FIGHT AT PROHIBITION MEETING

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LIV, Issue LIV, 16 October 1920, Page 10

FIGHT AT PROHIBITION MEETING

SYDNEY, September 28. Exciting scenes occurred at- a prohibition meeting at Toowoomba on Sun-J day, and proceedings hud to come to a raj abrupt stop. Gne nears very liuUl about the liquor issue here in New’ South Wales; but judging 'by the freedom by which hotels are being bought and sold in Sydney the liquor interests do not fear a change. But in Victoria and- Queensland the anti-liqupr people are making the pace warmer, and a good deal oi feeling is being stirred up in consequence. Tin* centre of the Toowoomba disturbance was a Sydney prohibition orator, named W. B. (.’rough. His visit had been boomed, and when ho mounted a platform in the Bnblie Gardens on Sunday afternoon ho faced a large anti very mixed audience. He. began to hammer homo the usual prohibition arguments, and right from the start he met with much interruption. He kept ou steadily, but the interject ions came freely and the exchanges developed limit. Then ho said .something—the exact, nature of it is not clear- -about barmaids and the wives and daughters oi licensees. The pro-liquor people demanded an apology. Mr Crcagh denied that lie had said anything he ought to apologise tor. A well-known Toowoomba hotelkeeper pushed forward, and insisted that his womenfolk had been grossly insulted, and he demanded an apology. Air Creagh refused to apologise. The publican climbed up on the lorry and repeated his demand. ' The prohibitionist refused. The croud was yelling and in a highly excited condition. The publican jumped at the lecturer, si nick him on the face, aud closed with'him. Struggling fiercely, limy fell down together onto the lorry. Partisans from either side jumped into the fray. The secretary of the Toowoomba Prohibition Party met an old enemy, ami, somehow, they got together. The secretary was knocked off the lorry. The police intervened, separated the combatants, and restored order. Air Creagh tried to goon wifh his speech, hut he was constantly interrupted and counted out. Then a local clergyman essayed to carry on the meeting. The crowd would have none of him ; and, as the- crowd was rapidly getting out of hand, the police took a hand again, and, on their advice, the proceedings terminated.”