Evening star., 1929-10-06
BY MARK SULLIVAN.


Just what has happened with respect
to enforcement during the nearly seven
months of the Hoover administration.
What has happened about prohibition
enforcement under Attorney General
Mitchell is what would necessarily hap
pen under very able and very dill
gent lawyer who is by temperament un-
spectacular and at the same time eX-
ceptionally conscientious. To describe
the evolution of enforcement under Mr.
Hoover's Attorney General would take
many words. To summarize 1t briefly
Is difficult, because the subject lies less
in the world of figures than in the
spirit in which things are done. Also
the very essence of the new regime is
avoidance of the spectacular. All obvi-
Gus trait of President Hoover is Quaker
distaste for pretentiousness. Attorney
General Mitchell does not happen to be
Quaker. but he shares this quality
with his chief.
If one is to summarize at all, one
might infer from the atmosphere of the
Department of Justice that under tie
new regime prohibition enforcement Las
less occasion to become the subject OF
fiaring newspaper headlines.
1t has less occasion to get into the
newspapers through defects of enforce
ment. because the law is enforced with
steady energy. It has less occasion to
get into the newspapers through over
spectacular methods of enforcement,
because such methods are not prac-
ticed.
Burden Is Divided.
Prohibition enforcement. speaking
broadly, lies partly with prohibition en-
forcement officials throughout the coun-
try. but ultimately with the Federal
district attorneys attached to the various
district courts in various parts OF the
country. ANY change In the spirit OF
enforcement, going out from Washing
ton would express itself in two ways
In the kind of men appointed to be
local district attorneys and in causing
the local officials to feel the steady pres
sure Of high morale at Washington.
A district attorney. if he is that sort
of person, and especially If he Is In
politics. could take one OF two attl-
tudes about prohibition enforcement.
He could play up to either OF two ele-
ments in his city.
II he wanted to play up to the vets
he could throw UP his hands and say
that enforcement is impossible. AS
part of this attitude. he could reduce
enforcement to the status of petty,
neglected and perfunctory part OF work
of his office.
On the other hand, different sort
of district attorney. wishing to play up
to the drys or having an itch for pub
licity could be very spectacular with
raids and the like. He could, among
other things. stretch other laws. do vi
olence to the whole machinery OF law,
imperil even such laws as the habeas
corpus one, in order to achieve spec
tacular convictions of violators OF the
prohibition law.
attorney have existed-one kind in
some cities. the other kind in other
cities. Neither of the two types re-
fleets the spirit of the new regimes
UnthinkabIe to ignore Law.
In the new regime a first article is
that prohibition is in the Constitution
and in the law. therefore it Is unthinK-
able to ignore 1t or slight it.
A second principle is that the en-
forcement of prohibition shall be in due
proportion to the orderly enforcement
of other laws-no less and no more.
A third characteristic is that every
other law and every other article OF the
Constitution is equally sacred with the
prohibition one. no more and no less;
that punishment of violators OF the
prohibition law shall be carried on as
it ought to be carried on. without the
violation of other laws. without the vio-
lation of constitutional guarantees.
without warping the machinery OF all
law.
Another principle is that prohibition.
being in the Constitution and in the
law. Is entitled to respect ana dignity.
A district attorney who says publicly.
or even by his attitude. that there is
no use trying to. enforce prohibition,
would find himself fatally out of SYM
pathy with the present order. A judge
who permits his courtroom to become
jocular about prohibition would hardly
be chosen by the Hoover administration
for promotion to the Federal bench.
Neither would judge who tries to
make political capital by being spectac-
ular in the enforcement of prohibition.
The keynote of the whole thing Is
respect for all law. including the pro-
hibition law, and regard for the dignity
of the agents of the administration OF
all laws, including the prohibition law.
It was on the latter point that Sen
ator Howell of Nebraska made his mis-
step. Senator Howell would not del1o-
erately say that the men responsible
for administering the laws in WASH
ington lack the will to enforce. He
would not say it because it Is not true.
But Senator Howell fell into an attl-
tude of mind that Is common among
men in public life. and also among
newspapers, not to omit clergymen.
Senator Howell was making speech
about something quite different. about
the tariff bill and an item of the bill
that deals with the admission OF mar
cotics. Off-hand and irrelevantly, he
said, in effect, that the prohibition law
is not being enforced in Washington,
and that the will to enforce Is lacking.
He was called to account by President
I1o what
had said.
The public has little opportunity to
know about prohibition. Public men,
even ordinarily careful ones like Sem
ator Howell, fall into grotesque mis-
statements Newspapers do the same
thing. With certain class OF news
papers it Is not exactly misstatement
merely Yet as respects all newspapers
there Is a prevailing attitude which
stories about prohibition, many os e.aA o.
utterly baseless.
Misstatement by Papers.
Nearly three months ago the news
papers blazed with headlines saying
that Mr.. Lowman and Mr.. Doran, the
two heads of prohibition enforcement
at Washington, were about to be "hred"
by Mr. Hoover. There was absoE:..y
White House denied it-although the
White House ought not to be called
upon to deny grotesque misstatements.
because newspapers ought not to print
them. Promptly Secretary Mellon, in
whose department these two officials
are, denied the story.
The newspapers generally printed the
denialS. Some newspapers gave due
credit to the denials A large number,
however, while printing the denials.
continued to say by their actions and
in some cases in so many words that
the denials were not true. One OF the
wet newspapers said that "in spite OF