New Britain herald., 1930-06-30
A PECULIAR SHAkE-JP

The shake-up in the federal dry enforcement system has hit Maurice Campbell, prohibition admistrator for New York, with peculiar force. It was Major Campbell, it will be remembered, who as a jealous dry crusader. worker and entorcer, in- stituted the series Of raids on prominent New York hotels and restaurants eliminating in the raids on the Central Park Casino and the Ritz-Carlton only q few days ago.
 The raid. were sensational and spectacular. Of course; but they were in conformity with what is pos sible, or even demanded. by the pro- hibltion law, AS long as there is such law and 1t IS to be enforced, such excrescences of enthusiasm for the law can scarcely be avoided unless it is desired 10 ignore the law.
 But the prohibition unit goes from the L. S Treasury Department to the Justice Department on July l. and meanwhile Attorney General Mitchell has announced that there will be only 12 districts and that the gentlemen in charge will be those he desires to see at the heads of the various districts One would have concluded that Major Campbell, aft er getting so much in the public eye through the medium of his raids, would have been one of the first to be considered at the head of the fed eral trouble department branch in New York, Instead, Major Campbell was what he terms denoted made director Of alcoholic permits in the New England district with head quarters in Boston.
 The major thinks this i. very poor reCompense for his sterling efforts as the country's leading raid director and lost little time in resigning from the federal prohibition department Others are said to be prepared to follow his example.
 It is the aim Of the Government, 1t is said, to have the prohibition de- partment conducted so as to merit the cooperation Of local authorities. Major Campbell Of course, earned no popularity in New York. Even the Mayor.it IS said, was down on him. Anything that interferes with per- sonal vhoopee in New York is dis tressingly unpopular. Major Camp bell got nearly as much attention at times as the erstvhhe MT. Whalen got for his pains a. a police com missioner, and both were lambaste ed with equal tervor by the press. In spite of that, though, Major Camp bell was regarded as one of the pets" of the Enforcement Bureau under the Treasury Department. It IS clear that Mir. Mitchell, the attorney general who will now run prohibit tion, has different ideas as 10 who to pet.
 The Administration is commonly regarded as being seriously desirous of enforcing prohibition better than ever before. Mr. Campbell probably would like to know how that is 10 be done without raids. Or he might be constrained to ask whether policy of wooing cooperation with localities IS more important than stopping, or making attempts to stop, drinking in high places. We get the impression that the new regime of prohibition enforce ment is going to be much easier on 1 the practitioners of personal liberty than was the old system. It looks to
 US, with easy going men at the heads 1 Of the districts, that there is going , to be an easing up all along the line l Mir. Mitchell would naturally be vex- | ed at any such conclusion at the be- l ginning of his arduous increase of | duties, but if all that IS to come to such an ardent raider as MT. Camp
 bell is demotion leading to resigna-
 ton. then it is self evident that the
 Governm is going to frown upor
 the raiding system.
 That change in policy will suit the
 wet districts. Raids or no raids the
 situation probably will not change for the worse. And what one means
 by worse" incidentally, depends al
 together upon the personal view
 point.