The producers news. [volume] (Plentywood, Mont.) 1918-1937, 1930-01-17
FRIDAY, JANUARY IT, 1880.
THE CRISIS IN PROHIBITION

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Hoover's gallant attempt to enforce the "noDle
experiment" and give the fanatics OF the Anti-oa-
loon League and the angels of the Ku Klux Khan
r,,n for their votes and their money is falling on
evil days. -,
Oosni+o we'll over thousand murders committed
in the name of prohibition enforcement since that
fatal law was passed, the rum business today is
more before the public eye that at any time since
Noab went into drunken sleep without fig leaf
to cover his nakedness.
Reliable reports are TO the effect that booze can
be had in any part of the United States with the
aid of money and little trouble and in the so-called
dry states without any trouble at ALL
Recently the entire officaldom of a town IN
Ioaho were sentenced to prison because they gave
carte blanche to the popuace to enjoy the old trim
ity of wine, women and song to the limit. 1t APP
pears the city thrived this policy and tho 'sn'
was rampant it was not proved that shining was
made compulsory by the city fathers. 1t is not
necessary to state that Idaho is Senator Borah's
bailiwick Borah is one of the loudest drys in the
senate was and we believe still is Mabel Willie
brandt's favorte solon, and yet he could not keep
his own backyard in order. Perhaps the native
bootleggers did not care how Justify he welded
his verbal billy on turpitudious Gotham long
ne did not turn his blasts the home towns.
No doubt Borah is as sincere in his desire to
enforce prohibition as any other representative Of
the great American people in congress. That is not
saying an awful lot for either Borah or his col
leagues The important point, however, is not the
sincerity of the drys real or fake, but the obvious
impossibilty of enforcing statute which does not
have the support of even substantial minority of
the American people IN PRACTICE Millions vote
for prohibition but take their alcohol with the
smirk of contentment and the grimace of piety.
Right here in Plentywood we have living
ample of what this political hypocrisy results in.
Last fall the "good people" of Sheridan County
donned their crusadng and went forth to
slay the dragon of unrighteousness in the person
of Rodney Salisbury in particular and the Farmer
Labor Party organization in general. They con-
quered. That is, they elected their candidates on
a program of reform Did we get reform? Did
Hans Madsen drive the bootleggers out of town
Did he stop the slot machine racket? Did he drive
mig" Collins out of the county and close up his
establishment euphoniously called a Chicken
ranch?"
Of course not. Like the prohibition army nation
ally the Business Administration wanted power and
they used the "moral" issue to ride into power
Like the dry senators and congressman and the
officials of the prohibition apparatus they had
their favorite bootleggers, this favorite slot ma
en- ranchers." With the aid of Corporal Winters
they expected to keep the goose hanging high, b
establish corner in booze and gambling and t
offer up few 'undesirables" as sacrifice on tn
altar of purity. But the game did not work.
The Producers News killed this well-lad pla
and threw the fat into the fire The Producer
News is not for prohibition because it does not pre-
mote temperance. 1t is against bootlegging but
realizes that we going to have bootlegging .
long as we have prohibition. Unlike other count
sheets that pose organs of opinion the Producer
News does not up the dirt that is eatin
away at the heart of society, local and nationa
1t throws the spotlight on it and calls on the pet
pie to prescribe remedy. The Producers New
believes that system of government control ar
distribution of alcoholic beverages something Ill
the Canadian system will go a long way TOWARD
solving the problem of alcoholism, one of the mo
serious problems that confront the people in
countries.
Because we threw the X-ray of publicity on Il
operations of the Performers" who worked in c
boots with their favorite bootleggers The Produ
News is damned. That is nothing new in
young life; it thrives on this kind of punishmel
Corporal Winters told some of those who we
caught in the recent raid that they had The P1
ducers News to blame for their bad luck Sor
of them believed it. We are not particular VIII
the bOOtleggers believe. The local Bladder" c
have their good will; it probably needs it. But
want everybody to know where we stand Tho
who can read should know it by now. We a
against prohibition. But we believe that if t
prohibition law is to be enforced it should be
forced impartally. We are opposed to a boo
monopoly with the connivance of officers of t
law TO their financial or political profit Tha
plain enough.
Prhibition cannot be enforced nationally a
more than it can be enforced here in Sherid
County.
Strip the bishop of his apron, the counsellor