Since the adoption of the Volstead act the Government has the right to shoot the taxpayers. It is officially admitted that a hundred, and eighty-four otherwise useful citizens have bitten the dust.

Senator Tydings of Maryland, who takes keen delight in investigating this branch of the government, asserts that the national administration can boast of having slaughtered eight hundred victims. A collaborator of the news agency Universal Service raises the figure to thirteen hundred and sixty.

Whatever sum may be accepted is immaterial. The citizen sees that the government has by no means been inactive and that it has thus far shown sizeable results. Small wonder, when one considers that the administration promotes this activity in a methodical manner. Our state courts, however, do not 2always reveal a genuine interest in these achievements. Occasionally they hail before the bar the government agents who so zealously function in behalf of the morals of the drys.

Naturally, the government thereupon interferes and protectingly embraces its successful trigger-men. The action is simply transferred to a federal court, where the accused are usually exonerated or given a trivial sentence.

At this time, two bills are being presented to Congress, providing for an indemnity to the survivors of all citizens and taxpayers who have been unceremoniously shot. This goes too far: it does not coincide with the views of the dry revolver-moralists.

One must consider that the prohibition agents are intent upon shooting the whiskey runners. If (and this is usually the case) they send the wrong man to 'kingdom come', well, that is simply unavoidable. As the Prohibition department sees it, is always preferable to shoot half a dozen innocent taxpayers than to let one bottlegger escape. Therefore, 3these congressional bills have no chance whatever.

The Anti-Saloon League and the Methodist Board of Temperance, Prohibition, and Public Morals see to it that such measures will be rejected.