The Washington times., 1922-10-22

manuIacture OF eaiS Oh intOxlcdt-
ing beverages. even though they
obtained control OF both the Sen.
ate and the House. The judges of
the Supreme Court are bound by
their oath OF office to nuilify any
law. that. attempts to iesaiize the
manufacture or sale Of any bever.
age containing sufficient amount Of
alcohol to make Il Intoxicating.
D., The only, increase that the su.
preme Court could possibly sane
, ton would be an increase from
one-half OF one Per cent to a per
centage q little bit higher. but not
high enough to make the beverage
intoxicating. This would not be
satisfactory to those who are sub
ordinating all other questions to a
modification Of the tolstead Law.
They cannot get enough alcohol
8 to make them drunk. why do they
want any more than they can get
> now?
TRYING TO DEFEAT LAW.
Those who are advocating light
wine and beer either deceive them.
selves or they are attempting to
deceive others. II they think that
thS Supreme Court would permit
the manufacture and sale Of the
kind Of wine and beer they advo-
cate, they are themselves deceived;
without knowing what the law is,
they are trying TO deceive others.
The more intelligent of them know
perfectly wen that they can neither
repeal the Eighteenth Amendment
nor secure the manufacture and
sale Of intoxicating beverages; the
only thing that they can really
have In view 10 the securing Of q
majority In one House so ss to be
able 10 defeat appropriations for
enforcement. Laws do not enforce
themselves; they are enforced
through officials. and officials
must be paid. II appropriations
for the enforcement OF. the law
were cut off. we would have an
sra Of lawlessness. during which
the amendment will be In opera.
tion and the prohibition law on the
statute books. but unenforced.
This would simply mean the
turning over Of the Government to
the liquor traffic. excepting in
States where State laws are en-.
forced. The volstead law can be
nullified by the cutting off Of ap.
preparations as effectually as it
can be nuliified by repeal.
Such an era Of lawlessness would
not only invite disrespect for all
laws. but It would make the liquor
question the paramount issue and
suspend all other reforms until the
country again settled the question
Of prohibition. as it has decided it
several times before.
NEED FOR VIGILANCE.
II the friends Of the Eighteenth
Amendment win be only half as
vigilant and as active as the en-.
mics Of that amendment, the re-
suit will not be in doubt, but ex.
perience shows that those who
think In the throat-that is, are the
victims Of appetite-ignore all
: other issues and vote for a wet"
regardless Of his attitude on eco.
nomic questions, while the advo.
Gates OF prohibition are interested
In many subjects and are not al.
ways willing to allow their vote
to be determined by the attitude of
OF the candidate on the liquor
question. Pa.
While II 10 highly probable that
the drys will have q two.thirds ma.
jority in the next Congress, as they
have had in the three preceding
Congresses. 1t ID not wise to take
anything for granted or to permit
the prohibition cause to be lost BY
default. ~. .s.u'
In the meantime. those who re.
joice over the nations emancipa-
ton from the saloon should aid in
the cultivation of Q total absti.
nence sentiment which, after all, is
the guarantee Of the success Of
prohibition. The law must be en-.
forced In the United States and
then our country win be In a posi-.
ton to lead In the abolition Of the
saloon throughout the world.
When entered this fight had
no thought that prohibition would
come in my lifetime; but we have
travelled 20 fast and gone 20 far
that now believe that within two
decades there will not be an open
saloon under the flag of any Of the
great nations Of the world. Alec.
hol as a beverage 10 doomed-the
greater the majority recorded
against Il this fall. the sooner will
the world be free from the curse
Of drink.