressive attorneys, but late
| decision by the supreme court of APP
| peais in the case of I.andors VIZ. Com
monwealth. enables the state to en-
force it's statute and two effects may
be anticipated. first there will he
greater discrimination against boot
| leggers' by dealers In automobiles
and second. more of those seized will
! be sold for the benefit OF the Literary
| fund. This year a little less than
$4,000 of revenue has actually been
paid into the state treasury. but the
! clerks OF the courts are not REQUIRED
] TO report such nanies txcept at in
! frequent intervals So that ii is impos-
/ sible to know exactly how much net
| revenue the school funds will receive
/ from this source.
| PART II.
! Financial statement.
! This exhibit needs little comment
The appropriation for this department.
has never been adequate. Had the ap-
| preparation been larger the law might
! have been much better enforced Less
| liquor would have been consumed less
| crime would have been committed the
policy of prohibition better indicated
! and the revenues would have been cor
respondingly larger. But there rs no
use in crying over split milk
The enemies of the law have often
declared TO the public that this arbro-
priati0n is d draft upon the school
| funds, Had there been a larger ex-
pendit}ire than revenue derived there
would still have been no draft upon
the schools because the supervisiou Of
the enforcement OF this law is worth
many times the cost ef that supervi-
sion and the direct enforcement by this
department Independent of enforcement
| by local authorities Is worth far more
to the education cf tha youth BY i'm
proved moral conditions than many
times its cost: but as a matter OF fact
tho enforcement of the law has Welded
tapart from and in addition 20 its
moral beneftsl nearly q half million
dollars TO the school fund and the dc
partment itself has turned into the
hands Of the treasurer for the school
fund more tran $4,000 in excess Of au
II has drawn from the treasury since
it's foundation, Let the naked figures
in table 30" speak for themselves and
let the carping critics be honest
For the ensuing bennium the aa-
nropriation should be more adequate
than il has been tn the past and the
results will be better 1t lis said by
some that tho federal government has
row set up machinery for the erfasce.
nnent OF its Jaw and there liz no Noes
sity for an appropriation. Never Was
.fa- fnfl hn ~ ThA fNA
erai amendment provides for concur
rent Jurisdiction. by which Il means
that both state and federal govern
, ments shall enforce the law Tho fed
eral authorities not only do not have
exclusive jurisdi ction. but they
svowedly declare that with a limited
| force they are here TO assist the state.
not to assume exclusive authority. Re
sides even * the federal government
had appropriated to Virginia suffi-
cient sum OF money land il has .notl
TO enforce this Law exclusively, then
every case would be tried In the Ted
eral courts. every fine and every CON
rscation would be turned into the fed
eral treasury and :he, school children
This reform express so much soiicitude,
would lose more than $4,000 per
annum whic', they are now receiving.
think that this department will re-
quire less and less each year throuEh-
on, a generation and may he suspend
ed altogether in the future. but that
condition has not arrived aud for the
ensuing year there shouid be an arpro-
priation of $4,000 and the following
wear $4,000. max ing total of $685.
GOO for the btennium.
PART III.
n~sults-
The results of the policy of prohibit
ton ~ a state poIicy--notwithstand
| ing the confusion incident to state
| of war. the revolutionary change in
| the habits and customs of the peopie.
| the inadeaaacy OF the appropriation
| for the enforcement Of the law and
the sale n pert 81 the time Of ardent
| spirits in nearby bordering states, and
! the frequent changes in the Law by
statutes. state and federal, and the de-
velorment Of court decisions affecting
the law---are good. only good. and good
altogether AZ reflected in n compa rison
OF before and after conditions. eco
- he ezsy[ angay