MR. NINIAN MELVILLE'S MISSION.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXX, Issue 9284, 21 August 1893, Page 6

MR. NINIAN MELVILLE'S MISSION.

On Saturday evening Mr. Ninian Melville, the well known temperance advocate, commenced his temperance mission in Auckland by an address in Wesley Hall, on "The Direct Veto." The hall was crowded, some having to stand. Captain Leßoy presided. After the temperance choir had given a selection the chairman briefly introduced thelecturer. Mr. Melville pointed out firstthabaleohol was not" a good creatine of God," inasmuch as the Almighty never made any more than he made the rope with which a mau committed suicide. Then he proceeded to define the duty of the Christian Church in relation to the liquor traffic, and after that the duty of the whole community in respect to it. A snake was accidentally introduced into New Zealand from New South Wales, but notwithstanding the beauty of its skin, and that they had no snakes here, they ruthlessly killed it. They did so because they were told it was venomous, and its species had bitten men, women, and children to death in New South Wales, and being determined to prevent such a calamity here they destroyed the snake, and would not allow even ballast to be landed in case one got in in the sand or gravel. At every street corner in the cities of the colony were standing snakes which had bitten the fathers, brothers, or sons of some of his hearers, and by every law of God and man they had the right to crush these snakes when they had the power. For the greater part of the lecture a man interrupted the lecturer with a running fire of interjections. He was told that at the close he would have the opportunity if he desired it of speaking. This did not quieten him, and at last matters got so bad that the chairman despatched one of the men for Constable Russell, when he subsided. Mr. Melville said ho was glad to see that the liquor traffic had a. representative present, and had sent up their finished work. Some times he had to beat the air, but that night his "object lesson" was ready to hand. The dissentient after denouncing the lecturer as a scoundrel, and recommending him to go to the Garden of Eden to hisold father the serpent, bounced out of the hall amid the laughter and cheers of the audience. The strangest part of the affair is that the man was stated to be, years ago, one of the most earnest and devoted workers in social reform in this city. On Sunday afternoon Mr. Ninian Melville gave another address to a fairly large audience, Mr. W. Kerr presiding. He took as his subject the " Good Samaritan," using that well-known parable to illustrate his views upon the drink traffic and its cure. He called upon his hearers to come in with the prohibitionists at once, and not wait till the battle was over. The tempoance people must surely win. As matter of fact the enemy's (lag was even now at half-mast. The Government had been compelled to introduce a Bill which would go half the road. Had anyone suggested such a measure a few years ago, they would have been told that they were mad. They were themselves considered mad then—now they were called enthusiasts. Every great reform was won by fanatics. Their opponents would call some of them reformed drunkards, and would want to know what the opinions of such were worth ; and if, on the other hand, a man said that he had never touched , intoxicating liquor, he was told that he ought not to talk of what he knew nothing about. The temperance party were at length determined that neither the drunkard nor the moderate drinker should be robbed and ruined any more, and he would say to each one present, "Go thou and do likewise." They were going to do it through the Parliament of the country. In this colony he had received nothing but kindness, and he would like to see banished from the land! that which was destroying its homes and its prospects. Several of the States of America had raised the banner of prohibition, and the mother land was following in the same direction. In New Zealand they were now able to force Parliament to allow the people to say whether they would have the traffic or not, and whon they had the chance of voting, he was certain they would vote the traffic down. To night, Mr. Melville will lecture in the City Hall, the title of it being, " What we Will Do, and How we Will Do It." Mr. K. Withy will preside.