The Bismarck tribune., 1925-11-07
PROHIBITION
ISFACT0R IN
SAVING LIVES
Light Wines, Beer in Canada
Have Not Proved SatiSfac-
tory. Reports Show

Chicago. Nov. 7.-[P)-A report Of
the congrc ssional investigation of en-
forcement Of the Volstead law was
given the Anti-Saloon League con-
vcntlon today in report prepared by
Repre- sentative Grant NJ. Hudson of
Michigan, chairman of the congress
siOnal committee. The information
was gained from thousands of ques
tionnaires sent out by the committee
to federal and state officers, social
and welfare organizations and lead
crs in industrial and commercial life.
1T is very doubtful if any brewer
in the United States today can sue
ccssfully operate sO-caled near
beer business Repre- Hud
son said, "unlcss they run it in con-
nection with some other business or
violate the law. The law should be
amended so that to make all manu-
| facturers of cereal beverages obtain
a government permit. SO long as
there are breweries there will be at
tempted violations"
The control of the genuine whiskey
supply in the country, Representative
Hudson said. is quite effective now,
/ with 22.000O0O Of the 33,0OO,0O0 gal
Ions still on bond in concentration
ware houses and the previous leaks
fairly we'll stopped.
More Alcohol Being Made
The committee of congressman cs-
! timated that there is leakage Of
about six million gallons of denatur-
ed alcohol year into bootleg chan
nels for rehabilitation of the 1885,
S97,752 produced in the last year. The
production of ale ohol has grown trc-
! mendously, he said, since the advent
of prohibition, increasing from slight
ly less than l0OOO0,OOO gallons in
1920 to nearly 136, 100000 last year.
The increasing manufacture Of arti-
ficial silk and leather each take one
| million gallons a year, but quite a
bit of the increase goes into synthetic
booze. The questiOnnaires, Repre-
sentative Hudson said, were almost
unanimous in their expression Of the
benefits resulting from prohibition,
the replies quoting figures on de-
creased pauperism, increase of pros
perity among working men, increase
in home owning and life insurance.
There is divergence of opinion
in the matter of the death rate from
ALCOHOL the committee report show
/ ed. "In 1922 the death rate had been
26, about one half the rate when
prohibition became effective, but this
| was an increase Of almost one per
cent over 1921 and 1929 brought the
death rate up to 3D.. The lowest rate
in the five wet years was al in 1915.
| How much of this increased percent
age in 1922 and 1923 is due to s~n-
thetic liquors is hard to estimate, but
the fact Is that there is not lett any
of the old alcoholism Of former days.
Million Lives Saved
"A million lives have been saved
| by the decrease in death rate, of
, which no one can deny that prohibi-
tion has been a large factor"
In reply to the advocates of modi-
fication Of restrictions in the alco-
holic content Of permitted drinks,
Representative Hudson quoted results
of his investigation among officials
of Canadian cities where beer and
light wines have been brought back.
"Public officials, professional and
business men, wet and dry partlsans,
with almost one accord" he said. "de-
clared that the beer program of IA
did not satisfy these who wanted
stronger alcoholic liquors. 1t is po-
pularly known as -four dsappoint
four" 1t has not reduced the num-
bcr of illicit sellers, in fact in some
places it has increased them"