The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1932-11-17
BY WILLIS THORNTON
NEA Service Writer

the eighteenth amendment is re-
pealed, that's not the end Of the
fight-that's only the beginning"
Fred @. Clark, commander of
million and a quarter Crusaders,
speaking.
We're for repeal" he continues,
simply because outright repeal is
the quickest way to get to real
solution of the problem.
But repeal is no solution in
itself, any more than national pro-
hibition was solution. Modifi-
cation of the Volstead act is no
solution. Suppose congress de-
clares that 4 per cent beer is nom
intoxicating in fact.
1t will be very hard to regulate
The sale of a beverage that con-
gress has declared n-intoxicat-
ing. Would a place just like a
saloon which sold it be a saloon?
Plenty of complications can fol-
low that.
THE thing is to repeal the
eighteenth amendment, and then,
having cleared the ground, to build
a new and better structure that
really will solve the problem
The Crusaders advance no IRON
clad formula for this 6 ticn. n
fact, Clark doubts that any single
formula will be found that will
yield the right answer in rural
Kansas and Maine and urban New
York and Chicago.
n
INSTEAD, he offers a set of
Il principles on which the de-
tailed answer should be built RE
move the profit from the distrib-
uting end Of the liquor business.
The federal government must pro-
tect such states as want to remain
dry. The saloon must not be al
lowed to return
BY the saloon, Clark means
especially the organized saloon
power, the liquor traffic" which
was suppressed by national prohi-
bition.
The saloon as drinking place
only has been driven underground,
and a new and more sinister ''liq-
uor traffic" has replaced the old.
Genuine temperance is the real
goal"
Those general detectives, you
will note, are much the same as
those of the w. G. T. U. genera
ton ago.
Clark gets grim amusement
over the similarity, but reiterates
that only repeal and a new deal
on prohibition will achieve them.
This vagueneSs as to means of
achieving the detectives is one of
the repealist weaknesses. Various
wet organizations never have
united on single answer, though
united on repeal.
But it would be strange if we
could not devise a solution. The
United States is the last great
prohibition country. Tiny Prince
Edward Island, off Canada, is our
only companion in retaining bone
dry prohibition.
The British solution, developed
gradually in 1900 years of trial
and error, runs toward gradual
tightening of the restrictions on
sellers, closer restriction of the
hours of selling, higher taxes. The
number of saloons is decreasing.
TINE Swedish solution is to
Il license the consumer, and see
that all profits of the industry
after expenses, dividends and re-
serves, go to the state.
Denmark and Norway have va
riations of this-a system of pri-
vate distribution to licensed drink
ers with the profits to producers
and dealers itrictly limited. Beer
IS not considered = problem in
those countries at all.
Canada, Finland and SWitzer-
land have the government mo-
nopoly system. In no Canadian
province is there private profit
from the sale of liquor.
Switzerland has an interesting
provision: each canton Cor State)
on eceiving its share of the pro-
ceeds from the government mo-
nopoly, must use 10 per cent to
promote temperance.
Several plans have been pro-
posed for the United States. One
is that of Henry w. Anderson.
member of the Wickersham COM
mission, which combines features
OF most of the European systems,
but takes note of American Gus
toms and institutions.
He proposes a twenty-first
amendment, repeating the eight
zenith and giving congress power
to regulate or prohibit the liquor
traffic.
1t could retain national prohi-
bltion, remit all or part of the
problem to the state, or adopt any
solution that seemed better.
CONGRESS then would create
~ bipartisan national COM
mission on liquor control to make
regulations for liquor control,
subject to laws of congress and
the states. Congress then would
charter a privately owned ma
tional corporation to have a mo-
nopoly on making and distribut-
ing liquor subject to the regula-
tons of the commission.
Stockholders would get return
set by congress 6 to per cent?
All earnings above the permitted
return would be paid into the
United States treasury.
The commission would oversee
distribution of the company's
products in accordance with the
laws of the states, set prices and
fix standards of purity.
Dry states would have to en-
force their law against the local
bootleggerS, but the corporation
would ship none of its liquor to
dry states. Shipments to a wet,
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