BAND OF HOPE DEMONSTRATION.

Press, Volume LXIV, Issue 13095, 21 April 1908, Page 3

BAND OF HOPE DEMONSTRATION.

The twenty-fourth demonstration of the Canterbury Band of Hope Union, which eventuated yesterday, w«s marked by a. very numerous attendance, despite the fact that the weather was raw and 1 unsettled, and by the variety and, gaiety of the displays in the procession. In addition to the customary 1 banners and' bannerettes there were artistically decorated vans and bicycles, the whole constituting a very picturesque sight. As ' visual, the place of assembly was Latimer Square, and here the different Bands of Hope wore marshalled by Mr T. Cutler, vice-president of the Union. The procession,, headed' by the combined City and Sydenham Salvation Army Bands, went via Madras and Armagh streets to Hagley Park North, where during the day sports for all were provided, and where a public meeting was held in the afternoon. In all, there were 1500 children and about GOO adults in the procession. The Bands of Hope which took part in the procession included , the following:— Knox Church, Crescent Road, "Woolstdn., Durham Street, Addington Methodist, Selwyn Street, Linwocd Primitive Methodist, Tai Tapu, Cambridge Terrace, Lower Ricoarton, Bastion Memorial, Woodward Memorial, Spreydon, Juvenile 1.0. G.T., Adult 1.0. G.T., and Recnabites. Members of the Band of Hope Council were also* participants in the procession. Arrangements in connection with the demonstration were carried out by the president (Mr A. WiUia-ms), the secretary (Mr A. Dyer), and the treasurer (Mr J. Guntrip), who were assisted by numerous willing workers.

Tlie competitions in conflvpct'on with the procession displays resulted as followb :—Best general display: Crescent Road 1, Durham Street 2, Adddngton 3. Best, decorated 'bicycle: Durhaim Street 1, Crescent Road 2, Addington 3. Beet decorated group of six bicyclee: Durham Street 1, Crescent Road! 2, Addinjrton 3. Best decorated van: Crescent Road. 1.

The public meeting -n-as presided over by Mr A. Williams, who, in opening tho proceedings, eulogised tho work done in connection with the Union by the late Mr J. T. Smith. During the 2U years Mr Smith was president of the Union it had; increased in. numerical strength by leaps and bounds ; at present there were 32 Bands of Hop© affiliated to the Union with a, membership that far exceeded 6000. He hoped when tho elections c-ame- round that the adult members of the audience would vote solid for no-licence. (Applause.)

The Rev. W. A. Sinclair addressed! the meeting at some length, stressing the necessity of inculcating temperance principles in the minds of the young. Twenty-five years henoe, he prophesied, there would not be a licensedbar in Christchurch. He attributed the increase in the Dominion's drink bill to the fact that the -women of New Zeahmd were learning to drink, and to the increase of d-riinkenncEs a-mong young men. The newspapers solidly dienied the last-mentioned allegation, but as a member of th«> Dunedin Licensing Committee he had visited every hotel in that city, and. the great majority of those he had seen in tho bars were young men. Hβ believed that they could date a dnstinct increase in the drinking habits of our young men since the South. African war. For the s«ke of the children they must do as much as possible with the Bands of Hope; they must introduce* distinct temperance teaching into the Sunday Schools; and! they must agitate for tho introduction of temperance teaching in the public schools—tbe last-mentioned: could be done by means of the "School Journal."

The Rev. S. Hendersons in the course of his remarks, averred that the reform of the liquor traffic was the most pressing and necessary of all reforms. Children were the greatest asset a country had, and anything that depreciated the value of that asset was an enemy of the oomnrnn.it v; liquor depreciated child life and must be cHmmated.

Major Ross (Salvation Army) also spoke and pointed out that the Salvation Army was probably the largest temperance organisation in the world; its 20,000 officers, 17,000 bandsmen and 47,000 local officers, as w<yll as the rank and. file, neither touched, tasted nor handled liquor. He spoke in strong advocacy of the children being inculcated- with temperance principles. He hoped that no-lioanee wonJd be carried in many electorates, if no*: in the whole country.'