Evening star., 1932-06-26


lican platform plan, the Morrow plan and
the Smith plan-there is disagree
ment in the fact that while the Re-
publican platform plank does not advo-
cate the new amendment as against
the eighteenth amendment. the Morrow
plan and the Smith plan were put for
ward by champions of their adoption.
Another notable difference is that while
the Republican platform and the
Morrow plan emphasize enforcement OF
the Volstead law and suggest no change
in it. former Gov. Smith Is an out
spoken advocate Of modifying the
Volstead act before the tedious process
of Constitution amending runs its course
and makes no committal in respect to
enforcement.
AS noted above, Gov. Smith. on his
arrival in Chicago last Wednesday, re-
peated his suggestion that the Volstead
act be amended lat once" in order to
permit the sale of beverages of ''rea-
sonable alcoholic content. The people
of the United States are entitled to this
relief. which would divert the profit Of
the bootlegger into legitimate taxes"
And it is as interesting to note, in ad-
dition. that whereas he advocated
amending the eighteenth amendment
four years ago, he has now become an
laid emphasis four years ago on his
opposition to the return Of the saloon
and endeavored to point out how that
could be prevented, he does not men
ton the saloon in his Chicago state
ment, contenting himself with amend
ment OF the Volstead act and repeal
of the eighteenth amendment.
Gov. RooseveIt's Plan.
Gov. Roosevelt's proposal, as made
known in a letter to Senator Wagner
September IL, 1880, was that:
The sale of intoxicants through
State agencies should be made law
full in any State of the Union where
the people of that State desire 1t,
but conversely, the people OF any
State should have the right to pro-
hibit the sale of intoxicants, il they
so wish, within its own borders.
The control of any sale Of any in
toxicants should be wholly in the
hands of the States or OF State
agencies.
It must remain not only the right
but the duty of the Federal Govern
ment to protect States which con-
tinue to prohibit the sale OF IN
toXicantS.
Finally, there should be definite
recognition Of the extension OF
home rule to the lower subdivisions
of Government-in other words,
recognition of the right of cities,
villages or towns by popular vote to
prohibit the sale Of intoxicants with
in their own borders, even though in
toxicants may be sold in other parts
of the State through State agencies.
Gov. Roosevelts proposal, therefore,
differs from the others mentioned here
mainly through his extension OF the
option on prohibition to political units
within a State, approving the old local
option system among the counties Of
State and by reason of his failure
specifically to mention any specific
substitute, thus indicating his belief In
repeal modified perhaps by his state
ment that it must remain the right and
the duty Of the Federal Government to
protect the dry States from invasion
by the wet
Gov. Ritchie, one Of the original re-
pealists, in an interview published in
the New York Times September Fl,
1890. said:
The eighteenth amendment
ought to be repealed. do not
favor changing the provisions Of the
eighteenth amendment or the inser-
LIOIl VI d IlCH Vi lhOOAAACO Va
stitute amendment in It's place.
Rather do l think that each State
ought to be free to settle the ques-
tion in accordance with the wants
and the needs Of its own people, and
l believe that the people of the dif-
ferent States can be trusted to do
this in way which will promote the
cause of temperance.
think further that the principle OF
local option ought to apply to the
governmental units within each State
and that it would be the duty OF the
Federal Government to protect
States which wish to be dry" against
shipments from other States which
would contrayene their laws.
Plans for Repeal.
Gov. Ritchie's plan and DR.. Buffers
plan are in all fundamental respects
identical. Dr. Butler believes that the
amendment should be repealed: that
the Federal Government through con-
troll of interstate commerce should seek
to help the dry States preserve their
dryness, and that the people Of each
State would select the liquor control
system that each preferred. Through
such State control, DR.. Butler has be-
lieved, and the education OF the peo-
pie in temperance, the saloon would
be prohibited.
There are, Of course. many other
plans. But, as may be judged from the
samples quoted above, they group
themselves into three general classes.
The first OF these now includes the
prohibition plank OF the Republican
party. 1t declares against notification
and against submission to the people of
the proposition of repeating the eight
eenth amendment; but declares for
submission to the people Of an
amendment to the eighteenth amend
ment which retains control of the
liquor traffic with the Federal Gov
ernment in order to protect the dry
States from the wet States and the
people of all the States against the
return of the saloon, but otherwise
gives to each State the right to deal
with the problem as their citizens may
determine"
The second Of these is the proposal,
as first advocated by Gov. Smith, but
modified by subsequent utterances, to
amend the Volstead act by lberaliz-
| ing the allowable alcoholic content of
beverages, such as beer and wine, and
substituting for the eighteenth amend
ment new amendment resting con-
troll of the liquor problem with the
/ States, giving the Federal Government
authority to protect dry States against
wet States and protecting all the peo-
pie against the return Of the saloon.
The third of these Is the proposal,
as advocated all along by Gov Ritchie
! and other repealists, for out and out
repeal of the eighteenth amendment,
with the Federal Government protect
| ing the dry States against the wet
States through its control Of interstate
traffic, but trusting only to the wisdom
| of the people in the States to prevent
| the return of the saloon. This is sub
stantially the position also Of the plat
form plank proposed by the minority
at the Republican nominating conven-
| tior No control uyhatever fc IN ha laft