New-York tribune., 1921-06-21
I)rvs Clash as
Leaders Crack
Whip in House
Eactional Breach Widens
at Committee Hearing;
Tactics of Volstead and
Wheeler Are Resented
Campbell Leads Revolt
Fess and Pou Wary of Going
Too Far on Dry Issue;
ar,ri-lseer Bill i'm Senate

WASHINGTON, June 20.-The SEN
ere started a race with the House to-
Sav to outlaw meolcaI beer, while pro-
h;bitionists wrangled among them
selves in House Rules Committee
hearing on the new Volstead bill and
w;dened the breach in the dry forces
which has appeared in the hast few
days.
The Senate's dip into the prohibition
question came when Senator Willis, of
Ohio, a Republican, introduced spe-
cial bin containing the beer and other
uncontested sections of the Volstead
before the Prohibition Commissioner
promugates medical beer regulations
authorized by former Attorney General
Palmer.
The determination of Chairman Vol
stead Of the House Judiciary Commit
tee, Wayne 3. Wheeler, Anti-Saloon
League counsel, and others of the ex-
treme drys to pass the Volstead bill in
its present form, which contains other
provisions which chemical manufacture
ers insist threaten their business,
brought forward the possibility that
the Senate would vote its ban on medi-
cal beer in advance of the House. The
House Rules Committee again post
poned action on the special rule sought
to rush the passage of the Volstead
bill.
The acrid discussion in the House
committee reached its climax to-day,
when Chairman Campbell. of Kansas,
listed with the drys, rebelled at the
tactics of Representative Volstead and
Mr. Wheeler and declared he did not
"take kindly to criticism from men
who have been making business of
prohibition"
The trouble came to a head when
Alfred D. Van Buren,, former head of
the legal division Of the prohibition
unit, appeared as a dry witness. He
sisting that such important questions
as are contained in the new bill should
be freely and fully discussed"
representative Voistead then heated
ly told the committee that "discuss. n
in the House would be entirely fruit
less and there would be nothing to be
gained"
Representative John Philip Hill, of
Maryland, cited a statement by Mr.
YOlstead in which the latter said: "If
we can pass it now, without raising
discussion, no one will know anything
about it,"
Sentiment in the committee was run
ming against the dry forces. Repre-
sentative Pou, of North Carolina, In
sisted once that "there is a feeling
throughout the country that the
provisions Of the Volstead act are a
little severe and should not be made
more severe" Again Mr.. Pou asked if
ho ,f
writing don'ts."
Mr.. Volstead's attention was called
by Chairman Campbell of the Rules
Committee to provisions in his new
legislation which would permit the en-
forcement officers TO prevent the manu-
facture or sale of liquid which it is
charged is being used for beverage
purposes.
You would put every manufacturer
at the mercy of any one with per-
yerted taste said Representative Pou.
They could stop the manufacture of
tnlngs which no ordinary man could
drink"
In introducing his anti-beer bill in
the Senate to-day Senator Willis
stressed the necessity of early action
II the breweries are not to be opened.
In addition to prohibiting the prescrip-
ton Of beer as medicine, the measure
would provide that not more than the
same amount of alcohol in wine may be
prescribed within ten days than is now
authorized for spirituous liquors, which
is one half pint.
Senator Willis said his bill embodied
uncontroverted issues in the Volstead
supplemental prohibition bill now
pending in the House.
DR.. Z. c. Dinwiddie, former legisla-
tive superintendent of the Anti-Saloon
League, conferred with the President
at the White House to-day and can
vassed the entire prohibition enforce
ment situation with. the President.