The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1924-09-04
WHAT IS THERE IN PROHI-
BITION, ANYWAY?


News beneath the above caption:
The word prohibition" calls up
visions of bootleggers, or of "hi-jack-
ers" that rob the bootleggers, or fed
eral agents that take whisky from
one bootlegger and sell it to another,
or take money instead of whisky and
let the bootlegger keep his whisky.
1t should be remembered, whatever
your opinion may be about prohibi.
ton or ''wetness," that there are
other things contained in the word
prohibition" besides bootleggers and
bribery.
prohibition" recalls the fact that
there are fewer people in the prisons,
insane asylums and hospitals than
there used to be, and MORE MONEY
IN THE SAVINGS BANKS.
And while it is unfortunately true
that many people, including young
girls and boys that should know bet
ter than to disgrace themselves, are
deliberately running their health and
their future with bootleg whisky, it
is equally true that many, FORMER
LY victims of the worst kind of whs-
ky, are now protected from it.
For instance, read a short and
absolutely true quotation from Mark
McCloskey's article, headed "Prohi-
bition in Chelsea published in The
Survey.
Chelsea is a part of Manhattan
Island, just north of Greenwich Vii
lage, along the waterfront. Concern
ing it, McCloskey says:
Twenty years ago in front of the
notorious cheap baTooms in this
neighborhood, such as the Greasy
Vest and Miles McSweeney's Dead
House, where whisky worse than the
worst bootleg nowadays was retailed at
cents glass, large trucks would
line the pavement for a block, while
the drivers got their morning drink
of whisky. Today in front of the
German baking shops at the same
hour in the morning you will find
motor trucks and occasionally horse
drawn trucks lined up with their driv-
ers inside drinking coffee and eating
buns.
But even worse than the beer
sloons were the old bottle houses,
which have gone, and no amount of
bootlegging could take their place
the bottle house, where tremendous
casks lined the sides of the room and
what seemed to be thousands of bot
ties lined the walls, where half-pint
of so-called whisky could be procured
for ten cents, and the line of custom
ers patronizing the establishment
was just as long as that of those fire.
quenting the adjoining pawnshop on
Thursdays and Fridays.
THE old saloons have found it i'm.
possible to keep going on near-beer
and illicitly sold liquor and have Civ
en- way to coffee houses. At one
street intersection in this neighbor-
hood the four corners Of which were
occupied by beer saloons are now
three coffee houses, each known as
The Coffee Pot.
The change is seen very clerly in
longshore work. Fifteen years ago
men congregated in cheap barrooms
and waited for the news Of the arriv-
al Of ships o. passed their time be-
tween ships. The barr0omS have dis
appeared and different type of man
works on the docks. Only here and
there can be seen the human wreck
age lying about the Waterironts-rel-
les Of the old days
THE Saturday night drunk IS
Obsolete. The men VINO dissipated
most OF Their week S wages in bar
motion-picture sncws; their wives no
longer nave the lear OF SATURDAY
night hanging over their heads.
with the passing of The saloon has
gone the class Of can lQshars-little
groups Of v0,nei who were accus-
toned 10 sit in the kitchen. where
each one would take q turn in going
for q can of beer unriI ali of them
were grogay-eved and berry and IN.
able to fulfill their household duties
The whole trail Of negTecr and abuse
which children suffered nom a Tesul+
OF fathers and mothers who we're ner-
sistent drinkers has been Dreftv
much cleared IN
Read that over. bear in mind it is