Evening star., 1926-11-28
VETS PLANNING UPROAR
WHEN CONGRESS MEETS
VIII Try TO Make Prohibition Major
Issue in l92S-No. Change
in Laws Likely.

in the House, far outnumber those
States which have legislated against
medicinal liquor. = Included among
the former are Massachusetts, Nir
einia. New York Ohio. Illinois, Penn
Sylvania. Texas and California, to Sc
lect representative States of various
sections of the country.
Copeland Now Wet
In computing the wet strength in
he Senate, Senator Copeland of New
York. nomOcart. must henceforth be
considered miitantly in favor of mod
itication of the Volstead act. When
he was elected to the Senate four
wears ago. over former Senator Cal
der, Il wet. it was with the aid of
many dry Republican votes. He had
been health commissioner and was re-
garded as favoring the dry cause.
But Senator Copeland has now de-
clared that the referendum in New
! Ork is Il mandate to its Senators
md Representatives in Congress. that
10 will support modification of the
NO.stead act and that he is for Gov.
smith for President.
While Senator-elect Ware OF Penn
>ylvania. who made his race for the
senate on a wet platform. may be
because of alleged corruption in the
primary and general election cam
paigns--it is not at all certain the
Senator who will take his place in
that event will be dry. Indeed, the
wet sentiment in Pennsylvania proved
particularly strong in the primary
election, and really pulled Ware
through for the nomination.
Illinois has elected to the Senate
Col. Frank 2. Smith, who had Anti
Saloon League support during the
campaign against the Democratic
nominee, George f. Brennan, running
as a wet. But Illinois has gone wet
in the referendum, and it is possible
that Smith will consider this fact in
his course in the Senate, if he be per-
mitted to remain in that body He.
like Ware, is under fire because Of
campaign expenditures. His successor
would be a. Republican, whoever he
may be, and is not likely to be a mill
tant dry.
Drys Have Several Plans.
The drys have a number of pro-
posals before the Congress to
strengthen the prohibition laws.
Frankly, however, they doubt the pos
sibility of passing such legislation in
a short session which bristles with
controversial questions, including
taxes and farm relief. The admins
tration, with the support of the drys,
sent to Congress last year a compre
henSive bill to amend the Volstead
act, greatly increasing the power of
enforcement officers. This bill has
been reported favorably from the
Senate committee on judiciary by
Senator Golf of West Virginia. An
other measure already introduced
would reorganize the Treasury De
partment, establishing Bureau of
Prohibition Enforcement and taking
the enforcement of the dry laws from
the Internal Revenue Bureau. A
third bill would place all prohibition
enforcement agents under the civil
service.
VETS Favor Plan.
The enactment of a law establish
ing diStillcrieS for the manufacture of
medicinal whisky would be hailed by
the vets as a new recognition of the
value OF whisky by the Government.
They do not conceal their satisfaction
with the latest proposal of the admin
iStration in this regard. The Treasury
contention is that as long as medici-
nal whisky is legalized by the Consti-
tuition, the laws of Congress and many
of the States. pure supply should be
maintained in this country. But the
vets see the possibility of an entering
wedge leading to Government-con-
trolled manufacture of liquor. They
see it growing into "a system similar
to that in the Province of Quebec,
where the government handles the
liquor which is sold for beverage pur-
poses.
1t is expected that a flood of bills
will be introduced in the coming ses-
sion to amend the NolStead law so
that it will conform with the decision
of the voters of New York and Illinois
in the recent referenda in those States.
The voters favored in the referenda
a proposal that the dry laws be amend
ed so as to permit each State to de-
termine what is. in fact, Intoxicating
liquor in the meaning of the ConSti-
tuition of the United States. Many
New Workers will offer such meas
ures, as well as Representatives from
Illinois. The proposal has been de-
scribed by leading drys as "nullifica-
ton" of the Constitution. 1t has no
chance of being adopted. but will be
used as a vehicle of debate.
Another proposal of the vets, of
fered by Senator Bruce. is the amend
ment of the Constitution so as to per-
NIT the manufacture and sale of liu-
uors for beverage purposes under Gov
ernment control, in a manner modelled
after the Quebec system, providing.
however, for local option. The Mary
land Senator believes that this would
prove real solution of the LIQUOR
problem in this country He would
make the system of manufacture and
sale even more drastiCally controlled
than ii is in Quebec
The consensus of both wet and dry
opinion is that the coming session of
Congress will be barren of liuuor leg
Lslation. But there is not the slightest
doubt on either side that the wet and
dry iSSlln j.. q La