THE MISSING WORD.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXIX, Issue 228, 23 September 1908, Page 8

THE MISSING WORD.

I (To tbe Kditor.) Sir. —The issue of the "Home .lournal" for September 12 devotes four columns of its valuable space to a .notice of "N.Z. <iraplik , " for August ■">. In one article it stay*: "A eunnLngly-worded paragraph is inserted that leads tho careless reader to believe Lhut (ieneral Booth, of the Salvation .Army, is against Xo-license. General Booth is with us heart and soul, and the attempt to make people think that lie is not dishonourable." In th-e same, number of the "Jlome Journal , ' appears the following: — TIIK TESTIMONY OF SCOTLAND YAKD. A most remarkable letter has been written to tbe ■Times" by Sir Hobert Andersou, of Scotland Yard and Biblical Criticism fame, on the Bill, lie tells us that in the range of his duties at Scotland Yard ho had year by year to decide whether the police should oppose a publican's application for v renewal of his license; .md lie claims, therefore, to know something of the question. "And my words may possibly have increased weight in some quarters," he says, "if I add that such is my estimate of the drink curse as the cause, not merely of drunkenness—an evil that is limited and diminishing—but of fhrfftlessness and poverty and disease and crime, that I should jbe willing to condone the confiscation elNhnent in the Bill If I believed it would achieve the results expected from Will you allow mc to point out that Sir Kobert's letter goes on to emphatically condemn the abolition of licenses. The "careless reader" might suppose from the "cunningly-worded paragraph" quotel above that lie was in favour of Nolice.nse. The editor of the "Home .Journal" would not like what is doubtless a mere lapse of memory to be interpreted as a dishonourable attempt to make people think Sir Robert was for him. May 1 therefore, remind him of what lie has evidently forgotten, viz., that Sir Robert concludes his letter thus: "For every public liouse closed by the operation of the Licensing Bill, low class clubs will spring up like mushrooms, where drunkenness and gambling will be practically unchecked. Mr. Balfour is right in saying that the measure will do grievous injury to a minority without benefiting the mass of tho comimmity."—l am, etc., A "GRAPHIC" CONTRIBUTOR.