THE BROKEN COMPACT.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 14701, 8 December 1909, Page 4

THE BROKEN COMPACT.

I'iie terms of tho communication iu which the executive officers of the New Zealand! Alliance preferred the request to the Government that it would introduce this session the legislation that was supposed to give expression to an agreement on the subject between the licensed victuallers and tho prohibitionists seem to afford strong justification for tho vigorous criticism that was offered yesterday by the president of the Brewers' and Wine and Spirit Merchants' Association of tho Dominion concerning tho action of the 110-licenso organisations in' repudiating tho arrangement in ono of its most important inspects. The president and secretory of the Alliance were expressly authorised by the executive of that body 1.0 approach tho Prime Minister, in' tho same way as tho representatives of tho opposing interests were, with the request that legislation should be submitted to Parliament to givo effect to the provisions of tho compromise and with the accompanying assurance that the influence oif tho Alliance would bo exerted in favour of tho passage of tho legislation. The liconsed victuallers have a distinct ground of complaint in that those with whom they were bargaining resiled from tho arrangement within a few days of tho date when they put their hands to tho compact. But, as we have pointed out on a previous occasion, some of those who were engaged on behalf of the No-license party in drawing up the agreement possessed such a curious notion of the ethics of the business that their accepts ance of tho compromise was associated in their own minds with the reservation that they should be free to seek from Parliament, when the proposals wero before it, conditions more favourable to their own side than were embodied in the compact. A gamble was avowedly involved in the bargain, and those of the parties io the transaction who while they ostensibly assented to it' mentally, reserved ■io themselves the liberty to attempt to improve the arrangement from their point of new were practically j„ the position of gamblers armed with loaded dice. .So far a.s the public is concerned the ailure of the negotiations can hardlv be viewed with regret. With its collapse the last has, it may be hoped, been heard of intriguing between tho licensed victuallers and tho prohibition--15 to effect secret arrangements that

shall determino tlio form which legislation affecting tlio comnnmity as a .whole shall take.