Evening star., 1922-12-28
Nothing Really Helpful From Gov.
ernors' Conference,


NO doubt "a pleasant time was had
by all " at the White House luncheon
at which President Harding enter
tanned the governors of fourteen
states brought to Washington to dis
cuss prohibition enforcement, but the
Richmond Times Dispatch voices the
conclusions of most newspapers when
it adds that 'out of it came nothing
at ALL" and the national scandal is
no nearer an end than it was before
the conference.
1t wasn't even a conference, the
Chicago Journal insists, 'it was a
caucus. gathering of the camel
guards The chiefs of most wet states
were conspicuous by their absence.
Only the governor of Maryland was
present to disturb the otherwise per-
feet harmony which prevailed in favor
of enforcing an unenforceable stat
ute" From this view the Cleveland
Plain Dealer vigorously dissents.
Here were state executives repre-
senting practically every sectl9n or
the country" it says. "and almost
without exception they subscribe to
the opinion that prohibition is here to
stay, that enforcement rather than
liberalization Of dry laws is to be
looked for. and that sentiment in their
states is becoming increasingly favor
able to strict obedience to the law.
The Baltimore Sun. however. reminds
us that every governor is also
politician" and being a politician he
talked according to the way he
thought would be popular at home:
The governors of West Virginia and
Virginia say it has been long time
between legal drinks and they are
piously glad of it. but they say moth
ing of the nefarious work that goes
on under the tolerant gaze OF the
moon"
The New York Globe believes that
the mere meeting of the national
and state executives will have
value in itself" for cit lends the
stamp of two great branches of gov
ernment to the upholding of the law.
And while scarcely more than the
surface of the problem was scratched.
the Newark News suggests that the
conference served as a clearing house
of information and complaints or the
laxity of federal enforcement and the
poor quality of appointments. and to
show that if the states are to be ex-
nected to tighten up enforcement so
must the nation
But the Knickerbocker Press (A1-
bany) Is convinced that the cure VIII
have to go deeper than mere ex-
change of views" and it does not ap-
pear that "anything conclusive came
out of the conference. The very
novelty" of such a proceeding as
that Of a federal executive appealing
to state executives in his task of en-
forcing federal law" as the Spring
field Union sees it. points to the one on
great cause of the difficulties and fail
ures. Where the authority is divided
there is likely to be no authority.
and the Philadelphia Evening Ledger
agrees that enforcement OF prohlpl-
ton cannot be controlled by COVER
must know" for. as the Asheville
IN. C.) Times explains it. individual
states are not showing any interest,"
in enforcement. Through policy OF
sabotage and studied neglect. they are
in effect attempting to bring the Ia"
into contempt
Aside from the conviction that
"somethinr ought to he done about
it," the governors "have not contrib
uted a single suggestion that meets
the primary ISSUE" the Philadeiphia
public Ledger thinks. with the ex-
ception of their proposal of a cam m.
paiEn of education However: III
education be needed. and that will
hardly be questioned, 1T might pc well
to begin not at the bottom. but at the
top. There are officials who have
soiemnly sworn to defend and sup
port the Constitution of the United
States who make no concealment of
their contempt for the prohibition
amendment, who serve intoxicants to
their guests and who are for law en-
forcement only with their lips. There
are even governors who sin in this
respect"
One Of the few constructive shg-
pestions that came out of the confer
ence was that which the Baltimore
American calls the slightly ambigu-
GUS" statement of Gov. Cox of Massa-
chusetts asserting more money and
more honorable men are necessary.
! This is often the case, the American
| admits, 'but the governor is not quot
| ed as suggesting where the money or
| the more honorable men are to come
from" However, il more money is
| necessary "the federal government
| should be prepared to spend more
money on enforcement and must see
| to 1t that the character of the en-
forcement personnel Is radically i'm.
Iproved and that methods are rendered