The American issue. [volume] (Westerville, Ohio) 1912-19??, 1922-12-15
PREMIER DRURY, ONTARIO,
SEEKS U.S.. COOPERATION
Declares Province Will Not Back.
track on Prohibition Law
Enforcement.
GOVT. CONTROL, FAILURE
United States Government Urged
to Stiffen It's Defenses
Against Smugglers.


ically declared to the Toronto conven-
ton that Ontario would not take a
backward step by weakening the On
tario temperance act. He assaulted the
effort that is being made to substitute
government control of the liquor traffic
for the present Prohibition law as we'll
as the effort to legalize sale OF beer
and light wines.
He gave it as his opinion that an
overwhelming majority of the people
OF the province are unalterably OPP
posed to any weakening OF the On
tario temperance act. They have OBJ
served the utter failure of government
control in Quebec where drunkenness
and bootlegging has increased he said
and will not be lured by the plea of
revenue to follow Quebec's example.
In brief reference to rum running
at the United States border he said the
province needed the cooperation of the
United States to put an end to the evil.
Half in jest he told the United States
delegates to the convention that il they
wanted to help the government of TIE
Ontario province they should show
little more energy in keeping the
stuff" out so that those on the Cana
dian side OF the line would not have
TO eXpend SO much enc gy in keeping
II in.
So decided was the Premier's stand
on the issue involved SO comprehen-
siYe was the proof of the beneficial
results of Prohibition that he offered,
that the conclusion of his address was
met with display of enthusiasm that
brought an audience of $500 to its feet
in cheers. The Premier said:
My own settled conviction is
that what we have has been won
after years of effort, experiment
and trial, after careful thought and
consideration of the people e
throughout the heart of Ontario
and that we will hold, and what we
haven't got we will get.
Referring to border rum running he
appealed for cooperation of the United
States and the provincial government.
Addressing the United States dele
gates, he said:
We want your help. We don't
want you to weaken. The thing
most damaging to us would be the
complete or partial failure OF Pro-
hibiton in the United States.
Then it was that the Premier
brought his speech to a climax with
the promise of dry Canada. There
is no doubt of the result here. We are
a slow moving, methodical people but
and very surely, and the measure of
Prohibition in Canada will not rest
with seven of the provinces. The
other two will see the results and will
come in. There may be little loss OF
revenue but we are not worrying about .
that. We can make it up from other
prosperous sources.
You won't be troubled for many ,
years with Canada partly wet if you
hold your ground on the other side of
the line"
The Premier presented some inter-
esting figures comparing wet and dry
periods in the province. He said:
In 1914 there were 8,84S convic-
tons for drunkenness in Ontario;
in 1921, 4,719. In Toronto in 1918
there were As deaths from alco-
holism; in 1921, II. Crime ehad
greatly decreased under Prohibi-
ton. In 1914 there were 1,627
cases OF assault; in 1921, 1914.
Vagrancy cases decreased from
4,703 in 1914, to 1889 i'll 1921; dis
orderly conduct cases from o,4l1
to 1,400.
In answering the charge that Pro-.
hibition had increased the use of drugs
the Premier said:
In one year the convictions for
use of drugs in the seven Prohibit
ton provinces had been I'll, or II
per 100000 of population. In the
two wet provinces the convictions
for the use of drugs in one year
had been 1883, or 40 per 100000
of population.
Those figures included British Co.
lumbia which had its Oriental prob
lem. He said it would be fairer to
compare Ontario with Quebec In the
same year Ontario had had 3l2 convic-
tions and Quebec $50. Per 100000, OF
population the figures for the two prov
inces were then 1908 and l4S7 re-
spectively.
Prohibition had increased attendance
in Toronto public schools. Attend
ance in high schools in that city in 1914