Evening star., 1934-01-07
EARLY ACTION SEEN
ON D. c. LIQUOR BILL
AS HEARINGS CLOSE
Private License System Be-
Iieved Favored by Conn.,
mittee Members.
PATMAN WILL BATTLE
FOR DIsPENSARY PLAN
Chairman King Will Call Senate
Group Wednesday if House
Acts Tuesday.

Prompt action by the House early
this week on liquor control bill for
Washington appeared likely last night
when the House and Senate District
Committees concluded joint hearings
fOn the question after continuous nine
old House Building.
! All indications last night were that
q. majority of the House Committee
will favor a private license system as
embodied in the Commissioners bill,
although Representative Patman, Dem
ocrat, of Texas, dry, announced his
intention Of fighting for the Govern
ment dispenSary system which was ad-
vocated in varying forms by a number
OF the local organizations represented
at the hearings. Patman intends to file
a minority report if the committee
adopts the private license plan
At the close of the hearings at about
6 80 o'clock yesterday evening, Chair
man Mary T. Norton of the House Dis
trict Committee called meeting of the
House group for tomorrow morning at
10 O'Clock to consider the testimony
and take definite action. She said she
expected the committee to approve the
private license plan as proposed by the
Commissioners, with several amend
ments. and report the bill to the House
later in the day.
Early Action Is Seen.
Mrs. Norton has been informed she
probably can obtain consideration OF
the local liquor bill by the House Tues
cay ahead of the first OF the appro-
priation bills, if the parliamentary re-
ouirement of getting the measure re-
ported and on the calendar tomorrow
Can be met.
Chairman King of the Senate Dis
trict Committee said if the House acts
On the bill Tuesday, he will call his
committee to meet Wednesday, with
the possibility of obtaining Senate &C
ton before the end of the week. The
Democratic Policy Committee Of the
Senate has scheduled the local liquor
bill to follow the Federal liquor tax
measure, which reaches the Senate to-
morrow from the House.
Although sentiment for the private
license plan is strong, at least in the
House Committee, and possibly in the
of testimony from civil organizations
at the long hearing yesterday in favor
of either a complete or partial adop-
ton of the Government diSpenSary Sys-
tenn And, as a result, a number OF
amendments to the Commissioners bill
we're being talked of last night for
presentation either to the House or
Senate Committees.
McReynoIds Presents Plan.
One of these proposed amendments
was advanced after the hearings closed
by Senator McReynolds, Democrat, of
North Carolina. and presents new
idea for combining the handling of the
local liquor supply by the Government,
with the private license plan OF retail
sale.
Senator Reynolds said he had in mind
eliminating the private wholesaler in
the District of Columbia by making the
i District Liquor Control Board the sole
agency to bring liquor into the District.
He would not change any Of the provi-
sionS of the Commissioners bill provid-
{ ing for private licensed establishments
! for retail sale in bottle form and allow
: ing hotels, restaurants and clubs to
serve by the glass at tables He argued,
however. that while allowing private
distribution, his plan would insure a
supply of liquor of high quality, give
fthe District government in revenue the
profit which otherwise would go to the
! wholesale distributors and give the
Liquor Control Board an effective
method of keeping a close check on
private licensed establishments. since
} all such places would have to procure
their stocks from the central ware
house of the Liquor Control Board.
While this would be very limited
combination form Of government dis
pensary and private distribution.' it
would have the tendency to make pos
Sible price control, and eliminate the
middle man since the control board
would be required to deal with the dis
tilleries.
Executive Meeting Held.
Immediately following the hearings,
the House and Senate committee men,
bers held brief executive session. No
attempt was made to work out details
of a bill, but it was suggested that any
members of the Senate committee who
desired to do so could suggest amend
ments for consideration by the House
committee
AS the hearings ended, Chairman
King Of the Senate Committee said his
present inclination is to favor the dis
penSary system for the distribution OF
hard liquors, which is substantially the
same plan in effect in the province of
Quebec, Canada, where restaurants and
hotels are confined to serving beer and
wines There is probably more senti-
ment for the dispensary method of
Continued on Page 3, Column -