THE PREMIER AND THE MILTON BY-LAW CASE.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXX, Issue 9306, 15 September 1893, Page 3

THE PREMIER AND THE MILTON BY-LAW CASE.

TO THE EDITOR. Sir,— your leading article this morning on the Premier's action with reference to the Milton by-law case you make one or two statements to which serious exception can be taken. In the first place, you state that " Mr. Seddon has as much right to order the liberation of any prisoner in Dunedin gaol as he had to deal with the case of Captain Kerr." Now Captain Kerr was charged with " blowing a cornet in the public streets of Milton in con-, travention of a borough by-law." No less anauthority than Lord Chief Justice Coleridge has laid it down that He took it that every Englishman had an absolute and unqualified right to go about his business and perform legal acts with the protection of the law, and he apprehended that walking through the'streets'in order and procession, even if accompanied by music and the singing of hymnal was absolutely Lwfnl, in the doing of which every subject had a right to be protected." Thus for the doing of what, according to this definition, is a perfectly lawful act, Captain Kerr was sentenced to a month's hard labour. In the Whitchurch case, when four members of the Salvation Army were sentenced to a mouth's hard labour, Lord Chief Justice Coleridge stated that " hard labour was ignominious, and that the defendants might be religious enthusiasts, but such sentences were not to be tolerated for a moment." It would, therefore, appear that Mr. Seddon has correctly interpreted the spirit, if not the letter, of the law in advising the Governor to commute a sentence which "is not to be tolerated," passed upon a man for committing " an absolutely lawful act." You then refer to the conduct of Army open-air operations in Auckland, and insinuate that meetings in the Opera House and in the Young Men's Christian Association are habitually disturbed by the Salvation Army. [Now, as a rule, all our open-air operations are concluded, by eight o'clock each evening, at which hour we retire within our own barracks. As the opera does not commence until that hour, it is impossible for the trumpet-blowing, drum-beating, and tes-timony-giving to be carried on in the way you state. _ As for the Young Men's Christian Association, soon after my arrival in Auckland I took the trouble to call on Mr. Brackenrig, and ascertain from him the times and evenings on which meetiugs were held in the Young Men's Christian Association Rooms, and made such arrangements with him as will effectually prevent any annoyance. To show that the officers have " some sympathy for those attending worship," permit me to quote from the orders and regulations issued to field officers by the General:—" The field officer must not allow any services, processions, or other operations that he may conduct, to interfere with the comfort and efficiency of the services of any other religions organisations if it can be avoided. To this end he must never allow his band to play or his procession to sing in marching past any church or chaapel during the hours of divine service." . Briefly stated our position is this : The Salvation Army was born in the open air, and we believe the Biblical injunction, Go ye into the highways and hedges and compel them to come in," is of higher authority than any borough-by.-law or town board's mandate. At the same time we desire as far as possible to act in harmony with all constituted authority, and are, willing to submit to all reasonable restriction so long as no sacrifice of principle is involved. ' But when the Newton Borough Council forbids our playing our cornets, or the Whangarei Town Board desires to stop our open - air meetings, tbey then have to reckon upon a body of 300 officers and 5000 soldiers who are pledged to obey God's command, even if it involves a month's hard labour, or worse. People may call us fanatics if they will, or sneer at our self-imposed martyrdom ; but we only obey the dictates of our conscience, and we say, all honour to a premier and a Government who declare against anything calculated to undermine religions freedom. :

Get to the bottom of these petty persecutions, and what do you always find ? Beer ! Sometimes the froth conceals the liquid damnation (for the prime movers in the Milton affair were publicans), but blow away the froth, and the beer is always there. Beer versus Salvation, is a tough fight, but in the end Salvation comes out. victorious.— am, etc., ■ , ■ ■ f Alfred H. Grinling. Staff-Captain Salvation Army. ' :