The Republican., 1922-07-27
THE TRUTH ABOUT PROHIBITION
Washington Herald, July 14D

States usually find fault with some
distinctively American institution. The
favorite subject for their irritable
explosions has been prohibition. Many
notable men and women from the
other side of the Atlantic have wasted
good breath and good printers ink
telling us how farcical is the enforce
ment dry laws in the United States.
Mrs. Asquith, for instance, just this
week published sarcastic and ungra-
cious interview on the ''bootleggers
and moonshiners" of the United
States.
1t is a relief to find one Britisher
who sees things in a different light.
A correspondent of the Manchester
Guardian, England's leading liberal
paper and by no means a sheet de-
voted to anti-saloon propaganda, has
been making special study of prohi-
bition. The first of his reports was
published early this month. He has
made, without doubt, an unbiased in
vestigation.
He did not find prohibition a fail
ure. On the other hand, he states
frankly that he is amazed at the re-
markable success which has attended
this measure. Here is an English
man broadminded enough and intelli-
gent enough to overlook the petty
evasions of the law of which his coun-
trymen have made so much. He was
wise enough to realize that the acid
test of prohibition was not the abso-
lutte impossibility of obtaining intox-
icants.
Rather he looked for its greater eff
fects on the lives of the American
people. Has it produced better health
conditions? Are workingmen's fam
lilies in better circumstances Are
the jails less populous? Is crime less
common? Have savings bank depos-
its grown? To everyone of these
questions he answered "Yes." He
predicts that after the magnificent
success attained by prohibition in the
United States, Great Britain can not
long delay in taking the same step.
He also tells his readers quite
frankly that they have been bulldozed
by noisy minority into the belief
that the American people are opposed
to dry laws, that the Volstead act
was forced upon them when they
were not looking. He states en-
phatically that the same piece of leg
islation, if placed before the people
to vote upon today, would pass by an
overwhelming majority.
Englishmen who read this mans
report will get unbiased information
on the United States. 1t is unfortu-
nate that more Americans, blinded
by the smoke thrown out by this
same noisy minority, can not read this
article and learn the truth about their
own country.
This man was not an agent of the
Anti-Saloon League. He was not in
sympathy with their purposes. Wien
he started his investigation he ex-
pected to send articles back to his
paper ridiculing prohibition. But he
was an honest man and here is what
he found
Reports from all over the country,
official and non-offical, prove the
immense decline in drinking among
men and what appears to be an al
most complete nonexistence of the
habit among women. The State au-
thorities in the main take an en-
phatic line. Governor Brown, of
New Hampshire, wrote at the be-
ginning of this year: Prohibition
is a success in New Hampshire, be-
cause it has closed all the saloons
and some of the gaols, has lessened
crime and poverty, has made good
Industrious citizens out of loafers
and drunkards, and has removed
temptation from our boys and girls
The Governor of Indiana recorded
the startling fact that with the COM
ing of prohibition the gaol commit
ments in the State had been cut
down to about half. The Governor of
California said that the good effects
were so evident that thousands of
men who voted wet would now vote
dry
"In State after State the statis-
tics of the prisons and penal settle
ments are incontestable, while in
countless cities the records of the
social-service agencies tell an impress
sive tale. So with the savings banks
and kindred institutions. If you put