A Libel on New Zealand.

Feilding Star, Volume XXI, Issue 136, 8 December 1899, Page 2

A Libel on New Zealand.

Several of our correspondents have drawn attention to some extraordinary remarks which the Eev. F. W. Isitt is reported to have made at the meeting of the Women's Christian Temperance Union. The statement to which exception has been taken, is as follows :— "While we stood in the forefront of the world's reform, it was a fact that New Zealand was a disgracefully drunken country, and the New Zealand youth was disgracely drunken." Now, either Mr Isitt made this statement or he did not. If he did, then we have no hesitation in saying that it is a foul libel on the colony at large, and especially on its youtn. If he did not say so he should have taken the earliest opt portanity of disavowing any l responsibility for what is really a cruel and wanton falsehood. As a matter of fact New Zealand Is one of the soberest countries in the world. The consumption of beer per head per annum is 7.99' gallons here, as against 11.43 gallons in Victoria, and 36 gallons in England and Wales. The consumption of spirits is 0.63, as against 0.73 gallons in Victoria, and 0.96 gallons in England. As for drunkenness the following extract from ths Government Year-book for 1899, p. 173, affords a conclusive refutation of the slander we have quoted : — " A comparison of the convictions for drunkenness snows tnat excessive drinking was not so prevalent in 1897 as it -was seven years, previously. The proportions per 1000 of population were 8.39 convictions in the year 1889 and 9.14 in 1890, diminishing to 6.60 in 1895 and 6.82 iv 1896. And among the New Zealand-born population of Enropean desent there is evidence of less drunkenness than among persons who have come to the colony from abroad. At the census of 1896, out of the total population of New Zealand over 15 years of age, not less than 48.71 per cent; were found to have been born here ; while the proportion of the convictions for drunkenness of New Zea-land-born Europeans to the total convictions was in that year less that 15 per cent." As regards charges of drnnkenness Mr Coghlan,in his " Seven Colonies of Australasia," gives the following comparison:— Charges of drunkenness in proportion to population.

*In 1597 the proportion was 7.1. Comment is- needless. Wg call on Mr Isitt either to disavow the vile slander connected with his name, or justify his position. — Press.

Per 1000. New South Wales... ... 15.1 Victoria . ... ... 9.3 Queensland ...... ..; 13.1 New Zealand* ... ... 7.0