Evening star., 1927-06-29

|
FANNIE HURST. vulgar word =. for
vulgar practicel
| causes them to flout this law, to
make beasts of themselves and To
do nothing whatever about d danger
Gus situation save howl protests
against the Governments invasion OF
their personal liberty"
Thus Fannie Hurst, lovely lady and
famous novelist; Fannie Hurst. who
cannot help going up in the air
when she feels things deeply; Fannie
Hurst, who will stand against the wall
and let her friends spear her with
lances of disapproval, rather than pre-
tend a viewpoint she doesn't sincerely
hold.
I'm willing to be boiled in OIL" says
Miss Fannie in that gorgeous ram
pageous way she has, f1inging out
shapely hands, and all but soaring off
the sofa in emphasis, "but 1 do think
there's a lot to be said for prohibition.
There are other laws, aren't there,
that strike at personal liberty? Do
people pay any attention to them?
Look at the legislation that let's chill
dren work in places where they
shouldn't work, doing terrible things
that affect health. education, their
| freedom. their future. Look at free
speech-strangled Look at men put
behind bars because they had opinions
and spoke them!
"Hydrophobia," She Says.
Look at all these things! Who
cares? The Senate sleeps, or fuddles
through Laws against liberty, laws
against women, laws against crimi-
nails who are victims of poverty and
neglect-laws, laws, laws everywhere
which stifle and destroy!
''Yet only when a law comes along
that deprives us of sensuous pleasure
do we raise all this hue and cry.
Comes prohibition, and instantly we
become highly vocal with resentment.
Such awareness of oppression was
| never known before. We get hydro
phobia!
1--WE resent the law in alcoholic
orgies that leave us spent and inef.
| fectual. We run around in search OF
| liquids with which to confound it. We
| befuddle ourselves with vicious con-
| coctions that we complain are forced
upon us by murderous statute. We
| hold wild wassail with an expenditure
of energy that would reform the world
| if rightly used"
|
ment about human nature craving
what is forbidden. We chirped the
suggestion that is made that less
drastic law might have been better.
| We mentioned the idea that is ad-
vanced that human nature should not
| be eXpec-
We'll, then it's very terrible kind
| of human nature" burst in Miss Fan
ME. 1T is a human nature that en-
| dures supinely other peoples suffer
| ing and becomes a savage fury when
itself is whacked across the head.
Bray at Thwarted Appetite.
| "The mighty minority" continued
| our lady of letters, now hitting on all
six docs a definite thing. It enacts
law, maintains the law and fights
it's opponents. It's opponents use up
| their strength in merely braying-
| braying because their alcoholic appe.
| tites are thwarted. Not so noble, that,
is it?"
We reminded Miss Hurst Of the wet
argument that people could hardly be
| expected to leave their work and do
1 battle with what they consider a mis-.
| taken law. Miss Fannie would have
none Of it.
| why shouldn't they be expected
| to? / expect human nature to be hu-
man enough either to abide by the law
and see what sort of race we could
produce without the aid of alcohol, or
to set about intelligently to deal with
! the law If it is unworkable, unwiSe
and opposed to life, liberty and hap
| piness.
what do not expect people to do
is say: Now since l don't believe in
this law l shall ignore it, find liquor
to crafty my guzzling appetite, drink
| more than l ever did before, and If it
plays havoc with myself and my chill
| dren. and their children, it's the laws
fault Yet that is what they are
doing"
In short, Miss Fannie thinks our
own weakness and selfishness are to
blame for any shortcomings ,prohibi-
ton may have.
Give 1t Fair Trial.
What are we made Of? Can't we
stand up under test long enough to
make sure of its results and then abol.
ish or amend the law Qf it should be
abolished or amended) in sane fashion
without all this ballyhoo?
We go around lamenting the deca
dence Of the younger generation. They
| drink, we say. They are immoral, we
say. They have broken from control
and heaven only knows what will hap
pen. Well, how in heavens name,
Miss Fannie asks, could it be other.
wise? What example are we setting?
| Do we show any self-control? Do we
show any high ideals or symptoms OF
courage and altruism?
No! We make spectacles of our.
selves, turning social parties into bac'
chanalian orgies, getting booZy and
woozy and loose. Then we blame the
youngsters for their naughtiness just
as we blame prohibition for ours.
Miss Fannie is not what in gran
mas day was called teetotaler. She
would not start in horror at a cock
tail, and she smokes a cigarette.
But l have yet to see proof" she
says that alcohol is beneficial and
depend on it too little to compre
bend the rage of those to whom it is
inspiration and solace. We have never
seen country continuously free from
its use. 1t would be an interesting
experiment to try.
For humanitys sake, let us either
respect the law or do something about
it-besides letting it make us boozy
fools and weaklings.'