Question

Prohibition began on January 16, 1920, when the Eighteenth Amendment went into effect. . . . Even though alcohol was illegal, alcoholic drinks were still widely available at "speakeasies" and other underground drinking establishments. The disreputable speakeasies gained their name from the fact that patrons had to "speak easy" and convince the doorman to let them in. His job was to keep out anyone that looked like they were dry agents. Agents had no forced-entry rights at all, and so could not break into an establishment if the doorman refused them entry. Many people also kept private bars to