“PUSSYFOOT” JOHNSON.

Grey River Argus, 13 October 1922, Page 6

“PUSSYFOOT” JOHNSON.

LARGE LTOTENCLi AT TOWN HALL. I There was n larj’e nuUenee at IF Town Hall l:i.»t night to liuar the note-1 Prohibition lecturer from I.NA., Mr IV. H. (‘‘Pussyfoot’’) Johnson. Mr I>. Tennent presided, and had a very arduous time. Towards me close iliurr were a host of questions, many !■ iiig uttered simultaneously, : nd it uas hard to interpret anybody at times. The chairman apologised for t.’;e ::b--senec of the Mayor, who was compi l'.ed to attend the Borough Council meeting. The Mayor would gkidly ha\e press.( i had he been free to do so. fir bespoke' for the speaker a patient hearing, ami after that anyone could submit ques tions. Mr \V. E. Johnson, at the outset of his address, pointed out t’m! 1. • ha I Zealand affairs. His vi.lt u;. to plain what had been done in Amorim, and he trusted the New Zealand propio I would rdopt all that was good from them. For over 4000 years efforts had been made to regulate the liquor trade. In America they Im i decided that the trade had had a long enough trial, and they had agreed to rcniow lhe cause of evils arising from the liquor trade. The people of Americ-’ I ml tried many reforms, but all of them had failed. The licensing system had been a failure. Prohibition had spread from St::* • !- State, and had proved, he said, to be a. absolute success. .America was now same time, the speaker pointed out that the Prohibition laws were being \ iolated. There were, however, many mis leading reports circulated. His ex perienco in the journalistic world was ti.at unusual things appeared in the press as news which was the reason whv those who were victims of < I rugs and ere reports <1 and cabled . in the -world's press. These were rare and unusual eases, he said. In America they were not by any means a perfect people, but he wanted to give them Laws of U.S.A. w<rc more strictly enforced than were the licensing laws. There were fewer arrests for drunkenness under prohibition than before. His answer to Rev Heathcote, of Welling ton, was that in 1921 there were in New York 8169 arrests for drunkenness and not 2GS,O:>O, as stated by the I'nitariaii Minister. lie had received a cable from the Congressional Librarian at did Abraham Lincoln speak against prohibition. There h; d been over 3000 of these had been closed. The drug been over 390 iifstitut i o a s to deal with

uie xiciims oi me urug naoir. .Sow nearly all wire closed up, onlv 10 or 15 having survived. A great increase in public wealth had enabled them to raise all that was required without additional taxation. One brewery he knew had been turned into a freezing works, which provided more and better pai'l employment for the workers, who had been displeased by the pissing of the Prohibition Laws. Who had b •> respons.ble lor Prohibition in America? Certainly not himself, and not a small coterie of enthusiasts, but the people ' themselves who had so willed it. The idea had passed from State to State until it had captured the whole country In the West, where it had t .k<-n deep est root, the movement had been sup ported by moderate drinkers. After the address a large number of questions were asked, some relevant and some not. The speaker replied to many of them, but some could not be heard, as others were being asked at the same time. On the motion of Mr M. Avrton :: hearty vote of thanks w: s accorded M r Johnson, and the Chairman, Mr 1). Tennant, which was carried by acclamation.