New Britain herald., 1930-02-01
COMMUNICATED
Me. Whites Rejoinder to Mayor
 Paonessa Letter
Dear Editol

l Dear Editor:
 Without wishing 10 unduIy pro long a newspaper controversy, l
 would appreciate the opportunity or 1 offering a few rejoinders to several
 of Mayor Paonossa's last statements.
 In his last letter Mr, Paonessa 1 disclaiIns association with any move ment looking toward the nulllllca- lion of any law Of the land and
 justities his opposition in the 16th
 amendment by stating that he wants , it modified along constitutional
 lines set up in the basic law Of our 1 country" Having gone so tar, ne 1 should state exactly what modlhca- ! tions he has in mind that would 1 conform to the constitutional clause which absolutely prohibits the manufacture, sale or transportation
 of intoxicating liquors for beverage
 purposes.
 It cannot be by lcsaliZing the sale ! Of wine and beer. because he must
 know that such law, if it permitted an appreciable alcoholic content would be instantly voided by the su- i prcme court. Light wine and beer is merely q meaningless slogan for
 rallying those who are dissatisfied
 with the 18th Amednment. Docs 1 he mean to repeal the amendment? That too, is only q. phrase 10 be printed on a campaign banner, for it is absolutely hopeless as a prac- tIcal program.
 It is easy to fan the fires of dis content; to tell men that they are deprived Of their liberty when they
 are cut off from their drink, but is
 it good public policy to stir up re- sentiment when there is no rational
 or lawful program for satisfying their discontent?
 When I pointed out 10 the Mayor the compensations in his own city; the better ordered community and higher standards Of living enjoyed
 by those who have been deprived of their former liberty 10 drink, he
 states that he does not know the
 sources of my information. Let me say that for the most part they are the collection Of volumes entitled Municipal Records of New Britain, published annually.
 Mr. Paoncssa would rcCute the facts and figures Of the year hook oH his own city. by telling how much liquor crime there is on Inc front pages Of the newspapers In .
 country of one hundred and twenty million people there will always he 1 found enough rum crime to f. the newspaper columns.
 When ] stated that deaths from i diseases related 10 liquor drinking
 had dropped more than half, I did not have alcoholism in mind. Only 2, "bum' in the station house dies | from alcoholism. Others who drink themselves 10 death die of dilatation
 of the heart. crrhosis of the liver, l Brights disease. or something else | that the doctor thinks will look bet l ter in death certificate. An eI-
 animation of death records from 1 these causes show dropping off of more than halH. But it is in the
 diseases that are occasioned or az 1 gTaNated by Drinking habits that the Sreate-t benefits arc 10 be found.
 During tho last 10 years Of the
 saloon, when the federal records re-
 veal that Connecticut was drinking
 more heavily every year. no prograss was made in reducing the death rate | for tuberculosis, Pneumonia was l startlingly on the increase. Fol
 lowing the prohibitory law deaths from these diseases have fallen off | hal?.
 The Mayor explains that drop Of | the death rate as the result of
 modern preventive medicine and
 scientific discoveries" I would be glad 10 be informed of just what medical innovations or scientific dis tovcrcs occurred between the years
 of 1918 and 1921. which produced ifn sudden drop Of "5 per cent in Inc death ra'c e this state. No
 one doubts the Naiua Of preventive mcdicirc 7rd science toward pro-
 longing lfc but they cannot pro-
 ducc rc2ult' in communities with incrc> sins Equor consumption like
 Now Britain before prohibition,
 AIr. Paoncssa is not satisfied with
 my statement regarding the pur- pose Of adding wood alcohol in order 10 denature industrial alcohol
 but what would Mr. paonessa sug- sest? Modern industry requires a