Evening star., 1923-05-16
Declares Liquor Ban Will Be
Enforced by U. S. as Con-
stitution Requires.
BELIEVES CONFLICTS
WOULD BE INEVITABLE
Letter to New York Resident Says
Issue Still in Allegiance, as Gov.
Smith Has Not Signed Bill.
BY the Associated Press.

BY the Associated Press.
NEWBURGH, ". Y. May 16.-Repeal
of state prohibition enforcement stat
utes would be likely to result In
more or less conflict between state
and federal authorities" in the opin-
ion Of President Harding. The views
Of the President were expressed in
letter to Wesley Wait of this city.
made public today. A bill passed by
the legislature repeating the act is
awaiting action by Gov. Smith.
Mr. Wait wrote to the President
urging that II Gov. Smith shoule
sign the bill Congress be convened
and that the governor and the mem
bers of the legislature who voted for
the bill be suspended
Every state Official who voted for
this bill is subject to the law of trea-
son. having taken the oath to sustain
the Constitution of the United States"
Mr.. Waits letter said.
President's Reply.
In reply. President Harding wrote:
Pending the approval of the Cuvil-
lier bill by Gov. Smith. this matter is
hardly to be regarded as having
reached the stage where any fed
eral authority is called upon for a
determination Of national policies.
With much Of what you say. I am
fully in accord. Mr.. Lincoln said at
the time when slavery was still a
recognized, established and accepted
institution throughout a considerable
part of the Union that the nation
could not exist half slave ard half
free. That expression has been ac-
cepted ever since as presenting the
obvious and conclusive logic OF the
situation. which then confronted the
Union Certainly IT would have been
still more Impressive II there had
been at that time a constitutional
provision against slavery ms there is
now a constitutional provision against
the liquor trafiic.
L. s. to Enforce Law.
"The nation has deliberately. after
many years of consideration. adopted
the present policy which Is written
into the eighteenth amendment. 1t
Is the law Of the land and OF every
state within the Union. So long as
it remains the national policy there
can be only one course for the ma
tional government to pursue. That
IS. to use every means to make ef-
fcctive the law passed in compliance
with this constitutional mandate. To
do this will be the unQuestioning pol
icy of the present administration; !;
and I may add that I am firmly con-
vinced that it must be the policy OF
other administrations that shall come
hereafter.
-
equally the executives of the states
are sworn to enforce the Constitu-
ton. 1t is difficult to believe that
public approval will ever be given to
literally discharging this duty
1t does not seem fitting, however, to
enter upon a discussion Of a situa-
tion which has not yet arisen.
Sees Many Complications.
'It will be obvious that many COM
plex and extremely difficult situations
must arise if any of the states shall
decline to assume their part Of the
responsibility of maintaining the Con-
sutton and the laws enacted in pur-
suance Of 1t. The states are equipped
with police organizations and judicial
establishments adequate to deal with
such problems. The federal govern
ment is not thus equipped.
Il venture that if by reason of the
refusal or failure of any state to dis
charge its proper duty in such con-
nection the federal government is at
length compelled to enter upon the
territory and Jurisdiction of the state
and to set up those police and judicial
authorities which would be REQUIRED.
the most difficult and trying situa-
tions would inevitably arise. More
or less conflict between state and tod
eral authorities would seem unayoid-
able in such circumstances. The i'm
preston would be created that the
federal government was assuming to
interfere with the functions of the
states. and the distressing results
that would ensue readily suggest
themselves"