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Evening Post, Volume CIV, Issue 91, 14 October 1922, Page 8

(FBBLISEED BY ARRANGEHBHT.)

N.Z. ALLIANCE ACCEPTS LIQUOR

CHALLENGE.

The Liquor Traffic, in the "Evening Post" of 11th October, and in other papers, challenges the New Zealand Alliance to produce "any evidence that the American people have ever voted or had an opportunity of voting upon the question of National Prohibition."

WHAT ABOUT THE ALLIANCE'S CHALLENGE? ,

The Alliance has repeatedly challenged the New ZeZaland Liquor Traffic to produce figures showing that the Customs and Excise revenue from the traffic has ever yielded £2,500,000 per annum to the Treasury. The liquor traffic has never taken up that challenge. The Government return, tabled in the House on sth September, shows: that the largest amount produced: by the liquor traffic in the way of revenue was in the year ended 31st March; 1922, when it was £1,359,856. For' the first six months of this fiscal year, let April to 30th September, 1922, the Government Comptroller of Customs states the total revenue from imported spirits, beer, stout, and wines, and Excise from New Zealand beer to be £642,160. If it is the same for the next six months, the year will produce' £1,284,320—which is £75,500 less than last year, although the duties and Excise have been doubled as compared with last year. And it is just about, half/ of -what the liquor traffic claims it yields in revenue. Who put it there? President Harding of the U.S.A., said on. 4th July last, at Marion, Ohio: "The Eighteenth Amendment denies to a minority a fancied, sense of personal liberty, but the amendment is the will of America and must be sustained by the Government and public opinion." Chief Justice W. H. Taft, of. the U.S.A., is on record that the amendment is an "overwhelming constitutional expression of the people." Al-. though attacked from every conceivable angle by the liquor interests, the amendment has, by the United States Supreme Court, been declared again and again to be • absolutely valid. The amendment is there because the people put it there. A nation-wide vote is now on. After three years of National Prohibition, after three years of open and underground propaganda. by the liquor traffic, after throe years of organised, attempts to break down and discredit the Prohibition law, after' three years of liquor hired newspaper propaganda alleging wholesale crime, corruption, drug and dope taking, immorality, and disrespect of law, after three years of intense effort by every corrupt and contemptible agency in the U.S.A. to mislead the people, the people have been and are voting on the dominating issue of whether or not they wish the Prohibition . law modified. More than 32 organisations have been and are in operation, striving to get thg people, to nominate for Congress"beer and light wine" candidates. •What is the result?

Latest advices show that 23 States have, by popular vote, nominated their candidates; these 23 States have a total population of over 55,500,000ythat is to say, more than half the entire population of the U.S.A. And here is the result, after all this frantic effort on the part of the " wets " —Congressmen nominated—" drys " 182, " wets " 3S—that is to say, over 82 per cent, of the people's representatives chosen this year in those States are " dry." No people in the world are quicker to scrap a failure than the Americans. Would they be voting in such an overwhelming way to retain Prohibition if it was a failure, if it produced the horrors the liquor party pretends it does? Could Sir John Foster Fraser say, as he has said, " You do not hear about the one hundred millions of Americans who do not break the law?". Here is the " opportunity of voting on national Prohibition,"— there is the result.

Another Challenge.—Now then, here is another challenge to the N.Z. "liquor traffic. ■ The liquor traffic is challenged to produce any evidence that justifies it in advertising broadcast that if Prohibition is carried the moderate drinkers in N.Z. are by thousands going to become bandits, cut-throats, robbers, drug fiends, and dope drinkers. It is challenged to substantiate its disgusting insinuation that if Prohibition is carried New Zealand women, not now in tho habit of frequenting hotel bars, will take to drinking and become immoral and sly grog sellers. It is challenged to produce the authority for its. statement that " No New Zealand boy is at present sub-' ject to the temptation of indulgence at all in strong drink until he is twentyone years of age " —the Police Report for 1921 containing a record of 113 prosecutions of licensees for servine intoxicants to persons under 21 years of age. Theliquor traffic is further challenged to disclose just how much extra net profit it made by charging 2s 6d extra on every bottle of "spirits on the ground of increased duties, when it had not paid that increased duty. When the liquor traffic has fully replied to this further challenge, the N.Z. Alliance will be ready to hand out a few more.—N.Z. Alliance Publicity (71)»