OF NEW ZEALAND INTEREST.

Otago Witness, Issue 3673, 5 August 1924, Page 8

OF NEW ZEALAND INTEREST.

AN ANTI-PKOHIBITION CAMPAIGN. \Fbom Oub Own Cobbespondent.) LONDON, June 17. By the time this mail letter arrives in New Zealand the 25 public school boys who flailed by the Corinthic last week will have reached their destination. It may be of interest to learn, however, that their departure was recorded “By a New Zealander” in a special - article in The Morning Post. The publicity thus given will be a decided stimulant to the scheme in which Mr T. C. List is taking such an interest over here. An outline of the scheme is given in The Post.

“This,” says the writer, “is the beginning of a general movement in New Zealand to absorb the English public school boys desirous of an open-air life overseas. The dominion was originally settled by public school boys, which probably accounts for its essentially British character and its preference for all things British, and it is in accordance with the fitness of things that it should now receive, of England s best migration material, the public school boy. “ How different are the conditions under which the boys are going from those that prevailed in the early colonisation days of New Zealand l Those days were not so far off—but 70 to 80 years ago. Then ships little bigger than the fishing smacks that trawl the waters of the English Channel or the North Sea, and less seaworthy, took from four to six months to do the 14,000-mile journey. Often, owing to adverse current? and weather, up to 20,000 miles was traversed. And the food I All salted down in bafriels. Th*era was no refrigerating lp those days, no fresh*butter, meat, and tables. How the emigrants lived through it all is a mystery to the man who gets tea up* with the journey under modern conditions of comfort and interest. No wonder the early colonists were resourceful, perti nacious, and courageous, and laid the foundations of the, vittle and prosperous dominion of to-day.” , The Leicester Daily Mercury the fact under large headings that the J* 1311 who defeated Pussyfoot in New Zealand is visiting England to warn the people against accepting local or national prohibition In black block letters the article in question relates: “The doughtiest opponent of Mi ‘Pussyfoot’ Johnson, an orator who claims that hie eloquence defeated the prohibition campaigns in Australia and New Zealand, has arrived in London to join forces with the anti-prohibition movement in this country.” The doughty one referred to appears to be the Rev. Wyndham Heathcote, and it ie recorded that when Mr Watt was acting as Anstralian Prime Minister in place of Mr Hughes he described Mr Heathcote as the finest intellect in Australia.” Mr Heathcote is permitted to explain what manner of man he is. “Pussyfoot Johnson he eays, “arrived in New Zealand when I was lecturing there in 1922. He was given tlie greatest reception any public man ever received in Wellington, the capital of the country. While this was going on I was being hooted for 20 minutes by an audience of 4000 Prohibitionists at Auckland. " son proceeded to denounce me. The whole country was in an uproar. Battle raged between us on many platforms. “New Zealand, however, quickly got the measure of Mr Johnson. Even at fits first meetings people walked out of the nails a few minutes after he had. begun to speak. The saying was, ‘He can’t deliver the goods. He couldn’t—and didn’t. His defeat was ignominious. After this slashing victory 1 was invited to Queensland to lead the antiProhibition campaign in the 1923 Government referendum on Prohibition. The previous majority against Prohibition m Queensland was 88,000. Our campaign increased it to 103 000 in a poll of 400,000 —the vote including’ compulsory and adult suffrage and the female vote. These successes created so much interest in America that I was invited to San Francisco. There I addressed an audience of 15,000 in the Civio Hall on an amendment of the Volstead Enforcement Law. The reception was glorious, aud the Prohibition Law was denounced amid uproarious laughter. A meeting I addressed at Los Angeles was equally enthusiastic." An interesting article on Sulphur is published in the Yorkshire Observer. It is shown what an important part it plays in the great key industries of the world, in tho rubber industry, in the production of wood pulp foT paper-making, in refining l crude petroleum and in agriculture. All this leads up to White Island.

“At present the world’s supply of sulphur is obtained from Sicily, Japan, and ths United States of America, the latter being by far the largest producer. There is nd sulphur being produced oil a commercial scale anywhere within the British Empire, and, in view of the paramount importance of the sulphur industry in relation to Em. pire trade, the prospects of exploiting the immensely valuable sulphur deposit m White Island, New Zealand, are viewed with the liveliest interest by everyone who is concerned in the commercial prosperity of tha Empire.”