The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1922-05-15
RUM WITHDRAWALS
GREATLY REDUCED
100000 Gallons This Year
Compared With H.
100000 In 1920.
FORMERLY CONSUMED
130,000,000 GALLONS
Prohibition Commissioner Haynes At
tacks Propaganda That Prohibition
Is A FaiIure'-Fines and Penalties
Pays Enforcement Costs Twice Over.

Is 4 FaiIure'-Fines and Penalties
Pays Enforcement Costs Twice Over.
LOUISVILLE, Ky, May 15.-With-
drawals of whiskey from bonded ware
houses for this year. on the basis of the
last three or four months, will amount
to about 100000 gallons, (Which is
perhaps only about 100000 gallons in
excess of normal medicinal require
ments,' K. y. Haynes, federal prohibit
tion commissioner. told the Church
men 5 Federation here today Mr.
Haynes compared this figure with $780,
100000 gallons of American-made whis-
key which he said were consumed in the
United States annually during the years
Immediately preceding prohibition, and
with about 100000 gallons withdrawn
from bounded warehouses on permits in
1920 and about 100000 in 1921.
cit is significant, Mr. Haynes CON
tinued, THAT at a time when liquor
is more difficult to obtain than at any
enness has decreased to a very apprecia-
bic degree when convictions Tor the VIC
lation of law are becoming most nu-
merous; that at such times the largest
amount OF space Is given in some OF our
newspapers to articles most fiimsy of
facts, which set forth the idea that
prohibition is failure, | am inclined
to believe that this propaganda has its
origin IN the interest of large personal
gains on the part of a comparative few,
who have felt most fOrcefully the eff
fects of the law. As long as enforcement
officers could be easily bribed; as long
as the traffic went on unimDeded either
by taxes, fines or Jail sentences, as long
as only the small offenders were brought
TO Justice, there was little cause for the
insidiOus propaganda.
Must Enforce Our Laws.
Nothing can affront the American
people more than the statement that we
cannot enforce our laws In this state
ment lies the death warrant of the re-
public, for this nation cannot endure
without reverence for law, without the
recognized authority of law. The per
petTatOTs of this new treason have over
looked one of the great essentials of
the American people; that law is but
an expression of the nation 5 will, and
the will power of America has ever met
apparently insuperable difficulties and
changed them into world amazing
achievements.
This law was ratified by As states,
the largest number of states that had
ever ratified a constitutional amend
ment.
The Real Issue.
1.-The real issue that underlies all the
contest over prohibition enforcement Is
Americanism in conflict with old world
customs and concepts; it is democracy
against ayarice, lawlessnes and anarchy
1t is no mere expression of pride to say
that when America wills to do that
which other nations have not done, she
will not fail of that achievement.
This is an hour when the burden of
the war rests heavily upon people
through the imposition of taxes, and
the astute propagandist has pointed to
the fact that prohibition will cost the
government nearly $10,0OO.000 this com
ing year. However, if we were to col
lect the fines. penalties and special tax
imposed upon vioIators of the law in the
first six months of this administration,
they would more than pay two and one
half times the estimated cost of enforc-
ing the prohibition law for the next year.
Those enormous figures do not include