The Washington times., 1930-03-26
GUT IN DEATH
RATE SHOWN

Prohibition has saved the ma
ton thousands of lives and mil
lions Of dollars by reducing the
annual death rate, John j. Lentz,
Of Columbus, Ohio, president of
the American Insurance Union,
told the House Judiciary Commit
tee today.
He emphatically asserted that
the total abstainer lived longer
than the drinker, repudiating
statements made during the pro-
hibition hearings by witnesses for
the other side.
Lentz told the committee his
statements were based on the tab
ulated death experience of II
leading life insurance companies
from 1914 to 1927.
Drops 20 Per Cent
These figures show that after
we abolished the 250,OO0 saloons
Of the nation, the death rate
dropped from SO per cent. the
high point, to 81 per cent, or, to
a point 20 per cent below that of
saloon days.
THAT means that the lives of
liquor drinking people tine
So-called respectable drinkers)
were reduced as a result of the
abolition of the saloon.
The expectancy of life was
plainly. increased, and if human
beings are worth while it is GER
tainly worth something for them
to stay out of the cemeteries and
remain with their families several
years longer.
Pointing to the saving to insur-
ance companies in the lowering of
the death rate. he said that the
expected cost of deaths to tn IT
insurance companies in 1923 had
been figured at $542.547786. The
actual cast, he said was $685.
669,129.
Cites Pershing on Canteen
Lentz pointed to a 1925 report
Of a committee of the National
Association of Insurance Com
misSioners showing the actual
death rate of Is insurance COM
panies compared to the expected
death rate to be 71.6 per cent
from 1914 to 1918 and 57.8 per
cent from 1919 to 1923. He said
the passing of the flu cpl
demic accounted for a S per cent
decrease.
Lentz, a former member of
Congress, gave Gen. John j.
Pershing, then a young officer,
credit for influencing the House
Military Committee to vote aboli-
tion of the Army canteen.
HE stated at that time, most
emphatically and with the clear
ness which only personal expert
ence can give, that he was in
favor of the abolition of the
Army canteen," said LentZ. He
said that sober men make the
best soldiers and that it was not
necessary to have an Army saloon
10 keep the soldiers out of the
low dives in whatever territory
they might be located"
Before Lentz appeared, Repre-
sentative Hardley (RD of Wash
ington, read a telegram from j.
I. Donovan, whom he termed an
influential Bellingham, Wash,
citizen, denying charges of La.
Guardia (RO of New York, that
liquor was sold on the Dollar
Steamship Lines.
LaGuardia reserved the right to
insert list of fines imposed on
Dollar officers. Asked by Repre-
sentative Graham (R.) of Perm
sylvania, committee chairman,
whether the fines were for liquor
or narcotic law violations, the
New Yorker said they were for
narcotic violations and would be
inserted as showing a general
tendency to disregard law.
Although wet and dry leaders
claim they are satisfied with the
showing they have made, it is un-
likely the committee will make
report. With a majority of the
committee avowedly dry. there
appears no chance for the repeal
fight to be carried to the House
floor.