The Wolf Point herald. (Wolf Point, Mont.) 1913-1940, 1929-05-03


But you do not admit the trut.
of the hypothesis. What will cor
vince you? OF course, this las
election was not a referendum
though enthusiastic Drys proclaim
it as such, just as the Times would
so have considered it if it haC
gone the other way. All we car
say it that no political party Oh
candidate is likely to try the ex
pertinent which Smith and Raskot
tried this time. That is a great
gain. The nearest to a referen
dunn we a ever get is the cleo
ton Of members of Congress
Each house has steadily grown
drier with every election. In the
Senate just elected, there will be
eighty Drys and sixteen Vets
SO Is per cent. In the new
House, the proportion of Drys is
7515 per cent. This beats all re-
cords. We must remember, too,
that a large proportion of these
Drys were elected over dry po-
ponents. Now, if this goes on ten
years more, and the two houses
are, say, eighty and ninety per
cent dry. will the Wet newspapers
still refrain from preaching the
abstinence that offers the only
cure? VIII they preach doctrines
which cannot bulge the prohibi-
ton policy, but which inevitably
promote drinking, bootlegging, and
bribery?
These Congressional majorities
are merely a part Of a revolution
in public sentiment that has been
going on in this country for over
a hundred years. You and l may
not like it., but, in steering our
course as good citizens, we should
be fools to ignore it. The change
from our present condition to com
plete abstinence would not be as
great as that from 1928 to 1928.
We are not going back.
And it is now a world improve
ment. The number of prohibit
tionists in England, Scotland, Ire
land, Germany. and Scandinavia
grows apace, The setbacks which
come are like those that have
come in some states in this coun-
and nowhere does the fight
against alcohol show the slightest
sign of abating. Mussolini dras-
cut down the number of
and the hours during
which they might be open, II of
lis reasons being that in this way
he could prevent the on-coming
Of prohibition. Even in France,
here are STRINGS. g | a II d
only a fraction of the hard
liquor she drank in 1910 and the
listillers complain that they are
prohibition through tax
ltion. The Youth Movement
throughout Germany is strongly
.gainst alcohol. 1t is all to the i
anne purpose and no man can
axe a wide view of the situation /
realizing the direction 1
md the tremendous strength of
he current. 1t is only the fury Z
# the Vets that prevents their 5
it.
Let us remember that the dry
majority in this country would be
acre enormous still if the ques- {
ion were one Of the repeal of the \
amendment. And yet nothing
lse can possibly help the stu I
tion. With the A e d m e n L
landing, all notifications of the
wv are quite futile as far as boot q
and bribery are concerned. '
Of course. talk about nullifica
on is merely silly. Can you null l
fly the corruption? Governor
and his wet friends, includ- =
lg The Times, have gone as far !
oward multiplying the Amendment Il
nd the Volstead Act in New
'ork as possible. Have you abol- =
she'd the corruption? Has not :
policeman the power to en-
orce the Volstead Act? Can a =
start a speak-easy without :
uuaring the police? While the
Nv stands, we must observe it or :
ontribute to this corruption. I
Of course the Constitution is
uined. But the poor old thing ?
as been ruined so often that it ~
used to it. 1t was ruined when =
efferson first found out the pow !
r of the Federal Court. 1t was =
lined when Josiah Quincy Adams i
,und that we were going to admit
ouisiana. 1t has been ruined at
arious periods ever since. | do y
OF see what we a do except :,
orry along with the old instru- .
.ent till President Butler recov-
s his sense of humor. -
One would not make this appeal ="
a man whose motto is Let the -
go to the devil, l am going -
have my drink But we need =
ot consider him. He generally
as no moral courage and in time
ill fall into line. Lack of moral
)urage is at the back of a great IL
cal of this social drinking that
100 80 ,,or- DIT +ho-n ri hmm III