FOR TEMPERANCE.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 19249, 13 August 1924, Page 5

FOR TEMPERANCE.

LORD ASTOR’S SACRIFICE. “POLITICAL CAREER ENDED.” “My husband is a modest fellow, and you have no notion what ho has sacrificed for Ibis temperance movement,” said Lady As lor at a. reception at her house in St. James’s square to overseas delegates to the Commonwealth Temperance Convention. If ever Lord Astor had any political career, she continued, ho sacrificed it when ho took up the cause of temperance. fcjhe did not think anybody had shown up the evil influence of drink in politics more than Lord Astor. Lord Astor said ever since his wife had taken an active part in public life he had had occasion to change his politics and outlook, but every lime lie had found this necessary his politics and outlook had ended on a higher plane. There were not many who were willing to help him in his temperance work in the House of Lords, and it would be a wonderful tiling for the ucart of the. Empire if the young nobility would come forward. TRADE INFLUENCES. Presiding at the opening session of the convention at Caxton Hall, Lord Astor said as far as ho could ascertain there was not a single anti-temperance society which was financially independent of drink money. Not one of those hollies, so far as he was aware, had dared to publish a list in detail of its subscribers and subscriptions. It was net the public who found the cash to oppose temperance, but those who had a pecuniary interest in stimulating the sales of intoxicants. Politicians still fought shy of advocating temperance too boldly, possibly because of those direct and indirect methods of intimidation by the trade, which were doubtless practised in all countries.