Final Summation On Prohibition

FINAL SUMMATION ON PROHIBITION
NORMAN V. KELLY

I HAVE WRITTEN THOUSANDS OF WORDS ON Prohibition and lectured at least a dozen times about the beginning, the effects and the end of Prohibit1on. I often wonder what in the hell I wasted all that time and effort writing about something that occurred so many years ago. I think the final answer was simple enough. It was an incredible era…so interesting…so devastating…sexy, exciting. It was a time that affected every American. It destroyed lives, slaughtered people, created an entire new element of gangsters, and damn near destroyed us as a nation. It pitted Americans against each other, politically it was as mean as it gets. The so-called DRYS vs the so-called WETS. It brought religion into the alcohol business and believe me it brought crime and brutality to this God-fearing nation, I can tell you that. It also made millions for a large segment of the United States, Canada and countless other industries, from boat builders to gun makers.
Prohibition destroyed small businesses, it created massive unemployment, yet some people made millions and divided a nation almost beyond repair. I have told you the history of that thirteen-year era, and now I want to make sure that you know this fact. You may think it was organized by church going old women, including pastors and preachers and other do-gooders. But the truth is the finger can really be pointed at one man. That’s right just one man. I told you about him before but now I will just summarize the movement and then I will not write another word about Prohibition.
WAYNE BIRDWELL WHEELER.
As I mentioned before folks here in Peoria called him ‘Birdbrain.’ But I can tell you the historical truth was that he was at one time the most powerful man in the United States. Hell, he was not a politician, or a banker, or a gangster, in fact he had the appearance of being the only librarian in a dusty old library somewhere in the archives, never seen nor heard from. He was all of 5’6” tall, a mousy little jerk, and of course he wore wire-rimmed glasses. He was slightly balding and a scrawny mustache above his thin, upper lip. Hell, had he not been a religious man, and completely in favor of Prohibition, we would have never heard of him. How could this little in descript man wield so much incredible power? How indeed.
I told you how it all began way back in the late 1800’s with the small religious movements that finally caused the State of Maine to go completely dry by 1855. The incredible fact was that by 1920 America had 22 states already dry. How in the hell did that happen? Where was the opposition? Truth is America was awfully damn religious in the old days and most certainly a lot of our founders had a distinct religious leaning as well. Once old demon rum was identified as the devil and the root of all evil…why hell…it was easy. So somebody did a hell of a lot of work long before we can begin to point the finger at Wheeler. But...until he took over it was really a hit and miss proposition. He was the king of the Eighteenth Amendment…the sultan of intimidation, the prince of manipulation, the greatest puppeteer of men this nation has ever known.
The little man died in 1927 at the age of 57, so doing the math that would give his birth date 1869…right? He was born in Youngstown, Ohio but his real birth…or rebirth…was in 1893…you guessed it in a church. How many of our so-called leaders began this way? One birth was not enough…hell no…they had to be reborn. Old Birdbrain sat in the Congregational Church in Oberlin, Ohio listening to some idiot…Reverend Howard Hyde Russell, a former lawyer…what else…talk about a new movement called the Anti-Saloon League…the ASL. Our little Mouseketeer loved what he heard. I can tell you after this fools Epiphany the freedom in American…it’s right to free choice would change and for thirteen years this man set out to save us from demon rum…and cause the most chaotic…violent…dangerous thirteen years in the history of this great country. And…he did it because God and a bunch of total fools and idiots told him to do it. The folks that met violent deaths because of this little fool are beyond counting. This may be a bit of overstatement…over kill perhaps…but his little jerk held the very fate of the Republic in his scrawny little hands. He could make or break any politician in this country and I mean all the way up to the president and he did it with impunity…zest and zeal and he did it over and over for a minimum of thirty years. Remember he died in 1927 and I’ll be damned…after this little jerk died…Prohibition still continued until 1933. Incredible! That is how well built his platform was and how encased in the idiot politician his guidelines were . Now in case you have not noticed…that my friend is power.
Wheeler had his redeeming qualities…he was a hard worker and put himself through Oberlin College by doing every kind of job he could get his hands on…from waiting on tables…janitorial work…and sales. No doubt he was a salesman…he convinced the reverend that the ASL needed him…that the ASL was what Wheeler was born to do. He was the first actual paid employee of the ASL and believe me when I tell you that Wheeler turned that idiotic group into the most effective…powerful…activated political machine this nation has ever known…bar none.
Today’s politicians are girl scouts compared this man who not only coined the phrase ‘Pressure Group’ he taught it to every person that was connected with him and that was just the beginning of what he forged for one reason and one reason only. That reason was the domination of politics in the cities…the counties…the villages and as low as the dog catcher to the president…he wanted every one of them thinking the way he did…and believe me he did it. The root of ALL evil is alcohol…stop the sale and consumption of alcohol in the United States and peace…tranquility and a bit of Heaven on Earth will prevail. Sounds wonderful huh…but of course it was all just plain naive bullshit. History proved that.
1915
In 1915, after exhaustive planning and unbelievable organization the Anti-Saloon League convened in Atlantic City and for the first time folks got an idea what in hell the ASL really amounted to. Wheeler managed every facet of this organization and overwhelmed every obstacle to get his movement off the ground. Huge rallies, massive numbers of people and all designated as a Warriors For Christ, a disciple of God, out to get rid of ‘old Demon Rum’, and destroy every tavern, saloon, brewery, distillery and still in America. And…by GOD they just about managed to do all that. What looked like a mass of people…or a frenzied mob was a well controlled group of narrow minded fools. Each small group had a leader and that leader had a leader and so on up to the mighty man himself…Wheeler. They raised pennies and dollars and marched and chanted and scared the hell out of tavern owners and distillers alike. All that money…well most of it…found its way into Wheeler’s headquarters where he micro managed the entire movement. Christ…had he become president of the United States he would have ‘Ruled the World.’
At first it was the preachers, the reverends, the church elders and the ‘flock’ that demonstrated with marches and rallies...but that was all for show. The man…THE man behind it was brilliant, clever, manipulating, bribing, intimidating old squirrelly Birdbrain Wheeler. Wayne Wheeler was a general that would make Ike look like a scout master in a cub scout outfit.

