The New York herald., 1921-01-18
TUESDAY. JANUARY Is, 1921.
A Year of Prohibition.

A Year of Prohibition.
The New York HERALD published
Sunday an illuminating account with
facts and figures of our first year of
5 national prohibition. While the record
is not all that the friends of prohibit
tion could wish. nevertheless Il Is
perhaps quite as good in the situation
( as might have been expected by close
thinkers.
Conversely it Is record that will
! give hope to the millions of surface
thinkers who are openly at war with
3 national prohibition. 1t will encour
age the vigorous and determined anti
prohibition propaganda now of ma
tionwide scope that has the backing
cf unlimited money.
In the opinion of THE New YORK
. HERALD, however, the opponents Of
; the Government in this fight against
national prohibition are certain to be
beaten in the end. The Government,
with its boundless resources, will com
pei obedience to its laws. Defying
the law of State is one thing; defy
Ing the law Of the national Govern
Inent is quite another. "The mills of
! The gods grind slowly, but grind ex-
ceeding fine," and so grind the mills
cf the national Government.
SO long as national prohibition is
embedded in the organic law of the
4 land, just so long will America be
( dry except as her laws are broken
and defied by her citizens. And law
(, breaking in the long run lis a bad
; business for any one. especially bad
, If the law be United States law.
The only way by which America can
again become legally wet Is through
( an amendment to the Constitution of
the United States multiplying the
Eighteenth Amendment which declared
for national prohibition. And what
does it mean to get through con-
stitutionnl amendment? IL means
that bin setting forth the proposed
amendment must be introduced in
Congress and passed by two-thlrds of
both houses. This is the first step
the second is much more difficult. 1t
requires the ratification Of the meas
ure by three-quarters of the States of
the Union. Failing Of such ratifica-
ton the measure falls by the way
2 side.
The trainers of this Government
were most wise In making 1t difficult
! In the extreme to alter or amend our
national Constitution. In view of
this very difficult process the wonder
is that the dry amendment was ever
put through. But now that we have
it, now that 1t is structurally a part
of the Constitution Of the United
States, now that the women Of the
nation have the ballot and must be
reckoned with by State legislatures
and by Congress, there is no chance
whatever that America will so com.
pletely reverse herself on the liquor
question within the span of genera
rion. If ever, as to put through an
other constitutional Amendment that
viii make this country wet.
To be sure the volstead act may be
: amended by Congress, but any amend
ment, says the Supreme Court in
effect, must hold true to the spirit
and intent of the Eighteenth Amend
ment.
Considered apart from this phase
OF the matter, however, and solely
on the record of the first year OF na-
tIonal prohibition THE NEw York
HERALD inclines to the belief that in
the situation. with the application Of
a law so drastic and so revolutionary
more drastic and more revolution
airy than. perhaps, was wise as first
move In the process of eliminating
alcoholic beverages--the Government
has by no means made failure
, OF ITS colossal undertaking. Indeed.
with no tried men In the work of en-
forcing prohibition the wonder Is, In
calm. straight thinking, that the Gov.
ernment did as well as Il did with
many Of It's men unfaithful TO the
confidence placed in them and without
the mid and cooperation Of the states
Of the Union in the work OF enforc-
ing the dry law.
Only two or three days ago THE
NEW York HERALD discussed edito-
rally the question Of the cooperation
Of the States with the national Gov
ernment, urging that through such
cooperation alone could national pro-