Detroit evening times., 1945-08-18
|WESTBROOK
PECLER
--Fair.
Enough

SEVERAL statesmen of both
~ houses OF Congress have ut
tered indignant denials Of q
charge by a psychiatrist at
tached to government lunatic
asylum in Washington that
Congress drinks too much.
If they are right, as my OBJ
servation leads me TO believe
they are, then they are civic
slackers because it will be re-
membered that when repeal was
the dominating issue Of the 1892
election. those who were OPP
posed to prohibition took an
obligation TO drink our beloved
nation out OF debt.
The taxes TO the federal. state,
county and municipal govern
ments would swell the treasures
and unemployment would be
abolished as men were absorbed
into the breweries, distilleries,
glass-works for the manufac-
ture of bottles and glasses of va
riots shapes. the cork factories
and bottling plants and the hos
pitals for service as attendants
to honorable casualties in this
phase OF our war on want.
WE HAD figures 10 prove II,
w too, and the failure OF this
solution 10 solve the problems
which il was designed To solve
is almost enough to destroy
ones faith in simple arithmetic.
Nothing was. solved even
though became the hard
drinkingest people in the world
and even though all those pre-
dictions did come true about the
absorption of toilers into the
beer and liquor trades.
But II would be a cruel inJus-
tice 10 blame the people for
the failure because the statistics
and the recent growth OF inter-
est in clinics for inebriates
prove that we have tried.
MY ACQUAINTANCE among
1VI Congress is reliable sam
ping and ] have 10 say that
these patriots have not stood 10
the bar as faithfully as some
other groups.
On A recent afternoon. when
the bell had rung and school
was out. so 10 speak. Repub-
-itcan statesman pulled oat the
drawer OF his desk producing a
quart OF squeezing and two
glasses and We had two apiece.
Then he pat the equipment
back. chewed a Glove and drove
expertly home 10 dinner
Others of my acquaintance
drink no more and some drink
less or not AT all and. since the
death of rather dashing vest
ern toss-pot who ranked high
IN foreign relations and occa-
Sionally twisted the lions tail
or plucked sprigs from the
beard OF the Communist menace
while high in his dranfS. some
times 10 the alarm OF his col
leagues. l have heard OF no
statesman on the Hill with
reputation comparable 10 those
OF some Of our more noted po-
litical spokeSmen for the arts.
CLANCING back. I am in
~ clIned 10 hold that II Is UP
70 the younger generation TO
do the heavy drinking If they
would preserve the victory
which We OF the prohibition
era won for them IN long and
otten painful contest with
Wayne 3. Wheeler, Bishop Cam
non, Deets Picket and the Rev.
Clarence True Wilson. a dry
who was the bosom friend OF
Clarence Darrow. wet and
sometimes travelled with him 10
debates. sharing a drawing
room, one with tumbler Of
milk on the table between
them as they went over their
lines. the other with glass
of Maryland corn.
HAVE been inspecting my
4 conscience and suspect that
vas lnSlncere in stating in those
days that If we could have beer
again and light wine we would
all become temperate and con-
tent
The corner saloon. We said.
must never come back. but that
was a technicality for the sa-
loon in the middle of the block
is still saloon.
As soon as the licenses could
be cleared we were showing
cocktails of atomic strength in
dairy lunchroosnS right there in
Washington and through the
agency of young mattresses. at
that.
We never had mattresses In
the old corner saloon and lady
trade was strictly forbidden ex-
cept in The palm room back be-
hind. But the distaff had Joined
us IN fiouting the foul amend
ment over the bitter years and
their score Of hangover and
ulcers had earned them a right
TO become maudlin untidy and
idlotlc on equality with the men.
GO FALLIBLE and emotional
~ is memory that the dries
klurs ....A