IT’S NOT ALL SMOOTH

Of course a few idiots…after all these people were overly religious…overzealous religious nuts who had only one thought in mind and that was to do ‘God’s Work.’ Once they were back home on their own they made a lot of mistakes. They began to upset Tavern owners, playing God, people like Looney women preachers that tried to destroy local taverns. One example was Frances Willard and her silly Women’s Christian Temperance Movement…or WTCU…falling all over each other to accomplish God’s Devine message. They got in a lot of trouble and they got arrested as well. BUT...they had thousands of members and it was Wheeler who understood the power of these women. All he had to do was rope in their misbegotten ways. He did just exactly that and of course his organization grew in the process. Now the movement grew beyond any one’s imagination. Oh…and what did the WETS do during all this? Why here in Peoria they formed the Red Nose gang, laughed at the marchers, tossed tomatoes at them and retired to the taverns to get drunk. That was their big defense against these idiot ‘Drys.’

Meantime…local groups were being formed under the leadership of Wheeler’s long arms and his very wealthy and strong Anti-Saloon League. While the drunks in Peoria were laughing, local politicians were being bought and paid for. Soon, few politicians had a chance to win an election without the help of the Anti-Saloon League. As I said no office was over looked…Laugh and drink…while the group grew in power...influence…money and soon The die was cast. Hell the fight to STOP prohibition never even began before it was too late. All of this can be traced to, blamed on, or credited to Wheeler and his band of followers. AMEN BROTHER.

AN AVENGING ANGEL

Hell it was no secret to the folks that paid attention that the Anti-Saloon League was out to distribute all the political retribution it could accomplish all over America. And…you guessed it Wayne B. Wheeler was their avenging angel. If there was a hint of anti booze in any potential legislation across the land…the angel was there. He saw to it that the prosecutors, the local mayor, the local politicians got on board quickly. He taught them to attack the opposition, to form their own bill making groups and he supplied all the money a politician needed to get on board their platform. It worked everywhere and almost every single time. It worked liked the well-oiled machine it was. You oppose the ASL and your political ass was grass. Hell, you didn’t have a chance. Now we are talking every state in the Union, it was just a matter of time until the ASL had all the political clout to ‘OWN’ America. And…then came WW! I n April of 1917. The ACL was positive that God was up there helping them because WW1 was all they needed. And, they used it to the hilt. After all a lot of German men living in the U.S.A owned breweries and distilleries. The fight against the HUN was going on in Europe but the ACL waged a war of their own against the Germans here in America. “All the money these Germans are making here in America and sending it over to Germany.” Get the idea? Shut down all those damn German booze and Beer makers…it is anti-American to support them. Well…with a series of phony War Conservation Acts…it worked. I already told you that story…but believe me Wheeler and company were behind it all and it worked like a charm.

