LYING, DECEPTION, HYPOCRISY, CRIME

Evening Star, Issue 17927, 24 March 1922, Page 3

LYING, DECEPTION, HYPOCRISY, CRIME

The liquor traffic is distributing to households a four-page paper called ‘ Continuance.’ This publication reprints false and misleading matter that has appeared elsewhere. Its ‘Latest Cablegrams’ are so late, dating hack as far September, 1921, they can't catch up with the truth. On the bottom of each page is a statement in black type. These four statements are numbered and reproduced below.

1. Prohibition and No-liccii?© are the parents of crime.— the, falsity of this statement can be demonstrated by official figures. In the year 1920 in the eight Nolicense districts of New Zealand, containing one-sixth of the population, and having separate courts, there was NOT A SINGLE CONVICTION for any of tho following offences; —Wounding with intent, aggravated assaults, assault and robbery, incest, abortion, cruelty to children, burglary, robbery, horse and cattle ‘stealing, sheep stealing, soliciting prostitution, keeping brothels,, begging. But in the License districts there were 140 convictions for thso offences in 1920.

2. Prohibition breeds lying, deception, hvpocnsv.—-hi view of the above, who is the guilty party, and who is trying to deceive tho public 3. Prohibition and No-liccnso breed contempt of law.—ln the No-liccnse districts in 1920 there was not a single conviction for perjury, contempt of court, attempting to influence juries, broaches of Indecent Publications Act, breaches of Military Service Act. But in the License districts there were forty-two convictions under these heads. Tho fines collected for sly-grog selling collected in 1920 amounted, to £1,914, according to tho police report. Of this sum £1,874 was collected jn License districts and only £4O in Nolicense districts. In tho LLS. A, in 1921 only two persons per ten thousand of tho population were convicted of liquor Lawviolations. In New Zealand under Incense the convictions for broaches of the licensing laws by publicans and others — excluding drunkenness —work out at twenty-one per ton thousand of population.

4. Continuance stands for honesty and freedom. —Then let it start by being honest about what it says concerning the No-license districts of Now Zealand; and Prohibition elsewhere. For three years “Bung” has been howling that Prohibition in the U.S.A. was a fraud, a frost, and a failure, and on the point of repeal. F/Very vote and action of Congress, the Senate, and the majority of the people has been in the direction of keeping and enforcing Prohibition there. Prohibition in New Zealand is worth a trial. —N.Z. Alliance Publicity (29).