The Washington times., 1930-01-03
ENL|STS.
WITH BORAH
DRY FIGHT
CONTINUED from Page Ons)

@NA ANNAAANA4S 1Sb-AHg Iva eSAA NOAAs~AAA-
ing that it is industrial alcohol
diversion, which he characterized
as "a national disgrace" a con-
tention DR.. j. M. Doran, the pro
hibition commissioner, hotly
denies. Alcohol diversion, Doran
contended, is now a negligible
factor.
Senator Jones Takes Air
4. Senator Jones, author of the
five-and-ten law. took to the air
last night with a radio speech to
the country, defending prohibit
ton and appealing for public sup
port at this critical time.
5. Senator Fess (R.) Of Ohio
announced he will propose Sena-
tor Borah for chairmanship Of
the new joint congressional corr
mittee which is to consider
methods of tightening the pro-
hibitory laws. This is regarded
as a move to silence the Idahoan
by putting the responsibility for
changes upon his shoulders.
Borah's friends will be surprised
If he accepts the post for, while
he has always been a dry, he
has ScrupulouSly refrained frola
putting the Borah label on any
specific legislation. He prefers
the role Of critic.
Borah, who was President
Hoover'S chief prohibition orator
during the last campaign, is defi-
n1tely on the warpath against
both the enforcement and prose.
cutting personnel Of the present
regime. He has carried his case
direct to the White House, but
thus far President Hoover mas
elected to keep hands off.
The President has In his ms
session the preliminary report of
the Law Enforcement Commis-
sion, which Senator Jones said
ne was glad to announce did
not express any opinion concern
ing tne wisdom or unwiSdom of
the Eighteenth Amendment.-The
President also has a long report
from Borah, celebrating upon his
charge that the Department Of
Justice is inefficient and the
Fronloltlon Bureau itself "a ma.
tlonal disgrace" It is this re-
port that is understood to CON
taln the ammunition which Mrs
Wllebrandt, now in private law
practice, supplied the Idahoan.
Departments In Turmoil
The Department of Justice and
the Prohibition Bureau are both in
turmoil over the Borah charges.
and the knowledge that as soon as
Congress gets back to provide the
proper stage, they are going to
come in for even more caustic
criticism.
Defending his own administra-
ton, Attorney General Mitchell
declared he had cleaned house to
the extent of causing an even
dozen district attorneys to leave
the Government payroll. And he
issued a blanket invitation to
Borah to submit any evidence he
had OF the inefficiency of others.
To this challenge Borah made
a flat and somewhat con.
temptuouS refusal. He said he
had no idea of seeing Mr.. Mitchell.
and further he asserted that If the
department did not know which
district attorneys were enforcing
the law and which were not then
it only showed the Incompetence
OF the departmental heads.
Similarly, Senator Borah de-
clared that If Treasury officials.
including DR.. Doran, were not
aware that diversion of industrial
alcohol was the chief leakage in
the prohibition system it merely
went to show their ignorance and
incompetence"
Armed With Inside Stuff"
Mrs. Willebrandt was in charge
of the Justice end of prohibition
enforcement during her years as
assistant Attorney General. She
was in more or less constant con.
flict with her superiors, and with
those in the Treasury with whom
she was supposed to collaborate.
She had hoped to become the first
woman Attorney General in his.
tory, and when the post went else
where she retired, disappointed
and disilluSioned. She took with
her q lot of what is described as
inside stuff" concerning district
attorneys with whom she had
clashed. and concerning alcohol
diversions, which she has long
contended was prohibitions great
est weak spot. Evidently this in
formation now has been planted
where it will grow and flourish.
On top of these developments,
reports were widely current about
the Capital today that the law
enforcement commission itself is
badly split on the prohibition
question, Notwithstanding Senator
Jones statement that he was
glad to announce" the commits
sion would express no opinion as
to the wisdom or unwisdom of the
Eighteenth Amendment.
1t was significantly noted that
Senator Jones announcement did
not include the VolStead law, and
there is vast amount Of specula-
ton as to whether the commission
is going to express an opinion on
prohibitions enabling act.
It is fairly well known that sev.
eral members Of the law enforce