Bootleggers In The 1900's

At the end of the day, do the needs justify the means? When it came to bootleggers in the early 1900’s, the answer to that question was yes. Rum-running, or bootlegging, is the illegal business of transporting of alcoholic beverages where such transportation is forbidden by law. This was Marion Sylder’s job in The Orchard Keeper by Cormac McCarthy. The Orchard Keeper takes place in the early 1900’s and it tells a story about life in the prohibition era. Prohibition in the United States was a nationwide constitutional ban on the production, importation, transportation, and sale of alcoholic beverages from 1920 to 1933. Marion picks up a hitchhiker named Kenneth Ratner and he tries to rob Marion. Marion accidentally kills him while defending

himself and as time passes Kenneth’s family starts to accept that he has been killed and John, his son, promises to seek vengeance for his father’s death. John does not realize it, but he actually saves his father’s murder, which happens to be Marion. They form a strong bond as the story goes on and we learn about their lives. In The Orchard Keeper, you come to understand the difficulties of the prohibition era, the power of a father like figure, and the effects of racism in the south.
The difficulties of the prohibition era can be seen throughout The Orchard Keeper.

A Saloon was a place where alcoholic drinks may be bought or drunk, and they also employed a decent amount of men. “Saloons provide entertainment and inexpensive meals; banning alcohol and closing saloons, which are regulated, will only lead to the creation of unregulated speakeasies to replace them. Saloons, vineyards and breweries are also an important source of employment”(“Prohibition” 1). Saloons were the last place for husbands and fathers to go to and have a drink and gamble. They were also important because they supplied a lot of people with jobs, so if they got rid of them, then there would be a whole lot of more people without jobs. This may be one of the reasons that Kenneth had to try and rob Marion because he was let go from a job due to the prohibition amendment and he had to find a way to make money for his family. Kenneth planned to rob him while they were fixing the flat tire, but it did not go as intended, (“Kenneth saw his injured shoulder, Marion saw the man looking at it. Marion dug his thumb into the man’s windpipe and felt it collapse like a dried tule”(McCarthy 49). Kenneth was killed trying to rob Marion for his money, and who knows if this would have happened if the prohibition act was never put in

