Evening star., 1925-09-17
FAR LESS LIQUOR SOLD in u. S.
SINCE EPROHIBITION, REPORT SAYS
Home Brewing Unimportant, Most of Whisky Con.
sumed Is Made Here, Bootegging On Wane,
Church Council Survey Shows

Prohibition has reduced enormously
United States.
The home manufacture of wine and
beer is of comparatively little sig
nificance and the grape growers of
the Pacific coast, who increased their
acreage in anticipation of an in
creased demand. have been disap-
pointed.
Not more than a quarter of the
wine withdrawn for sacramental
purposes is so used and the with
drawals have increased enormously
since prohibition.
Bootleg whisky has a surprising
sale, but health education is making
some headway against It.
A relatively small amount of the
Illicit whisky consumed in the United
States Is smuggled over it's borders
These are among the conclusions
of Rev. F. Ernest Johnson, head of
the educational and research division
of the Federal Council of Churches,
on the actual extent to which pro-
hibition has been enforced in the
United States.
Definite Figures Impossible.
1t is impossible to obtain definite
figures, Mr.. Johnson admits.
He estimates the cost Of prohibition
enforcement to the Government con-
fiscal year 1926, as compared with
$2,059,744 for 1920.
Mr.. johnson says:
THE situation In New York City is
perhaps the worst In the country from
the point of view of the administra-
tion of the law. 1t is stated on the
highest authority that complaints of
violation of the Volstead act have
been coming before the United States
Commissioner from the police depart
nnent alone at the rate of $4,000 a
month. 1t became physical impos-
sibility to deal with these cases in
the courts, whose corridors abounded
in "fixers" and bribe takers. Men were
hailed into court and cited to appear
without any way of compelling them
to appear, and without any assurance
that their cases would be remembered
II they did. 1t has even been known
TO happen that in order to avoid for
feiture of bail bond the surety COM
pany would put up a fake defend
ant to plead guilty and pay a fine
at the surety company's expense,
when the real culprit had long since
disappeared and was probably plying
his trade elsewhere. This practice
came to light when an irate judge de-
parted from precedent and exceeded
the legal penalty by sending the
substitute defendant to Jail, only to re-
ceive querulous letter from him pro:
testing that he had nothing to do
with the case and that a Jail sentence
was not in his bargain.
Small Sellers Immune.
1.-The new United S les District At
torney has been oblii / to sweep out
of his Office all such minor cases in
order to make any progress at all
with the business of enforcement. In
order to get any Of the bigger offend
ers, 1t has been necessary to grant a
virtual immunity to the small scale Of
tenders; so that 1t may be truthfully
said that there is no real enforcement
of prohibition In New York City, so
far as petty offenses are concerned.
The situation is, of course, much more
serious because New York no longer
has a State prohibition law, which
hampers enforcement throughout the
commonwealth.
This is the 'seamy' side. 1t is not
the only side. The cities of Indiana,