The Birmingham age-herald., 1923-10-01
CONGRESSMAN ISl OUT TO TEST HIS VOLSTEAD RIGHTS
SoIon Holds City Man Dis criminated Against In Not
 Being Allowed Beer
By THOMAS l.. STOKES (By Leased Wire To Age-Herald)

BALTIMORE, Sept. BOA quaint and picturesque tap room, in the eel lar of century -old mansion here, is the setting Of a strange comedy which it's director hopes will have as it's climax a nationwide result on real beer, for the working man and others.
 The director himself, John Philip Hill, United States con ngressman from Maryland, stood before the broad. old fashioned fireplace and pointed about him to the instruments with which he is brewing a potion that he expects will knock parts of the YClstead act into a cooked hat"
 This Is where it's done" he ex- plained. T notified Commissioner Haynes when l started. and asked him to let me know what was the point of intoxication, so could stop it there. I went out and got the grapes myself. I made some of it exactly according to specifications Of the department of agriculture, and some by methods the farmers use. Some of it has already got kick of II and 12 per cent and it's still going up.'
 Hill said that farmers all over his state and in other states are making such liquor. They are exempted, he claims. under the Volstead act, while the city man can buy only a pale, weak solution. Hill is trying to get a decision from the Attorney General as to ths percentage of .intoxica- tion," believing that 1t will have to be fixed at 2.75 per cent or higher, which would be the peg on which to hang an amendment to the law le- galizing light wines and beers.
 Smell Of Home Brew.
 A faint smell of modern home brew rises convincingly from score of fruit jars, placed on shelves and ta- bles in this ancient square room.
 Looking down on the home made apparatus are the portraits Of George Washington, Columbus and William Jennings Bryan, lover of grape juice unfermented.
 In front of the fireplace is the press, rudely fashioned of two win dow slats, tied together at the ends by a pair of old shoestrngs from the army boots Hill wore in France-he won the croiX de guerre at Verdun. ADD CONGRESSMAN .. .. =.
 "I pressed the grapes right here, Representative Hill said, catching the ends of the slats and showing how it was done T went out and got the grapes in the cool of the morning you know, according to instructions from the department of agriculture.'
 Then he returned to the fruit con taining his product. A faint sizzle was audible as the alcoholic scontents mounted.
 Expects Explosion.
 Some of the chemists who came here are afraid these things may ex- plode. But I'm going to keep then here until they do."
 There are also couple of milk bot ties from his babys nursery, whicf were used in the process--and severa packages of prepared baby's food from which Hill made alcohol, in ar experiment to demonstrate that 1t car be done. Through the door is the study, it's walls lined with law books and above the books Hills diploma from Harvard. where he was gradu ated in law in 1903. In these two rooms, he explained, he holds his DO litical pow-wows.
 Chemists from the prohibition uni in Washington have been here ant tested Hills wine. As yet. Commis sioner Haynes has made no final an swer to Hill. but says he is making personal investigation of the case Hill has been trying to have the dr. law amended to allow beer and ligh wines ever since he has been in Con | gresS- wass elected in 1920. Hi last Step has been to write governor of<all the states, asking them t. bring the alleged discrimination il the law before the conference on pro hibition enforcement to be held il