The American Issue

WETS NOT SATISFIED
Wet Bloc Demands Inquiry of Enforcement Commission's Report

That the Wickersham Commission's report on prohibition is not at all pleasing to the wets is evidenced in the effort of the wet bloc in congress to obtain a congressional inquiry of how the commission reached its conclusions. The wets were defeated in the first parliamentary clash over the reports but renewed their attack on January 23.

Despite the statement of Chairman Wickersham that President Hoover did not influence them in arriving at conclusions the wets are demanding an inquiry "to learn whether Mr. Hoover influenced the commission to change a wet recommendation into an endorsement of the Eighteenth Amendment" says an International News Service Washington dispatch.

The battle of the wets rallied around the Tydings' resolution providing an inquiry into Mr. Hoover's connection with the final report. To this proposed inquiry was linked a demand for publication of all the secret evidence gathered by the commission on the subject of prohibition crimes and dry law enforcement. The wets charge the administration with trying to block an inquiry into the commission's activities. Senator Divine is quoted as saying:

"We ought to call all members of the commission before a senate committee. If this report had been submitted to congress as originally drawn by a majority of seven members, there would be no difficulty in reconciling the commission's conclusions with the individual opinions, but the form finally submitted contains discrepancies that can never be reconciled."

The senate promptly approved the commission's recommendation for increased personnel in federal enforcement by voting a $543,000 appropriation to place 130 more dry agents in the department of justice. This bill was opposed by the wets led by Senator Tydings who charged it was "ridiculous" to try to enforce prohibition in a nation of 120,000,000 people with a force of 500 dry agents.