Prohibition celebrated its sixth anniversary on January 16, 1926, but the mood was decidedly mixed. President Coolidge had "nothing to say" when asked to comment on the milestone, while prohibition supporters held testimonial dinners in New York. The most colorful was planned by the Anti-Saloon League to honor William "Pussyfoot" Johnson, the dry propagandist who lost an eye fighting students in London. Organizers had to cancel their plan to serve actual confiscated liquor when Federal Attorney Buckner refused, declaring "We have no liquor, don't want any liquor and if we had it, wouldn't send it." Meanwhile, the ongoing hard coal strike dominated headlines as miners' unions received reports from failed negotiations with operators. The operators refused any settlement without "continuous and permanent arbitration," which miners saw as a disguise for wage cuts. Senator Copeland urged President Coolidge to intervene in the crisis, warning of "imminent danger to public health." In California, over 14,000 sailors participated in massive naval exercises off the coast, representing "the backbone of American sea power" in intricate maneuvers involving battleships, submarines, destroyers, and the aircraft carrier Langley.

These stories capture America at a crossroads in 1926. Prohibition was proving increasingly unpopular and difficult to enforce - the seizure of 24 foreign liquor vessels (20 of them British) between July and January showed the futility of stopping the flow of alcohol. The hard coal strike represented growing labor tensions as post-war prosperity masked underlying disputes between workers and management. Most significantly, the massive naval exercises off California demonstrated America's emergence as a global naval power, just as the country was becoming more involved in world affairs despite its isolationist rhetoric. The coordination of 14,000 men in complex maneuvers showed the sophisticated military machine America was building during the "Roaring Twenties."

• William 'Pussyfoot' Johnson, the prohibition activist being honored, literally lost an eye in a scuffle with London students who held a demonstration against him - talk about dedication to the dry cause
• The Anti-Saloon League had planned to have drinks mixed by an 'experienced wet,' paint skull and crossbones on cocktail glasses, and hold a mock funeral for 'King Alcohol' - until federal authorities refused to provide the liquor
• Representative Francis Deming left an estate worth $19,169.59, including $100 listed as 'not collectable, no value' - even the wealthy had bad debts in 1926
• Louis Mazzone escaped police custody in Providence after being arrested for entering the country illegally following 'a shooting affray in a house of Tremont street' - and simply vanished without a trace

• The 20 British ships seized for rum-running almost equaled the entire previous year's total - Britain was essentially waging an unofficial liquor war against American prohibition
• Naval reserve cruises were planned from cities including New Haven, which would serve as a base for two trips - Connecticut was a major naval recruitment center despite being inland
• The evolution controversy had reached Yugoslavia, where a school teacher faced trial for supporting Darwin's theory after a lecture caused villagers to divide into factions - America wasn't the only country grappling with science vs. religion
• Wayne Wheeler, the prohibition advocate quoted in the story, was known as the 'dry boss' who essentially wrote the Volstead Act and controlled prohibition enforcement - one man's crusade became national policy
• That aircraft carrier Langley participating in the naval exercises was America's first - converted from a coal ship in 1922, it was testing tactics that would dominate World War II just 15 years later