Evening star., 1933-10-26
Two Liquor Control Theories.

The Attorney Generals ruling that
the Volstead act will continue in ef-
feet for the District of Columbia, the
Territories and the Canal Zone after
repeal of the eighteenth amendment
serves to clarity the situation here and
substitutes order for what might have
become the chaos Of no liquor regula-
ton for a month or so. With the VOL
stead act effectively plugging the dam.
the members Of Congress who must
work out a substitute form Of liquor
regulation for Washington will not
have their labors confused by the haste
which an emergency might otherwise
have dictated.
Loyal Democrats who feel their obli
cation for fulfilling party pledges will
undertake the task Of framing suitable
control legislation for the District with
that portion of the Democratic plat
form in mind which reads:
We urge the enactment Of such
measures by the several States as will
actually promote temperance, effec-
lively prevent the return of the saloon
and bring the liquor traffic into the
open under complete supervision and
control by the States.
In legislating for the District of Co.
lunbia Congress performs the func-
tions of a State legislature. Its first
duty as such will be to determine
whether the District will remain dry
under local dry legislation or whether
legislation permitting controlled sale of
liquor Is to be enacted As the Shep-
pard law was specifically repealed by
the beer bill, the latter course is prob
able In that case the duty Of the
controlling majority, in fulfllment
of party pledges which the Presi-
dent has approved "one hundred
per cent" is to enact such legislation
for the District of Columbia as will
actually promote temperance, effec-
lively prevent the return Of the saloon
and bring the liquor traffic into the
open under complete supervision and
control by the District OF Columbia,
or its appointed agents.
In advance Of the hearings promised
by Senator King. which will throw ad-
ditional light upon the issues. it appears
that the major battle over the form Of
liquor control legislation for the Dis
trict will, broadly speaking, be be-
tween the advocates Of the so-called
license system, and the State monopoly
system. Liquor control plans seem to
group themselves naturally into two
classes, the one being control Of the
retail traffic by licensing private lndi-
viduals who sell liquor, the other seek
ing control by placing the retail traffic
exclusively under a State monopoly.
Both plans have been tried in Can
ada, and eight provinces there have
abandoned both prohibition and the
license system in favor of the State
monopoly system, according to the
Rockefeller study, portion Of which,
discussing the merits of the two sys-
TENS, appears elsewhere in today's
Star Both forms of control are found
In the ten States which so far have
perfected their plans for liquor control
after ratification of the twenty-frst
amendment. 1t has been indicated that
proponents Of both plans will be heard
at the hearings on local control legis-
lation.
1t would seem that the immediate
advantage Of the State monopoly plan
Is that it eliminates'the private profit
motive IN retail sale of liquor. The
private profit motive, which seeks to
encourage the consumption Of liquor,
is on its face opposed to the temper
ance motive, which seeks to cut down
after repeal is complicated by the fact
that the Federal Government and the
State governments have great hopes of
raising revenues through the sale of
liquor. That means that on top of the
private profit of individuals, both Fed
eral and State taxes will be added.
This may have the effect. which some
believe desirable, of discouraging the
the price But 1t will also have the
effect Of leaving the bootlegger in an
advantageous position as regards COM
petitive price.
The Rockefeller study compares the
relative merits of the State monopoly
and the license system for regulating
the sale of alcohol. but the compari-
son is obviously intended to support its
conclusion in favor of the monopoly
system, which the study urges as best
fltted for an effort to end the admitted
abuses under the liquor traffic. What
Congress will decide for the District
will be watched with interest by many
of the States which will still be con-
sidering the problem, After Repeal
What?" Whatever plan is adopted for
the District should be designed, in line
with party pledges, to outlaw the saloon
and to actually promote temperance"