Norwich bulletin., 1921-04-01
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
AIcoRolic Drinks

MT. Editor: Some very poppy cor. respondent of morning newspaper pro- poses to throw a monkey wrench" into | the schemes of these "reformers'' who | stand for thou shalt nots'' in legislation. l
 Well, let him start with the Ten Conmandments." Quite a number of l ersons have attempted to monkey" with those commandments ever since theJ were established; usually with poor success, however. Certain very prorni nent persons in New York city are having an experience along that line just now, ] and presumably they do not find the aft ermath especially enjoyable.
 Then as to later-day thou shalt~nots," !" how 1rlany citizens realize that there were no less than seventy distinct pro- hibitions in the constitution of the Unit ed States long before the Eighteenth Amendment arrived? Take down your copy of the Connecticut State Register turn to the text If the Federal Consti- ution and count up the times that nc" "Rot neither" and ''nor,' and similar l words occur in the fundamental law providing specifically and unequivocally certain things that we who live under l that constitution sLall not do. It if | easy enough for cheap guys to snarI al 1 constitutions but men who stop to think know better.
 Every citizen who will think about it knows that every one of the great posi- tive principles and declarations of civil liberty is bulwarked by defensive nego- tiations. as they must be, or no laws can stand. This hullabaloo against
 prohibition is ridiculous
 T.
 to add that al this "holer" for the per
 sonal liberty" to take drink is equal
 ly ridiculous, for the reason that not one citizen of Character of standing can
 be found to defend it in the open.
 Take the call for the return, of '1igh4
 wines and beer.' There is not one citi
 zen of character and standing in Hart ford or anyhere else who will come out and defend the use of Tight wines an, beer as wholesome drink, or the traf ic therein as a wholesome and. benefcia , social institution.
 Many a man who reads that statemen
 may jump to his feet Cor his pen) an. . say in substance. The moderate use -c f beer and light wines under proper re strictitNs will not hurt anybody ;;' bu
 that is a negative statement-now yer COHInOuly 1llduG-dnu ulduS W1lnOt Il thought and without foundation. Tn negative truth is that some persons ca = take considerable amount of alcoholi drink without showing it. but the positiy e truth is that no person can take sue s drink to any considerable extent withou 0 damage to his entire being. This is u
 truth about alcohol as revealed D
 modern science. s%
 Let inc repeat the statement in tn l. positive form as question: Is there s physician, a lawyer, a teacher, a clerg. ! man, business man, a mechanic
 there any man or woman 5H recognize intelligence in Hartford. or anywhei ! else, who will write to The Times or
 any other way express in substance the
 declarations:
 Moderate use of light wines and be- Il is wholesome thing and beneficial to u IT user"
 "The sale of light wines and beer,
 any other alcoholic drinks under prop k regulations is safe and wholeson If traffic, of benefit to the community
 If these positive declara tions can
 sustained, prohibition hasn't a leg II stand on and the Volstead act shou " be at once modified to allow the sale
 any alcoholic drinks that are wholesor
 and beneficial and to just the degree Ia alcoholic cocntent wherewith such drinl " are wholesome and beneficial. Establi