The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1926-05-12
A ARKABLE EDITORIAL

Golfers Weekly campaigned for prohibition
many years before the Eighteenth amendment
adopted. After six years Of prohibition, the follow
ing editorial appears in the issue of Golfers the
news stands today:
"The impossibty Of enforcing Federal prohibit
ton was amply demonstrated by the testimony Of
witnesses before the Senate committee in Wash
ington.
Federal prohibition cannot be enforced without
the employment of vast numbers of national police
Before obedience to the national dry law could be
exacted it would be necessary 70 establish hundreds
Of courts and to create entirely judicial
system. Not even Congress predominantly dry is
willing to spend the millions necessary to support
such a national vice squad.
"The law enforcement officials admit the bank
ruptcy Of the dry act. They have not been able to
administer the law They have expectation of
being able to administer the law. The commanding
generals admit defeat and by their very admission
make future victory impossible; for nothing could
have dealt serious blow to the morale of the
Federal agents than the confession by their su-
periors that they were engaged in hopeless enter
prise.
''In such circumstances it is the duty of all hon
est men to consider the future without prejudice.
What is the prospect? The return of the saloon is
impossible 1t brought evils to this country which
will again be tolerated. That chapter is closed
Ion the other hand the experience of the last five
years shows that in certain sections the American
people are unwilling to abandon the use of alcoholic
beverages If liquor cannot be got honestly, it will
be obtained corruptly. If clean alcohol cannot be
bought, the bootlegger's poison will be drunk.
There is limit to the ingenuity which and
women exercise to obtain forbidden drink. The Fed
eral law changed neither habit nor custom nor de-
SIRE
"The practical question is now to provide honest
Iy for the legal distribution Of liquor in the in
which the majority Of the people wet.
Each State Should Decide for Itself
"The Eighteenth amendment must be repealed.
Alcoholic beverages cannot be legally distributed
anywhere in the United States regardless Of local
sentiment, so long as the Eighteenth amendment is
in force. We afford to nulfy another sec
ton of the United States Constitution and alcoholic
beverages cannot be dispensed unless the Eighteenth
amendment is either repealed nulfed Since it
is not and cannot be enforced it must be rewritten
There is no alternative. We must not continue to
dishonor the Constitution
"Once the Eighteenth amendment IS repealed
a constructive program is possible.
1.-THE most practicable proposal calls for the es-
tablishment of publicly owned dspensares. The
experiments made in Canada and Scandinavian coun.
tries prove that this is and workable solution
Distributing centers should be established in those
States and communities which are wet by majority
VOTE
"The people Of every State should decide the
question for themselves. In dry States no dispen-
saries would be established. Even in wet States
dry communities could exclude dspensaries by the
exercise Of local option
I'm the distributing stations hard liquor as well
as beer and wine would be sold but with difference
Wines and beer should be priced cheaply, Hard
liquor should be distributed only at high prices as
high as the rates now levied by bootleggers,
Excessively high prices would tend to persuade
the rich as we'll as the poor to choose wine and beer
rather than gin or whisky. Government certifcation
of purity and quality at the same time would turn