Putnam patriot., 1924-03-07
IOCAL CITY COURT
 HAS STATE RECORD
a,,ains Distinction By Severe pepa ties Imposed on Drunks,
 Says Speaker
n. Small Speaks at Prohibition Insti-
 tute Held Here Monday

That Putnam holds unique posi- .;a, among all cities and towns of the e,ste of Connecticut, as regards the .;sv court and the penalties pronounc- Sl' es therein by Judge NJ. H. Geissler, ,rss shown by statistics and pronounc- VI h an unusual way by Rev. Ralph IT White of New Haven at the Pro t,b;tion Information Institute held on Wsnday at the Second Congregational etareh in this city. Rev. Mir. White ssvs of I was going to get drunk and te crested. Putnam would be the last riaee in which l would try this trick '
 Give. Facts and Figures
 Rev. Mir. White. who spoke at the sf,srnoon session on the topic, Con Tsesieut Court Conditions" presented saets and figures taken from the rec a,ds of town and city courts through eg, the state He declared that per Ems arrested in Putnam for drunken ness were more severely punished in ,be city court than is the case any where in the state. In this respect. Mr. White said, Judge Geissler has es- tablished q record for Connecticut. He added that the policy followed by the ioeal court in administering justice in eases involving the liquor laws, as for instance selling liquor and keeping 1t wtb intent to sell, Putnam ranks high in The list of courts pronouncing heavy fines. jail sentences or both upon vio- htors arrested and prosecuted on such charges.
 Dr. Ernest V. Claypool, superinten- dent of the Anti-Saloon League of Connecticut. also spoke at the after noon session of the conference, his subject being, What the Law Pro vdes"
 A the evening session the first sneaker was Rev. Harry k. Oleott of Hartford. who gave stereopticon lee tnre an "How Did We Get That Way"
 Dr. Small Speaks
 The chief speaker of the evening meeting was Rev. Sam Small of Washington. D. C., a lawyer, newspa- per man, editor, soldier, evangelist and aee of the outstanding figures in the United States who is championing the cause of prohibition. Dr. Small dealt with the national aspects of the pro- hib,fion situation, telling his audience what the amendment Is. what it pro vides. what fedaral machinery is ere ated for enforcement, and what he de- clared IS being accomplished through prohibition.
 The doesaf took up the topic of holding d federal referendum to get q vote on the question of amending the prohibition amendment He declared that no law now existing permits such a thing, Sd the 'wets" cannot have such referendum Even If the "drys" wanted one, he said, they could not have it.
 .The vets tells us that there were tl,000 violations of the prohibition amendment in the past year. They point to this to prove that it IS fail ure. How about the 300,00 vioiators ot the income tax who were caught last yeari No one suggests, because of this, that the income tax laws shall br repealed. Such were some of the sentiments expressed by the speaker. Law Enforcement Getting Better
 During his adress he touched on law enforcement. He declared that the government is tightening it's grip on the situation every day. The most re- cent evidence of this, he said, was the appropriation of millions of dollars to put speedy boats in service to patrol the three-mile limit. Dr. Small said that these boats would stop the flow oi liquor into this country from this snJrce.
 Speaking of enforcement, he declar- cd that every state in the union has full right 10 introduce its own meth eds of enforcement; that there is H3thing in federal laws to check any steps which states may take in this line; the state can. if it wants to, wig erously and successfully dry up every Wet spot within its borders.
 At one point in his spirited address br Small dealt with Congress and it's members attitude on the prohibition amendment and it's enforcement. He that there was absolutely no hope of the "wets" ever succeeding in petung the present Congress to do laeir bidding. More than enough sem ators and representative favored ings as they stood to prevent the wet Congress members from carry