Evening star., 1932-12-04
Keeping Faith With the People.

heeplnS caltH WIFI the reople.
The Judiciary Committees refusal to
sponsor the naked repeal" resolution
which Mr.. Garner and other leaders
propose to put through the House to-
morrow Is, Of course, subject to various
interpretations The vote on the reso-
luton was thirteen against to six in its
favor. Five of the six Republicans
informally listed as voting in the
negative have been defeated for re-
election and may be said to have
escaped any Of the responsibilities in
Cured under the mandate for repeal"
rs given in the election. But Of the
seven Democrats voting against the
proposal, only one will not return to the
new Congress. Their opposition must
therefore be laid to other reasons than
lack Of responsibility under the electoral
mandate. Two such reasons are men
toned as opposition to the msthod Of
ratification by State conventions. in
stead Of Legislatures, and opposition to
the hurried consideration of proposed
constitutional amendment under sus-
pension of the rules. which will limit
debate to forty minutes.
But it is obvious, Of course, that those
who voted in the negative were opposed
to the proposal itself. Otherwise. their
natural course would have been to
"a a., nhianftnrr ha
principle In order to back the more
important proposal itself. What, then.
is the fundamental objection to the
House resolution?
It is reasonable to believe that the
objection Is related to the failure Of the
resolution, rs proposed, to seek pre-
vention Of the return of the saloon or
to offer any guarantee whatsoever that
dry States will be protected against the
wet States once the liquor trafic is
legalized, as most people now believe 1t
will eventually be legalized.
The election may fairly be interpreted
as q mandate for repeal Of the eight
eenth amendment. But It may also be
interpreted. and 1t has been 80 inter-
preted by millions Of good American
men and women, to mean that as much
attention will be devoted to preventing
the generally recognized evils Of the sa-
loon and other evils Of the liquor trafic
as will be devoted to getting rid Of the
eighteenth amendment.
The two outstanding classes Of evils
Of the liquor trafic, upon which most
men will agree, are overindulgence in
alcohol and those which result from
the desire for personal profit and gain
through retail dispensation of liquor,
this latter manifesting itself In corrup-
ton Of public officials and otherwise in
fiuencing for sinister purposes those
who hold political power 1t may be
argued that the first evil can be dealt
with by education in temperance. But
the second evil will not be cured until
the opportunity for personal profit in
the retail distribution of liquor is re-
moved altogether. as Canada and the
Scandinavian nations have sought to
remove 1t, or until it is drastically and
severely restricted.
Vets and drys now compete, YER
bally at least, for recognition as the
real enemies Of the saloon and the
bootlegger and as the true friends OF
Temperance and sobriety. The drys
have been prevented in large de-
gree from the successful enforcement
Of national prohibition by the failure
Of the States and organized groups of
individuals to Cooperate. The vets
are now seeking an opportunity to test
their own method Of liquor trsfic con-
troll and Of eliminating both the boot
logger and the saloon, and the naked
repeal" element depends entirely upon
independent action by the States to
make good their assertions that the
saloon will not return. Do they not
need, in addition, the active co-opera-
ton of the Federal Government and
the backing of the Federal Government
need 1t even more than the drys of
another day needed and failed to re-
ceive the cooperation of the States?
The promise of such cooperation.
the constitutional guarantee that the
Federal Government will not permit
the return of the saloon and all it rep
resents, is the one tangible hope that
can be held out against the recurrence
Of universally recognized evils Of the
liquor trafic. Naked repeal" promises
nothing. except the removal Of the
eighteenth amendment.
More than that is required If the
men chosen to guide this Nations
destinies for the next four years hope
to keep faith with the people who
chose them.