ENGLISH LICENSING BILL.

Press, Volume LIX, Issue 17748, 27 April 1923, Page 14

ENGLISH LICENSING BILL.

I lADY ASTOR AS GODMOTHER. RAISING THE DRINKING AGE. (TSOM OUR OWN cohrbrponbekt.) LONDON, March 17. Many bright passages enlivened the debate in the Commons on the second leading of the Intoxicating Liquor (Sale to Persons under Eighteen) Bill, the object of which is to raise tc, eighteen the ag« at which young persons can be served with intoxicating liquors for consumption on licensed premises. References were made to modern women's hair fashions, the strength of beer, at would have happened if there had. act boen "Prohibition" in the Garden of Eden, and the inevitable subject of United States conditions- One would have thought from the tone of the debate that the majority of the House ■would have opposed it, but when a division was taken the second reading was passed by a majority of 282 votes —338 for and 56 against. Mr Serymgeour, the only Prohibit:onist member, was the tragedy of the debate. Time after time he rose, but never succeeded in "catching the Speaker's eye." At last, in despair, he rose on a point of order. "I respectfully suggest," he said, "that as 1 represent a point of view not otherwise represented, I should have an opportunity of speaking." "I'think the hon. member must allow me to perform my duty," the Speaker ' Teplied. Mr Scrymgeour then sat down and tried no more, and so victory was won without the help of the Prohibitionist.

Lady Astor's speech was singularly free' from bias and from her characteristic irrelevancies. She remarked humorously that she was unaware that her chief fault was subtlety—th© opponents of the measure having described it as a subtle plan. She thought that she annoyed the House of Commons by her brutal frankness. She appealed to members to listen without pride, prejudice, or partial affection. The age frora fourteen to eighteen was the most difficult time in a boy's or jrirl's life. Boys «t that age had instincts with which they really did not know how to grapple, .and it took the greatest courage and tho greatest understanding on the part of parents and others to keep ■ them morally straight. The point of the was to help self-control and th© powers of resistance. As the mother of five sons she thought that it was just aa important for boys as it was for girls. In 1919 2610 boys and <nrl« between the ages of 16 and 21 were arrested foi drunkenness: in 1920 4068, and in 1921 2172. Chance for Spirit, not Spirits. The chief medical authorities in all countries were at one aa to the danger of adolescents taking alcohol. Sex discrimination in legislation would, not be tolerated, partly because it was unjust, and partly because immorality was a joint offence which could not be

cured by dealing with one sex. She was tired of people who thought that you could not legislate to strengthen youth. Of course you could. She asked the House? to do nothing but to give the spirit, and not the spirits, a onanoe. As to the supposed difficulty of administration, similar legislation had already been passed in the colonies, and no difficulty had been experienced. Tho only organised opposition to the Bill camo from representatives of the drink trade. . She did

not blame them in the least, and she did not want to put their backs up. i fane really did want to be an angel of peace that day. Tht> greatest reformers the world had ever known had j always been inspired by the love of children. "I appeal to the House (Lady, Astor continued) to pass this ■ Bill, and so help the children. Why, you axe all children still—(laughter)— and that is what makes us women love you, because you are children. (Loud laughter.) We love you ivery ; much, but we love our own children more, and I can assure you that there is many a mother in the country praying to-day that this Bill will go through. The promoters of the Bill only desire to protect youth*—glorious, venturesome youth. When rightly led and guided youth is most inspiring, but when wrongly led is most harmful." Mr C. W. Crook, who seconded, confessed that he disliked as much the continued cant of the extremist on the one side as the continual decant of the extremist on the other. He would prefer tha joyous fatalism of Omar Khayyam to the bee in the bonnets of bourne Dundee. ' Unless those who were interested in the sale of liquors took more notice of public opinions they would bring England to the same state as the lack of care on part of saloon-keepers had produced in the United States.

Extension of Prohibition. Mr Greaves-Lord opposed the proposed measure, winch in his view was aimed at the extension of . prohibition into the law of the country. Why had not the promoters made the age twenty instead of eighteen Simply, lie said, because they could ask tor me age. to be twenty next year. "Certainly," said Mr Scrymgeour, of .Dundee. Anyone over the age of eighteen, pointed out Mr Lord, would be able v take a young person into a publicise, buy liquor, and induce the Joung p erson to drink any quantity of »'h y ° ,U ? g g of fou rteen might buv » bottle of spirits take it into a lane Shed Th* ltß , Co ", teilts ™ if she f, I, real evil - he said, lay not in. the publican, but in the absurd ad ministration of the licensing laws ovt a great many years. mnKniw who seconded the motion for ejection, said that the red effect of the Bill was not to lessen the consumption of alcoholic drink taken under the eyes of the police and the license-holder, but to compel young people to consume drink in holes and corners, where there was no control of any kind. This kind of legislation tended to postpone real temperance reform—the improvement of the publichouse. He did not regard the Bill as god-motherly legislation, but grandmotherly legislation.

