Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1920-01-20

IROPOS OF the supreme courts fve-tO-
~ four decision UNFOLDING the constitu-
tionaIty Of the Volstead wartime pro-
hi0ltion act. The SEATTLE TIMES Cnd.)
says that the last hope of the vets" has
vanished The OMAHA BEE (Rep.) calls it
the forecast of the end" the PITTSBURG
DISPATCH Ind) says "the prevention
would appear to be absolute" and the SAN
ANTONIO EXPRESS (Ind. Dem.) rejoices
that due process Of 1aw-and of lawmaking
has combined all the way down the line
of these statutory and constitutional often
siVes to overthrow the liquor business and it's
autocratlc malpractice in this country
suppression OF the saloon adds the NEW
YORK MAIL Gnd.), is no longer debat-
able issue 1t is an accomplished fact
Moreover, the SIOUX CITY JOURNAL
(Rep.) thinks 1.-The court is not only proper
ly interpreting the letter and the spirit of
the Constitution, but it is interpreting the
spirit of the age" and the SALT LAKE DES-
ERT NEWS Qnd.) is likewise persuaded that
the moral sentiment of the country has
been nobly indicated and decisiveIy sus-
tained
Even this latter paper however is not
predicting that the friends Of John Barley
corn are ready to give him up for dead Such
a prediction would be rash indeed In fact
the NEW RORK WORLD (Dem) believes
the hight has only begun. THE decisions, it
says, makes prohibition continuing issue
II the eighteenth amendment is sustained"
eff this congress can determine that any,
thing containing more than one-half of one
per cent of alcohol is intoxicating another
congress can fix the maximum at one-hun-
dredth part of one per cent, or at 20 per
cent. Likewise it is to be assumed that in
as much as the state legislatures are to have
concurrent powers with congress under the
eighteenth amendment there will be 40 con-
sttutlonal arblterS of intoxication, and the
supreme court will then have to determine
winch is the final authority, or whether there
is final authority"
This, as the BALTIMORE NEWS lind.
points out, is simply declaring that "the
question whether prohibition shall be abso-
lutely or moderately enforced is political and
therefore fit subject for political issues One
could conceive at once a new party align
ment; high percentage versus low percent
age, taking the place of high versus low
tariff. Fifty-four forty or fight might be-
come 'two-seventy-f1ve or fight" The CHAT
TANOOGA TIMES (Ind. Dem.) notes that
congress may now declare anything intoxi-
eating whether so in fac or not, and the
'BOSTON POST Qnd. Oem) says that point
VIII surely come up one day or another"
This apparent flying in the face of facts is
thought y some to contain elements of
future discOrd. If prohibition can be made
effective only by extending it to beverages
which, as matter of fact, are not intoxicat-
ing" declares the PHILADELPHIA IN
SC1ISC1S \IC6p'J, Lu6u the puDl1C common
sense and conscience will revolt against a
palpable and injurious absurdity." The
tack of enforcing new rule of life on an
unwilling and uncOnsenting fraction of the
population" the PHILADELPHIA PUBLIC
LEDGER (Ind.) thinks, ''the public common
sense and conscience will revolt against a
palpable and injurious absurdty." The task
of reinforcing a new rule of life on an I'M
willing and unconsentin. fraction of the
population" the PHILADELPHIA PUBLIC
LEDGER (Ind) thinks, will be long and
difficult" the NEW YORK TRIBUNE (Rep)
regards this particular item as only an ex-
ample of the fraud, humbug and hypocrisy
of the wartime prohibition measure, and the
ST. LOUIS POST DISPATCH (Dem) is
prompted to ask: "Will the constitution be
reduced by acts of congress, affirmed by the
supreme court, to one-haIf of one per cent
of it's original content?"
The chief hope of the "wets," apart from
the apparent latitude given to congress to
say what percentage of alcohol is "intoxicat-
ing" lies in the chance either that the
eighteenth amendment itself may be set
aside by the courts as improperly ratified, or
that it's language may be construed as am
biguOus. The amendment provides that
congress and the several states shall have
concurrent power of enforcement. The
NEW YORK SUN lind Rep observes that
the amendment is unique" in this respect
and leaves the question of enforcement
"open to doubt until interpreted by the
courts. AS to the constitutionality of the
methods pursued by several states in ratify
ing the PITTSBURG PRESS (Ind.) tells us
that while it is probably 'forlorn hope,
still it may be argtel that those states hav-
ing referendum requirements thus making