place.
People who created the Prohibition amendment had one goal in mind, to improve the lives of Americans by banning alcohol because that was believed to be the source of corruption and problems. “Drinking is a social problem; overindulgence in alcohol tears apart families, hurts job productivity and causes serious health problems”(“Prohibition” 1). The prohibition era tried to stop these problems from occurring. The only problem was that this amendment would stop the sale of alcohol, but not the consumption. There were many jobs that were a part of selling alcohol and this amendment destroyed them, so people turned to bootlegging. This is what Marion had to do in order to make money, but bootlegging was not an easy job. “You Know what was in the car? Yessir… Marion. Well, the man said. He returned to his magazine, leafed a page over slowly, looked back at the boy. He grinned. It was good stuff too, he said. Sixty gallons of it”(McCarthy 111). During the prohibition era this was what the bootleggers did and Marion had sixty gallons of whiskey in his car when he crashed. This was a risky job because the law was always chasing you and losing sixty gallons of whiskey was a significant loss of money.
Crime rates went even more through the roof when prohibition started because criminals realized this was a perfect time to make money illegally. So instead of helping the cause of lowering the crime rate, it in fact did the exact opposite. “Prohibition actually causes more crime than does overindulgence in alcohol, because it gives rise to criminal organizations that produce, smuggle and sell liquor”(“Prohibition” 1). Since prohibition got rid of peoples supply of alcohol they had to find a new way to get it. These distributors were known as the bootleggers and Marion was one of them. It was not like only a few people knew about bootlegging and the profit that came with it, everyone did and they all wanted in. “Although it was risky work, bootlegging could also be extraordinarily profitable; alcoholic beverages sold for anywhere from 2 to 10 times more after January 16, 1920, than they had before the United States went dry”(Slavicek 1). Word was getting around that bootlegging was highly profitable and many Americans wanted a piece of the profit. This is why Marion was in the bootlegging business, he knew that the reward was greater than the risk. At the end of the day, all that mattered was that he was making money and it was worth it.
Instead of saving people's lives and making life easier, the prohibition era was actually killing people. The prohibition act stopped the selling of alcohol, but it did not stop people from making it. “Because alcohol production was not regulated, dangerous substances sometimes tainted bootlegged beverages. Some people were left blind after drinking "bathtub gin," made with industrial alcohol and other dangerous chemicals. Others were injured or killed when home stills exploded”(“Prohibition” 1). The ban on selling alcohol killed people instead of making America a better place. The prohibition had people trying to make their own alcohol when they had no understanding of how to, and then you had people putting dangerous chemicals in alcohol. This was indeed a big problem that people were dying, but since this was the complete opposite of what the law wanted to happen, the people proceeded. “According to most historians, during the early years of Prohibition the public attitude was one of support, and most people obeyed the law. But as time went on and crime rates increased rather than decreased, sentiment began to turn against Prohibition...”(“Prohibition” 1). People started to disagree with the law, so they decided to help the ones breaking the law. This is like how John Wesley knew that what Marion was doing was wrong, but he helped him anyway and he wouldn’t tell the police.
The power of a father like figure is really underestimated and you come to see just how important it is to have in desperate times like the prohibition era. Growing up with a father figure in your life is important because what they teach you while you are young can benefit you in the long run. The only problem is that some kids are more unfortunate than others and they don't have a father in their life while growing up. “Children with present father figures benefit by having a wider range of emotional expression modeled for them as they grow and face new experiences”(Aglialoro 1). Children with a father figure benefit from having someone who can help them grow, unlike John who had to grow by himself. John was lucky enough to find Marion, who was able to act like a father figure and teach John gender roles. “One of the most important functions of both parents is to prepare their children for the social world. Boys learn to be men by watching and emulating their fathers, they learn gender stereotypical roles and norms”(Aglialoro 1). Boys are supposed to learn from another man about gender stereotypical roles and norms, so when John was in need of learning these roles Marion was there to show him the way.
The father and son bond is so underestimated and no one truly understands the true power that it has on a child’s life. “The father-son bond is an important first step in a child’s social growth, it can influence their friendships, their work ethics, their romantic involvements and so many more aspects of the boy’s life. Having a present and involved father allows a boy to be involved in social, academic, scouting and athletic activities”(Aglialoro 1). A strong father-son bond is important in a boy’s life because it can teach them an important aspect of life that they need during life. As Marion started to bond with John more, they began to develop a father-son bond and they cared for each other. These two were once complete strangers and now they were starting to care for each other. While they were hunting something happened, “Sylder had the fire going by then, a great crackling sound as the dry bush took… You come over here, he said. And get them clothes off… He started pulling his clothes off, the man taking from him in turn shirt and trousers, socks and drawers, wringing them out and hanging them over a pole propped on forks before the fire”(McCarthy 124). When John jumped into the freezing water to save Lady, he came out freezing and at risk of hypothermia. Marion told him to take all of his clothes off and then he put them above a fire to dry. He also gave John his coat while he was sitting by the fire so he could get warm.
Teaching your child to protect themselves while they are young is important, so that when they grow up they will be able to live on their own and pass it on to their children. “The importance of a strong, trusting father figure cannot be underestimated! Dads who participate in their children’s lives– who listen, respond and teach– represent the first line of defense in the protection of their children”(Quesenberry 1). Marion was able to do more than just show John protection, he was able to teach him how to hunt and John learned how to fend for himself. “The importance of a strong, trusting father figure cannot be underestimated! Dads who participate in their children’s lives– who listen, respond and teach– represent the first line of defense in the protection of their children”(Quesenberry 1). Marion was able to do more then just show John protection, he was able to teach him how to hunt and John learned how to fend for himself. When John saved Marion from the car accident he rewarded the kid with a puppy, that he could train to become a hunting dog. “The man picked out one and handed it to him. He took it, the fat slick little belly filling his palm, legs dangling, took it and looked at the quiet and already sad eyes, the pushed in puppy face with the foolish ears”(McCarthy 112). Marion rewarded the boy with a puppy for saving his life and he could teach this dog to become a hunting dog like Marion’s dog Lady.
A present father figure is so important for a growing boy because he gives the boy love and cares for him. “Additionally, the emotional benefits from a present father are innumerable to a young boy, and directly impact their emotional and behavioral stability throughout their lives”(Aglialoro 1). The absence or presence of a father like figure can really impact a boys emotional stability from a positive to a negative side easily. If Marion had not met John then who knows what path he could have gone down, he could have followed in his father’s footsteps and became a thief. Marion was there when John needed him and he cared for him, like when John gets cut trying to save Marion from the car accident. “He took the boy´s hand and turned it over. What´d you do here? The boy looked down at his palm. There was a black and jagged line across it… Well, come on, he said. We better go get ourselves patched up”(McCarthy 103). Marion noticed that the boy got hurt while trying to save him, so he took a father’s responsibilities and went to get him patched up.