Prohibition In the Garden of Eden. One of the most attractive speeches to which the House lias listened was delivered during the debate by liearAdmiral Sir Guy Granet, who originally came from Australia. Ho has a somewhat Americanised intonation, and possibly his sojourn in Washington, where he acted as naval attache, led to his absorbing the native humour. At any rate, he captivated the House by his mni.den speech. He declared the* Bill was %.Dtten, but its object magnificent. To give an or.der that could not be carried out was very wrong; and the present measure wouTd create a desire to break the law. If the original order in the Garden of Eden had not been friven we should all have been happier. If Eve had been allowed to pick the fruit and take a bite all would have heen well. but. when she was {riven a' direct order against doinn; so the serpent nt once rami> into the pome. So would he with the prespnt "Bill. One mifbt just ns well pass IpTKlation as tfy.how, much a man could hold. Hp •migrated at the age of fourteen, and

had scarcely been home since except to try to borrow money. At the age of seventeen he was working in an August sun on a San Francisco wharf, carrying kerosene tins scantily clad, and certainly without boots. It was impossible to drink enough water to,' keep him going, so he used to buy a "schooner of beer" —and he wanted it. (Laughter.) After entering the Navy he became a teetotaler for many years, and was nearlr so now, but there were numbers of boys working at the age of seventeen who needed cider and beer to keep them going. It was a pity that Lady Astor's Bill did not stick to spirits; they should be prohibited un to the a£re of twentv-one. would not be killed, however, with such a measure as this. An Honourable American Grocer. In America, which he knew extremely wellj in any hotel the "bell-boy" would carry up the luggage and wait around to know whether he could not get the visitor "a drop of the real stuff." The only conversation in America was: "Where did you get your last drink and where will you get the nest?" The Bill would red..ce the British licensees —good, hard-working, healthy members of the community to men of straw, exactly as the licensed victualler was in America beioie Prohibition. (A Labour member: ''Tripe.") In Maddison avenue not long ago he met a friend, one oi' America's best citizens, who took him into a grocer's shop, the proprietor also being an honourable and upright grocer, (daughter.) The head of the firm approached and said: "How are vou oft for gin? We have an excellent gin now at Hftytwo." The friend replied: "1 was paving seventy before; are you sure this is good gin?" "Sir," answered the head of the firm, "our honour is involved in it!" (Laughter.) Cheap American Prohibition goods were now, he had an awful suspicion, heir; foisted on an unsuspecting and temperate British community. (.Cheers.) Mrs Wintringham supportedJ;he Bill. It was undesirable, she said, tTutt the public-house should become the rival of the continuation school. There was a craze for excitement at the age of adolescence, and it was just at that time when the brake required to be put on. It was the duty of Parliament to make it easier for young people to do right. She believed that the women of the. country were in favour of the Bill. This was a social reform which was not goin<j to cost the country any money, but would save money.

Example of the Upper Classes. Sir F. Banburv maintained .that the object of the Jiill was to lead to total Prohibition by small instalments. Jtlow was a publican to tell when a girl was over 18? He did not know wiiat women had done to themselves during the last thirty years. (Laughter.) When he was a young man he knew an old woman when he saw one. He defied anyone now to say that a woman of 45 did not look"lfke 23. He thought this must be in consequence of the way tliey did their hair. (Laughter.) Very often a girl of 18 looked 25. "When he was young he even knew 'boys who actually had whiskers. (Laughter.) He knew young men of 21 ancl 22 who looked quite young He did himself. (Laughter.) During the past 20 or 30' y-ears, without any legislation of this sort, there had been a great improvement in temperance. In these days they hardly ever saw any drunkenness among the unper classes. (A Labour member: "They go home in cabs at night.") And the example set by the upper classes had been followed by others. (Ironical Labour cheers.) Much more could be done for the caii6e of temperance by example than by pernicious legislation of this sort. (Hear, hear.)

Mr Snowden asserted thai his constituency and the Labour Party were unanimously in favour of the Bill. The measure certainly would not be regarded as an interference with individual liberty. No one under 21 was admitted to membership of the working man's club where intoxicating liquor was sold. The Bill did not afreet parental responsibility, but aimed at keeping young people out of-public-houses. Never had a reform had such universal support in the country. It was now recognised that boys and girls up to the age of 18 should be under a certain amount of State discipline and control. This very moderate Bill would "be received with universal gratitude. 'Beer After Football. Mr Bridgeman (Home Secretary) said the Government did not intend to put on their Whips, -but they~could not promise to give facilities for the passing of the Bill. Considerable difficulty would be experienced in changing the age from 16 to 18, because it was far more difficult to distinguish between two boys, one just under 18 and one iust over 18, than it was in_,the case of boys of 16. He doubted whether the Bill could be effectually carried out. Lady Astor'e argument was that beer was bad for those under 18. That he did not admit. (Cheers.) The vast majority affected by the ' Bill would be young men who wanted a glase of beer after, say, a game of football, and .who could not be considered as excessive drinkers. He, when at school, was allowed beei every day, and, like Sir F. Banbury, co'.ild say,. "Loot at th« result!" He oughi to merEnn. tiiougti that he did not care for it, and did not drink it. (Laughter.) Those who opposed the Bill had been asked whether they would care to see their own children going intp a public-house. He had witnessed his own boys going to get a glass of beer without any objection. Where reform was really needed was in the atmosphere, nature, and character of licensed premises; it was incorrect to insist that nil nublie houses were demoralising to those under eighteen'.