Keep in mind, this man never ran for anything…he never ran against anything…he was simply in charge of a massive block of votes that controlled whatever the hell issue they came down on. Always…always their main goal was a Nation- wide ban of the sale and manufacturing of booze of any kind. The goals…well God’s Mandate to them, was to close down every tavern and saloon in America. He took on individuals, occasionally losing, but constantly going forward. He often said this after a major issue was settled. You know how he settled it…right…he defeated you and whatever agenda you had. This quote was common during the press issues he was credited with giving. “Never again will any political party ignore the protests of the church and the moral forces of the state.” Maybe that does not bother you but to me that is a very dangerous statement. Of course what that statement meant was simple enough…DON’T MESS with Wayne B. Wheeler…it was that simple.

Reminds me so much of what is going on today. Where one man, woman or party absolutely has only one agenda…let’s say National Health care…they do not give a damn what anyone says against them…and as a result they stay in control. All of prohibition was that ONE agenda. They did not give a damn about the murder, mayhem, corruption and loss of jobs. All they wanted was to do God’s work…take the credit for it, gain more members, and stop anyone from getting in the way. Oh, and they did not give a damn about what party you belonged to. In searching for a candidate they asked only one question. WHAT IS YOUR STAND ON PROHIBITION? You could have been known as a Jack The Ripper and these dumb bastards would have gotten you elected. One agenda…are you for Prohibition? Fine…pack your bags you are on your way to Washington, DC.

FEEBLE DEFENSE

I’LL GIVE YOU ONE EXAMPLE AND THAT IS ALL. Hell there were hundreds of these kinds of things, in all or most of the states and of course in Washington D.C. Look it up yourself. Way back before Prohibition when Taft was president….that would be say in 1913, the large president tried to stop an Act called the Webb-Kenyon Act that outlawed the importation of booze from a WET state to a Dry State. Our hero Vetoed that bill…why faster than you can get back from lunch the House of Representatives overrode that Veto…and I mean overwhelmingly. See what I mean? Wheeler and his mob were everywhere. They stacked the deck and they let Taft know that he was virtually helpless. Sad huh? Next came the Liquor Taxes the Feds depended upon, well hell look up the 16th. Amendment. The Wheeler bunch knew that if the government could not rely on the booze tax they would lose interest in it quickly. I am telling you Wheeler and his organization were nothing short of brilliant…that I can tell you with assurance.

THE NEXT AND FINAL STEP

Well hell, what do you think it was? First Wheeler left OHIO and moved to Washington DC. Now he was close to his puppets and he meant to pull their strings even more closely. The goal was the 18th. Amendment and he had all of his ducks ( or jerks) in a row and the push was on. Just think…dear Lord, his final goal was just down the pike and he was certain it was just a matter of time…more manipulation…more bribes…more scare tactics and just a little more work. After that the glory of living in Heaven right here on Earth was within the grasp of all these bleeding heart do-gooders. Christ life was good.

Here is a quote from a New York Newspaper. Maybe it was the Times or probably the Evening World REFERRING TO Wayne B. Wheeler. “THE LEGISLATIVE BULLY BEFORE WHOM THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES SITS UPS AND BEGS.” Now that should be enough don’t you think? You can talk about Prohibition…and I know our entire history of that era here in Peoria, Illinois…but you won’t see anything about Wheeler. What in the hell would my dad or my relatives know about Wheeler? All they knew was they lost a lot of jobs and getting a drink was a little more expensive and harder to come by. As I said, our Soft Drink Parlors solved that problem, thanks to Woodruff and his successors. Hell, that’s all Prohibition meant to us. Believe me finding criticism of Wheeler or even his name in our newspapers would take a hard core researcher like me to find.
THE WOMEN VOTE
Hell, look at the women...the suffrage women, the religious fools that spent 25 years carrying the banner of Prohibition. Truth is…and this is just my opinion what they were really seeking was the right to vote. To be heard…hell do you blame them? Once they got into the religious movement about booze, and Wheeler and his group took them under their wing…why hell…they realized that they had two chances. One was the promise that Wheeler would help them get that right to vote and the ‘icing on the cake’ would be the glorious, wonderful world of Prohibition. How could they lose? The only opposition was a bunch of WETS half bombed most of the time. See how all that fit in? Well what do you think happened after the 18th. Amendment? Oh yeah, the 19th. But that was nothing compared to the golden goose…The 20th. amendment. The gals got their present for helping Wheeler and he got what he wanted. Praise from the LORD and of course National Prohibition. What happened during the next thirteen years did not mean a damn thing to those Idiots. As for me thank God the bastard died as early as he did…1927. Had he lived another decade only God would know how much more damage he could have done…same way with today and National Health. It was jammed down America’s throat now look at the consequences. But…hey that’s another story. Norman Kelly norman.kelly@sbcglobal.net