Evening star., 1924-08-02
RUSH.
NORTHERN EUROPE
Prohibition Said to Promote
Wide Disrespect of All
Laws.
BY GEORGE Il. WITTE.

Correspondence Of The Star and Chicago Daily
News
STOCkHO Sweden. July o
The enactment of prohibition and tenn
perance laws in several countries in
northern Ellrnca has been followed,
as in the United states, by Il wide
spread outbreak of lawlessness and
disrespect for the law. Bootlegging,
smuggling, .'moonshining" and other
features that have followed in the
wake of the Volstead law in America
Lave put in their appearance here:
The Baltic Sea is the playground of
those who try to defeat the regula-
tion of the liquor traffic.
one of the reasons why some of the
political parties in Norway have de-
manded that the ban on hard liquor
be lifted is that it costs too much to
maintain the coast guard service,
which has had to be greatly increased
since the adoption of the prohibition
law. Norway, with all her fjords and
her long coast line, is the ideal couE'
try for liquor smugGlerS.
How Law Is Defeated.
Sweden is in much the same posi-
ton. though 1t is much harder to get
bootleg spirits in Sweden than IN
Norway. Finland. which IS complete,
~ dry, is the happy hunting ground
OF the ESthonian SmugEler. whereas
most of the Illicit liquor traffic with
SWenen and Norway is carried on by
Germans and Danes.
In all these countries money talks
Is eIoQuently as in the United States,
and as much bootleg liquor can be
had as one is willing to pay Tor IN
Norway the old doctors prescription
trick still works. once you have OBJ
tanned one of these prescriptions after
paying a certain fee, the doctors Ia
Norite drug store delivers the neceS-
sary medical alcohol at your door.
In Sweden it is fairly difficult to get
more than a certain quantity or
liquor, but obliging hotelkeepers have
been known to furnish guests VINO
have been there only few days with
the coveted .motboks" (monthly
books), emitting them to four quarts
of liquor, the monthly liquor ration
of the average resident Of Sweden.
In Finland the bellhop, the hotel
porter or the waiter in the restau-
rant offers to supply any quantity and
any kind of liquor at reasonable
prices. The prohibition law is being
violated so flagrantly in the big
party wants it repealed, because 1t
''only inspires disrespect for the law
without attaining its real object
temperaneesii, AS in in III the hs tnlsea ael
and means of evading it are active
topics of conversation, especially in
society, which never wearies of re-
lating it's experiences and mis-
legrers and it's experiments in home
brcwS.
Increase in Drunkenness Seen.
Official statistics show that in all
these countries drunkenness, which
reached it's low-water mark about
1918 and 1920. is on the increase
a gain and is approaching the nor
NAL" average of 1919. This fact is
ascribed by the .'drys' to the whole
sale smuggling which is going on, de-
spite all efforts on the part OF the
authorities to curb it.
The Swedish newspapers, for IN
stance, contain almost daily DIS
patches from the smaller cities on
the coast saying that thousands OF
raw alcohol, have been seized by the
police.
DIR. Bratt, the originator of the
famous Bratt temperance system, mas
tried repeatedly to get the Swedlsh
Parliament to pass stringent laws 10
combat this illegal trathc IN alcono,,
such as the right OF the authorities
to search suspicious ships at sea ana
vehicles on land without first obtain
ing search warrants. Ihe R!kstag,
however, has taken no action In this
direction.
The proposal of Finland TO some OF
the other Baltic countries, partcu-
1arly E,sthonia, to sign liquor
agreement similar to that between
The United States and Great Britain
has not been favorably received.
I,sthopia. one of whose principal in
dustries is the spirits industry, and
from whose shores a good part OF
the smuggled contraband liquor
comes, replied that until all the other
countries on the Baltic, including
Germany and Denmark. were willing
to sign a treaty she would not do SO.