Evening star., 1932-12-14


resentative government is to be de-
/ stroyed, We might just as well have an
| autocracy with hereditary ruler as to
have the autocracy of centralized
political machine controlled by small
| group of wealthy men drunk with
| power and greedy for spoliation and
plunder of the masses. For any politi-
cal party to attempt to bind United
States Senators and Representatives by
the declarations of its national plat
form on a great moral issue, affecting
the health and happiness and morals
Of the people, is bold and unblushing
which belongs to the people themselves
Unless the masses Of the American
people have lost all their spirit and
sense of self-respect, they will rebuke
| the party that makes such an attempt
| and Representatives as bow to the
bosses and yield to such shameless and
un-American doctrine and demand
Let the people of the several States
and congressional districts speak prompt
| ly and in unmistakable terms to their
Senators and Representatives upon this
vital principle of government and upon
the retention Of the eighteenth amend
| ment; let not representative govern
ment Of the United States fail: let
not our institutions established by the
founders OF the Republic be destroyed.
Condemn Repeal Move.
I'VE unhesitatingly condemn the un-
seemly effort in the House Of Repre-
| sentatives to rush through a resolution
proposing the repeal of the eighteenth
amendment Immediately upon the as
sembling of the House, and even before
Congress had notified the President
Of the United States that the Congress
had assembled and was ready for the
transaction of business.
I'VE heartily congratulate the Ameri-
| can people upon the failure of this ef-
| fort to belittle the process of amending
the fundamental charter of our liberties
mend the members of Congress whose
sense Of propriety and whose patriotic
devotion to the right defeated this
effort.
THE vets have urged not only an
amendment to the Constitution repeal
ing the eighteenth amendment, but
| they have also insisted that such an
amendment be proposed by Congress to
ratifying conventions in the several
States instead of Legislatures. to which
all previous amendments, including the
Bill of Rights have been proposed.
Ratification of constitutional
amendment by State conventions would
be an effort to open the way for politi-
cal jobbery by corrupt political bosses
in large number of States manifestly
contrary to the original spirit Of the
amending clause of the Constitution.
If the real purpose Of the vets were,
| as they profess, to have the people more
directly express their choice, consistency
would indicate that they first Of all Sc
cure an amendment to article five so
as to provide that ratification of pro-
posed amendments provided for by
State legislatures or by a direct vote of
| the people in each of three-fourths of
the States as the one or the other
method of ratification may be specified
by Congress in the resolution proposing
an amendment.
Hold Congress Rights Exceeded.
1--WE deny the proposal now being
sponsored by the advocates Of repeal
that amending the Federal Constitution
is a congressional function and that
Congress has the right to call State
conventions for the consideration Of
amendments.
Nothing more revolutionary or de-
structive has been proposed. The States
reserved to themselves the right of
amending the Federal Constitution.
Congress can only propose amendments
| and specify the one or the other"
method Of ratification. Whether State
shall act at all upon the question of
ratification of any amendment is en-
| tirely for the State to decide. The last
T, vestige of States rights would disap-
pear and State autonomy would vanish
| like a dream of the past If the Federal
Government can so domineer over the
| States in matter which the States
| carefully reserved to themselves. 1t
comes with poor grace from those who
have made loud acclaim about States
| rights in the matter of controlling or
abolishing the liquor traffic, that they
should now propose TO abollsh the
States In order to restore the liquor
| traffic.
"The Anti-Saloon League Is unalter-
ably opposed to any and all proposals
and efforts to legalize the manufacture
| and sale of beer with any increase in
| alcoholic content over and above the
| one-half of one per cen established in
existing legislation for the purposes Of
effective enforcement. The standard
of one-half of one per cent Of alcoholic
content in permitted beverages was
| established many years ago when the
liquor traffic was licensed. 1t was estab-
lished at the suggestion of the liquor
dealers themselves and had as its pur-
pose effective enforcement Of the tax
, provisions of the statutes and was di-
| rected against the illegal traffic. No in
crease in the alcoholic content OF beer
or other permitted beverages would be
satisfactory to those desiring tntoxicat-
| ing liquor, unless the alcoholic content
a 1xv Ia 70 oyo hn hou
erage intoxicating in fact. On the
other hand, If Congress should attempt
to legalize an alcoholic content that was
intoxicating in fact this would be q
plain effort to nullify the Constitution.
The American people do not believe in
and will not stand for notification.
| Not single argument has been made in
| favor of legalizing beer that is sound or
| has any basis of fact upon which to
Z, stand Intoxicating liquor in all forms
| is destructive force in civilization. For
the Government to attempt to legalize
and protect an evil is commercially and
economically unsound and is socially
| immoral and destructive. People can
| not drink themselves sober nor drink
themselves into prosperity. Against
such theory Of government and such
an effort on the part of the friends Of
liquor the Anti-Saloon League enters
! earnest and solemn protest.
1.-THE Anti-Saloon League, as always,
believes in and stands for appropria-
| tions by Congress adequate to make the
enforcement of the prohibitory laws ef-
fective. AS shown in the reports Of the
| prohibition commissioner. fines and for
FIXTURES accruing under the administra-
ton of the law approximately cover the
total expense of administration and en-
forcement as heretofore conducted. AL
| together aside from any financial bene-
| N..';N
! ~nAAnUANN