The American issue. [volume] (Westerville, Ohio) 1912-19??, 1920-10-22

! dry yardstick, and the submission OF
this amendment Is going 10 measure
every candidate for public Office by
the same wet and dry yardstick until
the final settlement. When l say that.
| have expressed my strongest rea-
son for putting a limitation upon the
tendency of the amendment. ! want
to see this question settled. | want
10 take il out OF the Halls OF Con-
gress and refer it to the people who
must make the ultimate decision. l
want to meet the demand for sub
mission and witness a decision.
So, then, in spite OF its un;imeli-
ness, i'll spite of the lack OF prudence
in submitting It now, since we have
come TO this question of Prohibition
as war measure and there has been
yielding on the one hand against dras-
tic Prohibition in the food bill. | think
this submission is a sort OF COM
promise between the contending
forces, and am willing to be count
cd a compromising agent. All our
great movements are the result OF
Just such endeayors. ] do not hest
tate to say that ! approach the queS-
ton from strong sense OF justice
and if this amendment is submitted
to the people of the United States
and receives the sanction of three
fourths OF the general assemblies
then, it my tenure of office still OBJ
tains. | am willing to 60 further and
join in a movement TO make it effec
tive through a process Of compcnsa-
ton to the business destroyed.
So. then, MIR. President, in these
rather rambling remarks which have
made, rather than turning to some
written ones I wished 10 offer, ! will
say that | should like to see this
amendment adopted, because II ac-
composites one great thing. 1t forces
this great public question 70 a final
settlement within the period OF six
years. We shall have the question
acutely presented until It has been
finally disposed OF within that time.
| am sure that after we have dispos-
ed Of it, we shall find national lcgis
latiye and state legislative duties ad-
justed 10 much more normal lines.
hope that the judgment OF the
Senate will be such that it will agree
to this limitation amendment. ! know
there are arguments against the con-
there can be no argument offered that
will question the validity of the
amendment if it is adopted within the
time prescribed.
On the resolution TO submit the
National Prohibition Amendment,
Senator Harding voted "Yea."
On the District of Columbia Pro-
hibition bill he voted for the Under
wood Referendum Amendment and
then %oted against the bill. He made
the following remarks relative to it
on December II, 1915:
Mr.. President, ] do not rise to dis
ouss the merits of either the bill or
any pending amendment. 1t SO hap
pens that / have an unavoidable en-
gagement which takes me from the
Senate Chamber tomorrow and pos
sib1y the day following, and ! should
dislike to have anybody believe that
l am doing what is popularity known
as "ducking" on an important ques-
ton OF this character. For that rea-
son | am ayailing myself of the privi-
lege or putting into the Record my
position on the pending measure, and
the explanation of that position.
During the campaign in Ohio in
1914, when received my commits
sion to come to the Senate, there
was pending in that state the ques-
ton of constitutional Prohibition. A
good many of the electors were not
content to accept some of US candi-
dates on the record we had made in
Legislation in the General Assembly
of Ohio, and was repeatedly asked
on the stump what my attitude would
be on the question of Prohibition in
the National Congress. objected
then as l should object again,to be-