The Wallace miner. [volume] (Wallace, Idaho) 1907-current, 1922-11-30
STANLY A. EASTON SAYS
DRY IS BETTER THAN WET
GENERAL MANAGER OF BUNKER
HILL GIVES OPINION OF
PROHIBITION.

Recently the Engineering and Min
ing Journal-Press addressed letters tc
a large number of mine operators ask
ing them their opinion regarding the
effect of prohibition on the mining in
dustry based upon their experience
and observation. The last issue of the
Journal Press. November IS, contains
about a dozen letters received in re-
ply. One of these is from Stanly A.
Easton. general manager Of the Bun
ker Hill & Sullivan company which
is here reproduced as a matter of local
interest:
Prohibition Beneficial.
in answer to your query as to the
effect of prohibition on the mining in
dustry / unhesitatingly reply that
consider prohibition has been of the
utmost benefit both to the industry as
q whole and to the workers as indi-
viduals. I must limit this opinion to
my own experience, but I feel that
what is true here must be also true
elsewhere. at least to some degree and
possibly to a greater degree in partic-
uiar instances. My position is taken
because of the following:
Our county was the wettest in Ida
no; the state went dry by legislative
enactment January 1, 1916 and a state
constitutional amendment was voted
on the following November and. to
the surprise of most of u.s. when the
votes were counted, the county went
Overwhelmingly dry After trying
prohibition a few months the people
liked it; although the Industrial cen
ters are generally conceded to be OPP
posed to prohibition. such did not
work out in Shoshone county.
I'VE never were troubled seriously
by drunkenness on the Job. Many of
our men lost much time because of
drinking when off duty think the
the late hours which resulted from
knocking about the saloons until mid
night the closing hour and afterward
on the streets. This resulted in a loss
of sleep and rest necessary for the
good physical condition of under
ground and other workmen.
Before the saloons closed there was
always more or less of a crowd in and
out of our Y. NJ. c. A. until long after
10 o'clock. Now the crowd has dis
appeared and gone home to bed as
they should. before 10 o'clock. This |
is all for the good of the men them
selves, and is bound to result in a bet |
ter physical condition in increased /
and in a better mental atti-
tude toward the world in general.
"The foregoing may be construed as |
an argument against saloons. but not |
against liquor. However, / link the |
two together very closely. as any form
IF drinking, whether in saloons or
elsewhere, is bound to result in late
ind irregular hours Our records and
he records of the county as a whole
Will show fewer accidents since prohi-
,ition went into effect think this is
PRETTY general throughout all indus
ries. and is due not so much to
on the job as to the fact
hat since prohibition the men are in
letter physical condition, have more
nd better rest. are keener and more
lert, and thus take better care of
We are close 10 the British Column ,
ia line and rum running is easy: \
evertheless, the bootleggers tell me :
hat their business is very poor-few- +
r men are willing to pay the price 7
nd that they would rather spend =
heir money on gasoline, moving pic
ires and other forms of recreation. 1t q
question of business more than ~
ne of morals; to bring a load of Ii h
uor in from Canada in an automobile ii
'sts money, and it can not be peddled ii
re-prohibition prices. Also there h,
the risk of arrest and confiscation n
HIGH must be written off and all
Tough men may want the liquor they n
re not willing to pay the price which II
rcumstances make necessary. h,
Also. the home brew game is play q
2 out Il former years I would re- N,
i've almost weekly a bottle or two -,
home brew from some friend of :,
inc who was just putting out a new a.
'tSHf but NOW / lnlnk ~ rs over a n,
ar since I received my last friendly n,
title. I have asked these people why Ia
ey have forgotten to so remember IA
2. and have always been told that ~,
ey were sick and tired of fussing and IN
piping around. and had stopped ma On
ng home brew because il was not Ion
nth the trouble. and that they were
st forgetting that such thing as II,
err or whisky ever interested them. Il,
The foreign element will hang on IN
liquor longer than anyone else. and 81,
lat moonshining is still going on is an
gely confined to this element ON
ugh many foreign workmen have ro,
urned to Europe and probably will we
come back again. There is no
ibt that some OF. our labor shortage
due to prohibition. but am very
oh of the opinion that the benefits COZ
wing from prohibition more than 'o'
yet this temporary shortage. wa