The American issue. [volume] (Westerville, Ohio) 1912-19??, 1930-09-01

mortality experience nave been picked up
and used by the wet press to make sensa-
tional and almost hysterical arguments
against prohibition until they distort the
picture Of alcoholism mortality. The facts
are these:
L The Metropolitan Bulletin states that:
'The mortality from alcoholism since ma
tional prohibition has not been quite as
high as for any of the years between 1911
and 1917" Indeed it has not, but this
statement is rarely given attention by the
wet press.
ID Actually, the rate under prohibition
has not only been mot quite SO high" but
at its highest (37 in 1926 it was Is per
cent lower than in the average pre- rohi-
bition year.
CD No prohibition, year has been as high
as the lowest of the pre-prohibition rates.
CD The prohibition annual average rate
is only little more than half that of the
normal pre-prohibition years, 2.6 against
At.
(4) The 1929 rate was 80 percent lower
than the average wet year, Is per cent
lower than the lowest Of the wet years.
LOWEST MORTALITY RATE
RECORDED"
II. The Metropolitan Bulletin states
that I'm the first year of national prohi-
bition, the lowest mortality from alco-
holiSm was recorded"
Precisely. The low 1920 rate is evidence
of what prohibition can do and did do in
reducing alcoholism death loss when the
protection the law affords is accepted.
The wet press ignores this statement about
the low 1920 rate choosing rather to en-
phasize the other part of the statement,
viz. that the death rate from alcoholism
has risen since 1920. These facts should
be remembered:
Cd Prohibition brought the lowest re-
corded alcoholism death rate
Not the prohibition law but some drink
ers' wilful refusal of protection offered by
the law is responsible for any increase
since 1920
% There is no. argument against the
law in the fact that the alcoholism rate of
1929 was higher than that Of 1918 as cited
from Metropolitan Life Insurance Com
pany statistics. Nineteen hundred and
eighteen is not considered normal year
for any mortality rates because of the in
fluenza epidemic which carried off many
whose deaths would otherwise have been
ascribed to other diseases including alco-
holisn.
Further, 1918 was not normal "wet"
year. War restrictions on the liquor traffic
were in effect; millions of men were in
military service; the general public was
under constant appeal for sobriety ito
help win the war"
All these influences suddenly brought
the Metropolitan alcoholic mortality in
1918 down to 1.8 as compared with At Of
the preceding seven years.
But prohibition brought the rate down
to 0.6 in 1920
CD The chief gain under prohibition
was in the early years when enforcement
laws were enacted and getting under way.
After 1920 the psychological situation
changed. Forces which had not dared OPP
pose sobriety during the war now organ
lied open opposition to prohibition. In
fuential widely read newspapers pub
1ished ridicule of abstinence and opposi-
ton to prohibition. State prohibition en-
forcement laws did not get quite generally
into effect until 1924.
During these early years after 1920 the
Metropolitan alcoholism death rate rose
again, at first rapidly, then more slowly,
and now for four years what little change
there has been has shown a downward
tendency. From 1920 to 1923 the Metro
politan rate rose from 0.6 to 80 per 100000
policy-holders; from 1923 to 1926 the gain
was but slight, 80 to 81. Since 1926 the
trend has been slightly downward, viz,
3.5, 3.3, "a. But all the time the rate has
been below that of the pre-prohibition
years
(4) The Metropolitan 1929 rate shows