The Washington times., 1922-11-10
WET PLANKS IN
Z PLATFORMS,
1924PROPHESY
Otherwise Anti-Drys Will Form
Third Party Says W. n.
Stayton.
BY WILLIAM II. STANTON,
President Of the National Association
Against the Prohibition Amendment.

the land. through the national or
| ganization, will present independent
candidates. for Congress and will
become subsequently third party.
/ do not look for modification
Of the Volstead Jaw in the remain
/ ing fife of the present Congress,
nor do ! anticipate with confidence
such modification by the Sixty
eighth Congress. which assemblies
on March 4.
But we will participate Just as
actively In politics as does the
Anti.Saloon League. The State
chiefs of my organization will
gather in st. Louis November 20
TO prepare the next national cam
paign.
In the present Congress there
| are 435 members of the House. Of
whom l0l are wet" $50 dry"
and the balance noncommittal. !
have been told by some Of these
noncommittal members that the
'wets" of the country never had
proved their mettle; that they
talked wet" but on election day
never scratched their ticket. but
cording to their affiliation and
and dry" issue.
Dryness Their Issue.
The only one group Of any kind
whatever In the country. they told
me, who actually did scratch their
ticket on election day were dry
voters, who made that the main
issue in their voting.
And, of those interviewed. ninety
one said that il ever the vets Of
the United States showed that they
actually would scratch their tickets,
these ninety-one, on presentation Of
such proof, would stand ready to
vote for some liberalization of the
Volstead law. That would give US
1872 members of the present House
who are reasonable. at least. These
We know about. OF those who ac.
tually voted in the House, a little
more than one-third voted wet and
two-thirds voted dry so, the vets
had to win one.sixth, or seventy
two votes, to get an even break.
If the "wets" actually won sew
enty-two they would be in control
of the House and they can win IN
two ways: First, part Of the ninety
one reelected are now willing to
come part way, at least: they can
win through the actual election of
vets ever 'drys' among new MEM
bers. Speaking of the present
House, ii is doubtful II we can
count on any relief, though ! be.
lieVe the election will cause many
changes of sentiment.
Victory Seems Near.
Now, speaking Of the new Con-
gress and considering the House
for as the House votes so, l believe,
will the Senate: II we had positively
won seventy.two votes we would
have in control l don't believe we
have won seventy-two votes Of men
avowedly wet but we have won
more than fifty, and 1t is question
whether the moral effect of the
wet victory will be enough to
swing twenty non-committal, new
members into line.
For example of the situation,
take Pennsylvania: In addition to
the solid wet delegations of Phila-
delphiaa and Pittsburgh, there were
candidates satisfactory. to us in
twelve avowedly wet: five of them
were avowedlv wet: five of them
gave us satisfactory assurance and
we worked for them confidentially
through our members, but did not
make public that fact-we prac-
ticed the guile of the Anti.Saloon
League. In two other cases the as
surances were not quite satisfactory.
OF these twelve candidates we have
elected eleven. Every Democrat we
indorsed in Pennsylvania was
elected: every Democrat that the
Anti.Saloon League indorsed was de-
feated.
feel that wsen the size OF the
wet" victory is taken into account
there need not be the slightest doubt
that there will be at least twenty
open.minded men who will swing into
line and that the new Congress,
when IL meets. will modify the Vol.
stead law in two particulars: First,
40 as to permit the sale Of such
beverages as are, In truth and in
fact, Notwithstanding, and fixing n
limit of per cent for beer and twice
that percentage for light wines:
second. believe that the regulation
which the Volstead law seeks to as
sumo over medical prescriptions will
be wiped out. for Congress never
had the power legally to regulate
PHYSICIANS.
In consequence of that advice and
my own observation, I am strongly
OF the opinion that the Democratic
national platform In 1924 will fol-
low the example of those States In
which the Democratic party has
just won In consequence of its cour-
age-that Is to say, in all those
States where the Democratic plat.
form had been wet" and the Repub.
lican platform had been dry" or
evasive. These States include Mary
land, New Jersey. New York, Massa-
chusetts and Illinois.
g. o. r. VIII Follow.
II the Democratic platform of 1924
contains. as / believe II will, a wet"
plank, demanding repeal Of Vol
steadism. the Democrats will carry
the Southern States, as usual, and
will certainly carry such States as
New York, New Jersey, Maryland.
Massachusetts, and Illinois, which
would give them the Presidency.
Republican politicians to whom I
have pointed this out have said that
II the five States mentioned should
go wet" there was no answer to the
proposition that II the Dmocrats had
the wet" end and the Republicans
the dry" end the Democrats would