PROHIBITION.

Hokitika Guardian, 14 August 1926, Page 4

PROHIBITION.

AND MR HENRY FORD. (By G. K. Chesterton, in t'he “ Illustrated Loudon News.”) I hear that Air Henry Ford, famous for the Ford cars that .go everywhere and the Peace Ship that went nowhere, has been delivering Himself of an opinion on prohibition. Apparently it was to the effect that prohibition is a pure benefit to mankind, and that the only problem for a patriot or practical humanitarian is how to enforce it with sufficient severity. In other words, prohibition would be perfection if only prohibition could really be made to prohibit. As it has produced the very opposite results to those intended, the only thing to do is to extend it and make it produce some more. I hardly thing the line of thought altogether worthy of so wonderful a business man and I rather doubt whether lie would apply it to his own business. 1 have a respect for M r Ford for two very definite and decisive reasons. First, because lie has annoyed all the stupidest sort of conservatives by making schemes for high wages for hard work.

And second, because lie lias also annoyed all the stupidest sort of progressives by denouncing the misuse of financial, power. There must be something in a man who so easily gets into trouble. But while I admit that his notions may be newer and fresher in their way than those of the vulgar mob of millionaires, I repeat that he would hardly like anything quite so new and fresh as his own philosopy applied to Ids own job. PROHIBIT PETROI/.

Indeed, it is a rather pleasing fancy

to let the miiul play with the conception of the prohibition of petrol. It would bo quite easy to use most of the

arguments commonly used in the ease of drink: to collect very hue-sided statistics about injury to health or division of families or danger to life and limb. To begin with, if there wore no petrol traffic there is always a possibility that Americans might learn to walk.'

1 have been in traffic blocks in London in width traffic, seemed to have turned into a new school of architecture. One felt that the vehicles would, ■soon sink into the earth to form a new type of primitive village. The antiquarians of the future would note a type of structure that has wheels at the base as the lonic columns had volutes at the ton. t have sometimes wondered whether it would not be worth while to make a little garden outside my stationary caravan. No drunkenness could possibly obstruct the thoroughfare to this extent, and

there cannot be any reasonable doubt that much of it is due to the increased popularity of motoring. The great social reform of the prohibition of petrol would certainly relieve the congestion very much; and for that and many other reasons I look confidently to Air Lord to give it his eager and enthusiastic support. But his ready response to my appeal will he based on better and broader grounds. Ifor instance, the side of the social movement absurdly called temperance with which I most easily sympathise is the attack on the great capitalist combinations which are called “the trade.” .1 admit that “the trade” is a had thing in English politics. But it is nothing like so had as the trust in Af.ierionu polities. It has never so obviously degraded and destroyed democracy and all democratic ideals as have, in a special and extreme manner, the oil trusts of the United States. We have not yet seen beer, as such, involve our statesmen in any such story as the story of Standard Oil. It is precisely commercial commodities of this newer and more scientific sort that have already corrupted polities, in a few years, more than wine and beer have ever corrupted them in all their countless ages since humanity has been human. AVAR. FOR OILFIELDS.

To take .mother aspect of the same thing it is infinitely more likely at this moment that wars will bo waged for tne possession of oilfields than it ever was that they would be waged for the possession of liopfields. Tt is ranch more likely that a million men will die because there is oil in Mexico and .Mesopotamia than that even a hundred will ever die because there arc vineyards in Burgundy or orchards in Hereford. Suppose that petrol really could he prohibited. Suppose there were a ghastly and gigantic joke of a business as big as .Mr Ford’s being concealed. Suppose it were a matter of common knowledge that he bribed officials and hoodwinked tribunals in order to make sure that so open a sin should he called a secret. Suppose that all over the country there were a hundred other farces of humbug and evasion. Suppose there were garages disguised as grocers’ shops. Suppose F ere were petrol pumps painted to look like pillar-boxes. Suppose the comic papers were crowded with incidents of the outwitting or bribing of the police for the sale of petrol. Suppose every club was a. cackle of anecdotes about the triumphant bootleggers of oil. Suppose people talked about

walking-sticks lull of petrol and umbrellas full of petrol. Suppose they paraded a perambulator stuffed with perol and even a baby stuffed with it. Mr Ford would probably regard these incidents as very clear proofs of the futility and folly of trying to resist so powerful and necessary a thing as the Hood of petrol and petrol traffic. He would say that these things alone were a proof that prohibition of petrol had failed, and that the great force which we had vainly tried to fetter would have its way. He would he fully justified in saying triumphantly that the attempt of the State to destroy his branch of business had broken down. Vet I suppose he cannot see the same simple facts in connexion with the other branch of business. He cannot, see that it is id Ip to insist that prohibition would be a good tiling ii it were enforced, since it is only because it is a Imd thing that it needs so much enforcing. He could not believe that the world could do without motoring, though the world did without it only the other day. But he can believe that the world will do without wine (which is nearly ns old as the world itself). even when the world furiously refuses to do so. .... ... . ~