NO-LICENSE RALLY.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXI, Issue 94, 4 December 1911, Page 5

NO-LICENSE RALLY.

' TRADE WAGER THAT FACTS ARE CORRECT. MEETING IN BROADWAY. On Saturday evening in front of the Stratford ‘Municipal Chambers, Messrs. C. H. Taylor and J. L. Robinson addressed a large audience in the interests of Prohibition. In its initial stages the meeting was a quiet one, and the first speaker (Mr. Taylor) received a good hearing, free from interruption. He dealt very particularly with NoLicense in Masterton, and contended that there was no truth in the statement “that Prohibition in Masterton • had been a gross failure.” “It has i also been stated,” lie continued, “that the Masterton Caledonian Society made on its last meeting a loss of £6l. I saw the secretary myself, and he said ‘No! ive made a profit of £6o.’ ” He went on to refer to the now famous wager between Mr. McManaway and Mr. Hammond, and concluded Jus remarks on that subject with- the words: “McManaway did not agree with the arbitrators) and, 'wanted to sneak out of it,” , , Continuing, .the speaker referred,at.length to the, general planks of .the'ProJjibition plat-. ' form. (Just a[s ,he .was- concluding his, remarks, and .Robinson was preparing to take his place, Mr. W. P. Kirkwood asked him a question. For a few minutes nothing could be heard above the babel of.,vpiqes.) A yoice: “You’re in the public street. Get up on the box.” Mr. Kirkwood took the speaker’s advice, and was received with loud applause. “Ladies and gentlemen,” he said, “the statementii am‘going to make to you to-night is-not on the question s of license or no-license. This gentleman here has characterised- the; statement that the Masterton Caledonian Society had made a loss, as a lie. I will put up £25 here to-night, and if it is not a fact that the Caledonian Society during the meeting made a loss I will hand it over to the hospital.” (Applause). At this stage of the proceedings the Rev. Mr. Harrison took occasion to announce that on Sunday evening a meeting would be held in the Town Hall. His remarks were not very audible, and it was evident that the crowd wanted to hear Mr Taylor’s reply. They did not have to wait long. “In reply to what the gentleman said,” replied Mr. Taylor, “the only authority I have got is the authority of the secretary of the Caledonian Society in Masterton. I may not have been stating what' was true. I thought the best thing was to go to the secretary of the Society. Now, I am not prepared to take ” The rest of Mr. Taylor’s remarks were lost to those on the outskirts of the throng, but it was evident that he wished to get on to some other subject. - A voice: “Stick to the bet.” Mr. Taylor: “I’m not a bettor. All I can say is that the secretary made that statement to me.” Another voice; “That does not justify you in making it here.” Mr. Taylor then stepped down from the box, and Mr. Robinson addressed the meeting. The crowd would not let him get away from the subject of the \ wager. He said the statement that “ the Caledonian Society had made a "4 loss was inaccurate. There was no necessity for him to deal with the matter, as it had been fully dealt with elsewhere. There was a loss made by the Society, and it had been recouped. He wished to know what authority the “liquor advocates” had for their assertions. Mr. D. J. Malone: “I’ve got the statement here. I’ll read it to ypu.” It was a long time before normal order was restored, and Mr. Robinson was calling upon the crowd to give Mr. Malone a hearing. Mr. Malone: “This is the balancesheet ” A voice: “What’s the name of the paper?” ' rr Another voice: “It’s a ‘War Cry.’ ” k (Laughter). 1 Mr. Robinson: “Wo have got a good case, and we arc not frightened of it. Give the gentleman a hearing.” Mr. Malone then read from the Wellington “Evening Post” what he °-iid was the balance-sheet of the Calodou- , ian Society. He read the items in detail. In 1910, he said, there was loss of £lO7 18s and m 1911 'there was a loss of £7B 7s 7d. Mr. Robinson was der at the time, and remarked : ‘ Yes, that’s all very well, but I not : ce it says at the bottom ‘Strike out the two \ bottom lines on both ballot papers, ’ 4 (Loud laughter). A It was some time before Mr Robinson could proceed with tie snbie- rmatter of his address. The last attempt to bring him hack to the matter of the wager, brought from him the remark, “I will make no wagtrs. It is against my principles. ’ AT THE TOWN HALL. On Sunday evening in the Town

Hall there was a full attendance. Tho Mayor, Mr <l. Masters, presided, and on the stage there were a large number of No-licouse supporters in addition to the Revs. Mctson and Harrison. In opening the meeting, the Mayor combated a statement made in a “trade” circular regarding the effect of No-license on the borough rates, stating that the loss in license fees would only bo £250 (not £619 as stated), which was only 7-f per cent, ol tho total rates (£3574), and not 301 per cent, as stated in the circular. He said, further, that in effect the circular called the majority of the people of the Dominion disreputable incorrigibles. Ho knew the writer was a local man and he thought he knew who the man was. And that man called him a “disreputable incorrigible” ! Mr Robinson was received with applause. His remarks were chiefly confined to the subject of liberty. Both parties claimed to be fighting for liberty; but it remained to be demonstrated which party’s ddea of liberty was the correct one. He contrasted personal liberty and civil duties, holding that all civil duties were restrictions of personal liberties, and that civil duties were more important than personal liberty. Restrictions were the measure of liberty. Restrictions for individual benefit constituted tyranny: restrictions for the benefit of the majority constituted true liberty. The “trade” claimed that the majority had no right to dictate to the minority, but could anybody prove that the minority had a right to dictate to the majority. He proceeded to charge the liquor party with being guilty of oppression—the opposite of. liberty. The “trade’s” claim that prohibition was too drastic was also dealt with, Mr Ribinson claiming that all previous efforts at regulation had failed, and that the only remedy was total prohibition. Mr Taylor stigmatised the present licensing law as unfair, a thirty-thou-sand majority in favour of No-licenso could not have their wishes given effect to. Ho proceeded to charge the liquor traffic with being responsible for the majority of the crime, poverty and insanity, quoting the opinions of authorities. In addition, he asked his hearers also to consider the matter merely from a business point of view, claiming that as a matter of business it would be found that liquor did not pay the country. Mr Taylor concluded with a few references to the state of the town of Mastevton. In an interval, Mr Lamason rendered a favourite prohibition solo.