Volume 17 , Issue 2

One Hundred Years Ago (01/13/1915, Wednesday)

One hundred years ago, 13 January 1915, Wednesday, The Evening Star, Washington D.C. front page headlines were reporting: "D. C. Prohibition Hangs In Balance." Opponents hoped to make parliamentary obstruction in Senate effective. Senator Sheppard prepared to offer his amendment and claimed majority of senate.

Yep! Prohibition for the District of Columbia in 1915 was hanging in the balance when the Senate met too years ago today, 13 January 1915. Senator Morris Sheppard of Texas had promised to call up as soon as the morning business closed his motion to suspend the rules so that an amendment to the District bill providing prohibition might be submitted.

Consideration of a resolution offered by Senator Cummins of Iowa calling upon the President to inform the Senate what disposition was being made of the customs collected by the United States at Vera Cruz delayed Senator Sheppard's motion.

The anti-prohibitionists in the Senate would make a point of order to the effect that it required a two-thirds majority vote to suspend the rules of the senate, as provided in the Sheppard motion. They based their contention on the fact that the rules of the Senate were not explicit as to whether it required a two-thirds vote or a majority vote. The rules of every other legislative body that was known required a two-thirds majority vote for the suspension of the rules, some of them, it was said, even required a three-fourths vote.

IN the House of Representatives the rules specifically stated that a two-thirds majority was required to suspend the rules of the House.

The opponents of prohibition in the District believed that Senator Sheppard would be unable to get a two-thirds majority to suspend the rules so as to offer his prohibition amendment to the District bill.
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