PROHIBITION LEAGUE.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume XVIII, Issue XVIII, 13 November 1912, Page 5

PROHIBITION LEAGUE.

REPRESENTATIVE MEETING AT

STRATFORD

! Over 100 delegates from all over the Taranaki electorates met in Stratford on Monday night to discuss the question of the Licensing Act. The president of the New Zealand Alliance (Mr Wesley Spragg), and the Rev. J. Dawson (secretary of the Alliance) were present. In his opening remarks the Rev. Mr Dawson said that Mr Spragg was devoting a great deal of time to actively working for the cause of prohibition, lt was often said that the No-license vote went back last year, when, as a matter of fact, it was 13,000 more than it was at the previous election. The Taranaki electorates had 60 per cent, of the total votes in their electorates cast for dominion prohibition, and yet with tlie three-fifths handicap existing they were not able to close one bar on that vote. Throughout the dominion the Trade's "great moral victory" consisted of 44.18 per cent, of the votes cast, while the No-license Party had 55.82 per cent, of the voting to their credit. The speaker referred to the electoral census. When the rolls were brought before Parliament they found that there were over 75,000 people on the roils, who were non-residents in the dominion, while in single electorates there were as many as 3,000 names of non-residents on some rolls. Yet Parliament in its wisdom, so that nobody should be disfranchised, allowed all of these names to remain on the roll They wanted it distinctly understood that the h hE! v°^ art in party politics, but that the No-hcense Party through™lNe,v n Zealand had determined that it 80 men can control the voting power ot the dominion on a bare majority, they (the No-license Party) are determined that they will have a democratic measure carried by democratic representatives In the past ten years New Zealand had spent £30,000,000 on liquor, but there had been no Royal Commission set up to enquire into this tWS^ rU Was a well-laid-down fact that the liquor party throughout New Zealand had "a vote and a bit," while avtTT Pfty had only "a bit of a vote. He claimed that all fairminded people were agreed that this would have to be removed. At the conclusion of a very enthusiastic meeting the following resolut on vas earned unanimously: "Believing in the democratic principle of majority rule ttXtt mf + t l t6rS ' this, meeti"S deeS£! ton tnll «^ e™»* °f the Option 101 l should at once come under wStS?^ V Step to^'ds this n™? 'A* mee*in S expresses its apHn luf, h • aCti^ °f the New Zea~ ! land Alliance in seeking to obtain, in all electorates signatures of voters 'to the I following pledge, 'I hereby give my Pledge that regardless of party I tfh not at the next election give my vote to any candidate for Paiiiame^ who « Ll' ot.P,;? miee-to red"ce> or, at least, Tbiilm lly redw^ the Present ™.nst thTee-fifths majority upon both issues tion. '—Stratford Post.